BASKETBALL: Irish basketball is on the cusp of entering the new season without a major sponsor. After rigorous work behind the scenes, Drury Sports Management has been brought in to generate leads and a number of smaller backers are being courted to help fill the void left by the withdrawal of ESB.

That is the off-court scenario but on the playing front distinctive changes have begun to materialise with Greg Gurr now a year in the job as national director of high performance and coaching for Basketball Ireland.

After 30 years of coaching all grades worldwide, the Australian is well placed to gauge the current state of affairs on the domestic scene. Preparation was the first port of call in 2004.

"Just about the number one thing every national coach said to me was: two thirds of their practice sessions was taken up going over what they went through with the players a month before, which you can understand," said Gurr. "The other complaint was the school and club competitions were interfered with every month as the players were off at national practice.

"The first major change I recommended was that the preparation of all our national squads be restricted to the last week in March through to the European championships, which are the last weekend in July, first week in August. So they are right out of the competitions season.

"So far it's going well. It's too early to tell if it's going to generate huge results but certainly the preparation of the team is a lot more effective."

Of course, school exams had to be factored in but this also upset the summer schedules of coaches. Some compromises were reached but several coaches were replaced. The priority now is to ensure the four-year strategic plan stays on track.

"I'm more than pleased with the way things are going. It's exciting times for Basketball Ireland. Ireland has always been a strong member of the European basketball community but the standards throughout Europe are on the march so we have to do a lot to keep up this year," said Gurr.