JOHN TRIVELLIONSCOTT
1992 and 2000 Australian Men’s Team Manager
The Australian Men’s Basketball Team Manager strolled into the Athlete’s Food Hall at the Barcelona 1992 Olympic Games. The Hall was empty except for two athletes. “I noticed this huge male Bulgarian weightlifter and a tiny female Romanian gymnast sitting opposite each other. They were obviously having language difficulties and understanding each other, but nevertheless they were laughing and enjoying themselves. It struck me that here is another side of the Olympics. Two very different people from two different countries were struggling to communicate but having a great time. It was the Olympic Spirit from another perspective,” remembers John TrivellionScott.
John TrivellionScott was born on the 2nd of April 1946 in Wollongong NSW.
He started basketball when he was a student at Wollongong Secondary Technical School in 1959. He was introduced to basketball through the school physical education program. John’s main sport at the time was football (soccer).
His commitment to basketball began the next year when legendary coach Tom Penrose arrived at the school (now called Keira Boys High School) in 1960. Penrose was a basketball coach of the highest order and had been extremely successful at Forbes prior to arriving in Wollongong. Penrose established a strong junior program through the school and within the local Illawarra Basketball Association. TrivellionScott says, “Tom Penrose had a huge influence on my life and it was because of him that I developed a lifelong passion for basketball as a player, coach and administrator.
John soon developed into an Illawarra representative basketball player at the junior level and then at the senior level. He represented NSW at the Under 16 level at the Australian Championships in 1961. He played basketball in Wollongong with many NSW junior and senior representative players such as Bob Kubbinga, Alan Jones, Peter and David Brettell, Adrian Hurley and Ray Hannett. He played in the first interstate League the South Eastern Conference for a number of years until a knee injury cut short his playing career.
He commenced coaching when he was 17 years of age and coached a number of Illawarra junior women’s teams to win the NSW Championships. In 1974 and 1975 he coached the Illawarra Men’s Team and it was in this period that the Club became the Illawarra Hawks. In 1976 Adrian Hurley returned from the USA and became the Coach and TrivellionScott the Assistant Coach. The next season John became the team manager. In the next few years the Hawks under TrivellionScott’sassistant coaching and management undertook their first overseas tours when they went to New Zealand and the Philippines.
During this period John also served on the Board of the Illawarra Association and held positions such as Director of Referees (at 17 years of age) and Treasurer. In 1978 he became a Director for the Hawks as they prepared to enter the National Basketball League (NBL). He served as a Director for the Hawks for many years and represented the Hawks and the Illawarra Association on the NBL Board.
After over 50 years of serving the Illawarra Association and the Illawarra/Wollongong Hawks TrivellionScott retired from further direct involvement with the Hawks or the Illawarra Association. His contribution to both Illawarra and the Hawks had been immense as he was a driving force in keeping the Hawks in the NBL and financially viable. The Hawks are the only original NBL Club that survives in the NBL today.
John TrivellionScott was appointed the Manager of the Australian Men’s Team (Boomers) in 1989. His first duties were in the Kareem Abdul Jabbar Series. That same year he managed the Boomers against the NBL All Stars, in the Oceania Championships, and on a 17 match tour of the USA. His management in 1990 included games against the NBL, the Goodwill Games and the 1990 World Championships in Argentina. Games against Italian Club Fortitudo Bologna, in the Oceania Championships and a tour to Europe completed his management duties1991.
1992 was a big year for John as he managed the Boomers in a series in Australia against China, in the NBL series, for the Tynan and Eyre game, against the South West Conference All Stars, and the CBA and South Australian All Stars prior to the 1992 Barcelona Olympic Games. The Barcelona Olympic Game fulfilled a lifetime ambition for John which started so many years ago at Keira Boys High School. The Boomers finished in 6th place in Barcelona, their second best Olympic result to that time.
After the Barcelona Olympic Games John concentrated on his business interests until he was appointed Manager of the Boomers in 1997. This was a particularly satisfying and important appointment in light of the Olympic Games being held in Sydney in 2000.
In 1997 John managed the Boomers in the Croatian Series in Australia, in the Oceania Men’s World Qualification Championships in New Zealand, and in the US Colleges Teamtour to Australia. In 1998the Boomers under John’s management played Japan and Canada in series in Australia, in the Goodwill Games in the USA where the team won the Silver Medal and finally in the World Championships in Greece where the Boomers finished in 9th position.
The next two years became very busy for John and the Boomers as the Australian Sports Commission and Basketball Australia made every effort to ensure a good result in Sydney 2000. 1999 for the Boomers included the Berlin Super Cup, the Acropolis Tournament in Greece and a series at home against Canada.
