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GORDON McLeod isn’t one for outlandish statements, rhetoric or hype so when Wollongong’s coach is talking excitedly about the Hawks’ future, it’s time to listen.

After all, outside Wollongong – and perhaps not including Sydney - the Hawks are the club most NBL fans have as their “second team”.

Whether it’s their reputation for battling against the odds, suiting teams working at 70 per cent of the salary cap, their honest blue-collar culture or their history as the league’s last remaining foundation club – or maybe even a little of all of that – they retain great appeal as the “everyman” working class club.

That “take nothing for granted” and “earn your keep” mentality is personified by McLeod, the Illawarra stalwart who was there as the point guard for the club’s very first game in 1979 and is still there 35 years later calling the on-court shots.

For once though, the Hawks will be able to engage the big-budget teams on a more even playing field now they are to receive the financial backing of telecommunications guru James Spenceley.

Spenceley, 37, last year was ranked 81 on the BRW Young Rich List, the telecommunications company he founded, Vocus Communications, raising its annual revenue to $67 million.

“It’s a real positive move,” McLeod said of Spenceley’s involvement.

“Obviously our club has been working very very hard to stay in the competition and to stay competitive in the competition.

“Without this opportunity, things could have been very tough for our team to continue.”

The Hawks have been a community-based club owned by their members since they almost closed the doors for the last time in 2009.

On that occasion, the efforts of a hardy group of supporters, spearheaded by Mat Campbell, helped keep the club alive and at the last minute, Indian businessman Arun Jagatramka rescued the Hawks with the million-dollar guarantee the NBL required.

“Our club is owned by members at present and they need to be brought uptospeed on the scenarios and how it all works,” McLeod said.

“We don’t take anything for granted and it is still up to the members.”

The club still must decide to accept Spenceley’s bid when it formally is tabled at an extraordinary general meeting of Hawks members on July 14.

But the “community-owned” model has had its pitfalls and with attendances occasionally dipping below 2,000 last season – and Sunday afternoons a particularly tough ask for supporters in summer given the attraction of Wollongong’s beaches – the Hawks should finally be able to kick sand back into a few of the bigger boys’ faces.

“The exciting thing is a lot of people have put a lot into our club, financially and emotionally,” McLeod said.

“This club is a very proud one and a lot of people have worked very hard. We’ve been fighting, scrapping and holding on by our fingernails.

“James now brings his passion and his vision and it is a very exciting and positive time for our region.

“Everyone will be looked after in terms of clearing all our debts. But it’s not just about throwing money at a basketball team.

“It’s about resourcing the club, getting the members, getting the sponsors and getting the team we want.

“Our Board has worked its arse off, have put their houses on the line – they’ve gone out there on a limb and kept this baby going. People don’t see that but they have been absolutely awesome.”

Spenceley’s arrival and commitment then could not be more timely.

The off-season has been grim, with one of the whispered questions around NBL circles repeatedly being why the league is looking at expansion when at least two clubs are perpetually struggling.

Wollongong and Townsville regularly are identified as those clubs but with the Crocs restructuring and moving away from the Townsville Entertainment Centre, the ground they are on now is not quite so shaky.

And with Spenceley on board, the Hawks finally also can soar onto an even playing field.

But that’s not to say he is going to splash money around and bail when he loses interest in his new pastime.

“He has great vision for the club and is about leaving the business of running the club to people he trusts to do so,” McLeod said.

Spenceley told the Illawarra Mercury’s Tim Keeble buying into the Hawks was not an exercise in vanity.

“This is purely about business,” he told Keeble.

“I do my due diligence. I researched the team and researched the old owners, spoke to people about why they failed.

“The most successful period was under John Carson. John was a sole owner, and that means he can react quickly, make decisions and take the business side into the team.

“Then it was a period of 20 or 30 owners, and that's going to create all sorts of problems when you have that many business people who've all created their own businesses.

“The community model was great to keep the team alive but I don't think it's sustainable.

“The NBL is investing and becoming more commercial, so if we're going to take this to the next level, both the league and also the teams, it needs to be a private ownership model.”

For people such as McLeod and assistant coaches Eric Cooks and Matt Flinn, it is just a joyous relief to be able to again focus solely on putting together a team which can contend onto the hardwood.

“To those who have done so much over the past four years, congratulations - nobody bar a few of us will really ever know what you have been through,” Flinn posted on Facebook.

McLeod said he did not have a roster yet but players had been kept in the loop.

The club has lost its league MVP Rotnei Clarke though, to a more lucrative opportunity in Belgium.

It is a bit of deja vu for the Hawks after their 2011 league MVP Gary Ervin also then chose to play in Europe.

“We made Rotnei a very, very good offer,” McLeod said.

“It was the best offer we’ve made (to anyone) in my time at the club.

“But obviously when Europe comes calling, it’s very tough to resist.

“We totally understand that. Rotnei was good for our club and we were good for Rotnei.

“Our philosophy has been to look for players at the start of their journey – people who are really hungry and have the skill package.

“So it’s exciting that someone new is coming to town.”

McLeod will coach in the Worldwide Invitational Camp in Las Vegas from July 13-16, along with fellow NBL coaches Joey Wright (Adelaide 36ers), Aaron Fearne (Cairns Taipans) and Dean Vickerman (New Zealand Breakers).

“I’m going to look at some guys in Vegas cause we know they’re in our price range,” McLeod said.

As for being in the USA while Spenceley’s bid to own the team plays out, he was quick to respond.

“Don’t worry. I’m sending a proxy vote along,” he laughed.

And it sounds as if there will be a lot more cheer for the Hawks’ faithful in the coming years.

 

TOMORROW: Take a trip back to 1990 and Albert Park, scene of the Australian Women’s Club Championship.