|
1982 was almost a year of the Great Shape Cat, with its remarkable performance to be runner up in the National League. Dubbed the Cinderella side of the NBL, Geelong almost set a new record for the number of successive wins. NBL coach of the year, Cal Bruton, revved up the Cats for 13 straight wins, falling by a game to equal St Kilda's record of 14 straight in the NBL inaugural year. The Cats finished 2nd on the ladder after the preliminary rounds and eventually lost the grand final to the West Adelaide Bearcats 80 to 74 after trailing by 22 points.
The club was one of the dominant forces in the NBL competition over the next two years finishing on top of the NBL's Western Division both years however the NBL title continued to elude the Cats. The club suffered at the hands of ownership problems during the latter part of the 1980's to the extent that a mass exodus of players at the end of 1987 contributed to a winless season in 1988- the same year the club changed its name from the Cats to the Supercats. At then end of the 1988 season a group of local business men fought together to save the club and as a result were granted a license to ensure Geelongs ongoing participation in the NBL. With stability restored respected names such as Barnes, Heal and Bateman were signed up as the club began its resurrection. It didn't take long for the Supercats to get back into the NBL finals with a top three finish in 1991. Unfortunately another exodus at the end of the '91 season resulted in the club plummeting down the ladder, again finishing last in 1992. During the mid 1990's the club was never able to rekindle the success of the previous seasons. Ultimately the clubs license was sold back to the NBL at the end of the 1996 season. After 15 years and 388 NBL games the city of Geelong no longer had a representative in the premier basketball competition in Australia. |