In 2000 the Boomers under John’s management played in the Olympic Test Event, in a series against Russia in Australia, on a tour to Europe (Italy and France) and in the inaugural FIBA Diamond Ball in Hong Kong which the Boomers won. In their final preparations leading into Sydney 2000 the Boomers played the USA in Melbourne and Lithuania in Wollongong.
The Sydney 2000 Games were another great highlight in John’s career. Playing at home was a great thrill, though it did place greater strains and expectations on the team and management staff. After a slow start the Boomers powered home to take fourth place in the tournament and equal their best ever Olympic result.
During John’s tenure as Manager of the Boomers he built an outstanding reputation for attention to detail, placing the team and player’s interests first and being able to solve the unforseen management problems.
John TrivellionScott retired from basketball management after Sydney 2000. He had managed the Boomers for eight years and been to two World and Olympic Championships. In all, he had managed Australia in 159 games. He became only the thirdvolunteer Boomers Manager to manage the team at two Olympic Games (the others being Bob Staunton and Frank Angove).
His effect and legacy on Illawarra and Wollongong Hawks basketball has been immense and he has been an outstanding Manager for the Boomers.
John TrivellionScott has been awarded the Basketball Australia Merit Award, the Australian Sports Medal, the Illawarra President’s Award, the Wollongong Hawks Chairman’s Award and is a Life Member of both the Illawarra Association and the Wollongong Hawks. He is retired and lives in Wollongong.
(Andy Zakeli-Fairfax Media)
I was awarded the IBA Presidents award and the Hawks NBL Chairman’s award and given life membership of both the IBA and the Wollongong Hawks.
DOB 02/04/46
Getting Started
My Introduction to B’Ball was at W’gong Secondary Technical School in 1959. It was my first year of High School and Tony Taylor was our Sports Teacher. It was during his PE class that I experienced the game of B’Ball for the first time. The following year the school changed its name to Keira Boys High and Tom Penrose had arrived from Forbes as the schools new Sports Master. Tom had and enormous impact on B’ball within the school and the IBA setting up a strong junior program that still exists today.
Early influences
Tom was a huge influence on my life and it was because of him that I developed a lifelong passion for the sport as a Player and as a Coach and an Administrator.
My Junior team mates form Illawarra Rep. and School teams were Ray Norris, Bob Capaan, Allan Jones, John Baker, Bob and Hendric Kubbinga. In later years representing Illawarra in Sate and SEABLE competitions it was people like Allan Jones, Bob kubbinga, Ray Hannett, Hugh Brandon, Adrain Hurley, Peter and David Brettell
Junior Career
Because we were basically the first juniors developed in the Illawarra I pretty much played in all the junior rep teams and recall playing with the senior rep team at the age of 14 on a trip to Newcastle. I first represented NSW at the 1961 U-16 Australian Junior Championships in Toowoomba along with players such as Jeff Davies, Albert Leslie.
IBA / Hawks
I started coaching junior girls teams local competitions and state championships as a 17 year old winning several state championships. Many years later I went on to coach the Illawarra Hawks (pre NBL) when Ted Weston went to the USA for an extended holiday. It was while the team was in my tenure that we named ourselves the Hawks. I continued coaching the Hawks but when Adrian Hurley returned from the US with his Doctorate the Head Coaching roll was handed over to him and I became his assistant, a year later I moved to the teams Manager. It was during my time as the Hawks Coach (pre NBL) that we managed for the first time ever to take a Hawks team on two overseas tours to the Philippines and New Zealand.
I was an IBA director for many years holding down several positions. My first being was as director of Referees at the age of 17 and later becoming treasurer and then the director responsible for the Hawks after having attended the first meeting in 1978 to form the NBL. I did represent the IBA on the board of the NBL for some years. After 31 seasons of involvement with the Hawks I retired from any direct involvement. I was awarded the IBA Presidents award and the Hawks NBL Chairman’s award and given life membership of both the IBA and the Wollongong Hawks.
Maybe an Introductory Bio
One of my fondness memories of being involved with basketball was when I attended the 1992 Barcelona Olympics. At 11.30 one evening I had gone down on my own to one of the food halls for dinner. As it turned out place was almost empty and after having collect my food I was looking for somewhere to sit when I noticed this huge male Bulgarian Weightlifter and this tiny female Romanian gymnast sitting opposite each other. They were obviously having difficulty understanding each other but they were laughing out loud and just enjoying one another’s company. To me I felt his was the other side of what the Olympics is all about. Here were two very different people from different countries sitting down having a meal struggling to communicate with other but having a great time.