Solent Stars

Last updated

Solent Stars
League EBL Division 1 [lower-alpha 1]
Founded1980
Folded2007
ArenaFleming Park Leisure Centre
Location Southampton, England
Head coachKerry Kirby [lower-alpha 1]
OwnershipBob Paulley

The Solent Stars were a basketball club from Southampton, who were one of the founder members of the British Basketball League, where they competed from 1987 to 1990. For the rest of their existence, the club competed in the English Basketball League and its forerunner the National Basketball League, and the club were members of Division 1 at the time of the club's demise. [1]

Contents

Club history

The Stars first joined the National League in 1980, having been formed the year before by a merger of the Portsmouth Pirates and Southampton Sharks from the Southern League. Success initially came easily to the fledgling club, winning the Division Two title and the National Trophy in their first season, and claiming immediate promotion to Division One. A first Division One title followed in the 1983/1984 season, and at the end of the 1986/1987 season the club were among those who broke away from the National Basketball League to form the British Basketball League. [2]

After three years of solid if unspectacular mid-table finishes, the club struggled to find the financial backing to continue in the professional league, and after a lengthy search for more sponsors the club were forced to drop out of the top flight and return to the bottom of the English basketball structure, entering a team in Division Three (South) to keep the Stars' name alive. Despite the setback, the club were able to claim two subsequent promotions, as they took the Division Three and Division Two titles back-to-back to return to the top flight of the English game in the quickest time possible, only one step away from a return to the British league. [3]

The club finished bottom of Division One in 1996/1997 with a 0-26 record, and was relegated back to Division Two, but this only served as a springboard for further success, as they won Division Two at the first attempt and then followed this up with the Division One title in 1998/1999. For the next several years, the club continued to compete in Division One, continuing through the league's reformatting into the English Basketball League. However, on 31 August 2007, the club announced that they would no longer be fielding a senior men's team in the National League due to a dispute with their home venue, Fleming Park Leisure Centre in Eastleigh. Although owner Bob Paulley was keen to stress this was not the end for the club, they never returned to active competition. [4]

Season-by-Season Records

Season [5] DivisionPlayedWonLostPointsLeaguePlayoffsNational CupNational Trophy
Solent Stars
1980-81NBL Division 216151301stN/AQuarter-finalWinners
1981-82NBL Division 122193382ndWinners
1982-83NBL Division 124168325thWinners
1983-84NBL Division 136324641stWinnersWinners
1984-85NBL Division 126179344th
1985-86NBL Division 12812162410th
1986-87NBL Division 1247171411th
1987-88BBL281414288th
1988-89BBL2041689th
1989-90BBL28721147th
1990-91NBL Division 4 (South)12111221st
1991-92NBL Division 322202401st
1992-93NBL Division 2225171010th
1993-94NBL Division 118711148th
1994-95NBL Division 1227151410th
1995-96NBL Division 12231961st
1996-97NBL Division 1260262614th
1997-98NBL Division 224231461stWinners
1998-99NBL Division 126215421st
1999-2000NBL Division 124186363rd
2000-01NBL Conference21516107th
2001-02NBL Conference18117223rd
2002-03NBL Conference22715149th
2003-04EBL Division 122418810th
2004-05EBL Division 1225171010th
2005-06EBL Division 126422812th
2006-07EBL Division 122715148th

Notes:

Notes

  1. 1 2 At time of closing.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Plymouth Raiders</span> English national league basketball team

Plymouth Raiders are a basketball team based in Plymouth, England, currently competing in Division 3 of the National Basketball League.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Romsey Town F.C.</span> Association football club in England

Romsey Town Football Club is a football club based in Romsey, Hampshire, England. The club competes in the Wessex League Division One which is the tenth tier of English football. The club is affiliated to the Hampshire Football Association and is an FA chartered Standard club Formed in 1886, Romsey have always been around the 9th and 10th tiers of English Football but have once in their history reached the Fourth Qualifying Round of the FA Cup in the 1990–91 season. They were among the founding members of the Wessex League in 1986. The club plays at the AEC Protection Ground which they moved to in 1956.

Crystal Palace was a basketball team competing in the National Basketball League (NBL) and then the British Basketball League (BBL), until they merged with the London Towers in 1998. They played in the Crystal Palace Sports Centre and were the most successful team in Britain throughout the seventies and early eighties.

