When nothing but gold will do
By STEPHEN HOWELL
Monday 1 May 2000

By their own lofty standards, Australia's women's basketball team, the Opals, failed in the Olympic Games in Atlanta in 1996 and at the world championships in Berlin in 1998.

Their "she who dares, wins" approach means the Opals are setting themselves up for failure again in Sydney. And, as coach Tom Maher emphasised as they opened their week-long training/selection camp in Melbourne yesterday, they are happy to do so.

The target is gold, as it was in Atlanta and Berlin, where bronze hauls were a most honorable failure. Gold in Sydney in September/October is not an unrealistic aim despite the presence of the world's best, led by 1996 and '98 champions, the United States.

In fact, Maher told his players any other goal was "a bit soft".

"It's like you've got an out," he said of a lesser target. "There's nothing wrong (with failure) if you have a fair-dinkum go. Gallipoli was a loss."

At home in Atlanta and with a year working together, the US was unbeatable. Not in Sydney, a foreign court and with the team together but apart for a year - their focus will be disrupted entirely from May to late August by the American WNBA season.

From now until the Games only two certain selections, Michele Timms and Michelle Griffiths, will compromise their Opals campaign by playing in the WNBA. And they are aware that doing so probably will cost them starting spots.

They will leave for the US next week and pick up with the team after it has played the bulk of its 20-odd lead-up games in Australia and Europe.

For this week they are among 17players training hard as the Opals prepare for Sydney. (Only veteran guard Sandy Brondello, playing in the German league grand final with her club of the past half-dozen seasons, Wuppertal, is missing.)

Yesterday, three players - Rachael Sporn, Carla Boyd and Kristi Harrower - were restricted to a half-session to ensure they get through a week that demands 12 three-hour practices.