Worthing Thunder are a British professional basketball team based in Worthing, West Sussex, England, and compete in the National Basketball League (NBL). The team was originally founded in 1999 as the Worthing Rebels. They switched to their current name in 2000. The team has played their home games at the Worthing Leisure Center since their inaugural season.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Manchester Magic</span> Basketball team

The Manchester Magic are an English basketball club from the city of Manchester in the northwest of England.

Hackney White Heat was an English basketball team from the district of Hackney in London. The club were members of the top tier of the former National Basketball League before the competition was reformatted into the current English Basketball League.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Basketball League (England)</span> British basketball league

The National Basketball League, or NBL for short, is a league competition representing semi-professional and amateur basketball clubs from England and Wales. It forms levels 2 to 4 on the British basketball pyramid, in line with the Scottish Basketball Championship, sitting directly below the top tier British Basketball League.

The Calderdale Explorers are an English basketball club, based in Halifax, West Yorkshire.

The Derby Trailblazers are an English semi-professional basketball club based in Derby, Derbyshire. The club was founded in 2000 as a feeder club for the now-defunct Derby Storm, and wear the same blue and white colours as their predecessor. The Trailblazers currently compete in NBL Division 1, the second tier of the British basketball system.

The Southampton Trailblazers were a basketball club based in Southampton, England, which competed in the English Basketball League Division 3 (South) at the time of the club's demise. The clubs' home colours were navy blue and white, and their kits were manufactured by Erreà.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Essex Leopards</span> Basketball team in Essex and Hertfordshire

The Essex & Herts Leopards were an English semi-professional basketball club, based in Brentwood, Essex and St Albans, Hertfordshire. The Leopards competed in Division 1 of the English Basketball League. The team was established in 1997 as Ware Fire, but following the demise and eventual closure of the former British Basketball League franchise Essex Leopards in 2003, a supporters group known as 'Leopards Alive' merged with the Ware-based club and rebranded the team as Essex & Herts Leopards in 2004.

Portsmouth F.C. Basketball Club was a British professional basketball team based in Portsmouth, Hampshire, that played in the top league of UK basketball from 1985 to 1988. They won the league championship in the 1986–87 and 1987–88 seasons and also reached four major cup finals, including those of all three main domestic knockout competitions in 1987–88.

The Bradford Dragons are an English semi-professional basketball club based in Bradford, West Yorkshire. Founded in 2001, the Dragons currently compete in NBL Division 1, the second tier of the British basketball system.

The Derbyshire Arrows are an English basketball club based in Dronfield, Derbyshire. The Arrows play in National Basketball League Division 2 North, the third tier of British basketball. The club also have strong links with the city of Sheffield, having formerly been based at the University of Sheffield, and maintaining a partnership with the University's team.

The Westfield Health Sheffield Hatters are a Women's Basketball club from Sheffield, England, who play their home games at All Saints Catholic High School's Sports Centre. The club have been mainstays of the women's game in England for many years, having celebrated their 50th anniversary in 2011, and are founder members of the professional Women's British Basketball League, which launched in 2014.

The Women's National Basketball League (WNBL) is a women's basketball league in England, covering semi-professional and amateur levels of the game. This is effectively seen as the second tier of women's basketball in the United Kingdom, along with the less celebrated Scottish Women's National League.

Liverpool B.C. are a basketball club from the city of Liverpool, England.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Solent Kestrels</span> Basketball team in Southampton, Hampshire

The Solent Kestrels are an English professional basketball club based in the city of Southampton, Hampshire. Founded in 1998, the Kestrels play their home games at the Solent Sports Complex at Solent University, and compete in NBL Division 1, the second tier of the British basketball system.

The 2019–20 season of the English Men's National Basketball League, known as the NBL, was the 48th edition of the league. Solent Kestrels were league champions for the second consecutive year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Doncaster Danum Eagles</span> Basketball team in Doncaster, England

The Doncaster Eagles are an English basketball club, based in the city of Doncaster, South Yorkshire. The team plays in the North conference of the 2nd Division in the National Basketball League (NBL), the third tier of British Basketball.

References

  1. ↑ "Solent Stars Club Information". pawprint75.co.uk. Archived from the original on 26 April 2005.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  2. ↑ "Solent Stars 1980/1981 Season". solentstars.blogspot.co.uk.
  3. ↑ "Solent Stars - League Tables". solentstars.blogspot.co.uk.
  4. ↑ "The End of an Era". Solent Stars Club Statement. Archived from the original on 25 February 2008.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  5. ↑ "Solent Stars - League Tables". solentstars.blogspot.co.uk.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.