Category: Magic

Manchester Magic

Manchester Magic KitKing Trophy 2023-24

KitKing Trophy returns in September

The KitKing Trophy for teams in Basketball England’s NBL Men’s Division One is set to return in September.

The competition will again be organised by NBL1 Men’s clubs in partnership with naming rights holder Kitking.co.uk and BE. 

It will see all 14 NBL1 clubs, plus a pair of invited Division Two sides, competing in four regional groups of four.  

The additional Division two teams for 2023/24 are last season’s NBL Division Three playoff champs Milton Keynes Breakers, who topped a number of NBL Division One sides as part of a lengthy National Cup run a year ago, and former NBL D1 winners Manchester Magic, who were relegated from the top flight at the end of last season.

Holders Hemel Storm will defend their title.

KitKing have supplied winning team wear to NGBs, professional and grassroots clubs throughout the UK, Ireland, Europe and beyond since 1992. They are the UK’s leading teamwear specialist with 30 years’ experience across more than 25 sports, including basketball. 

KitKing.co.uk CEO Dips Patel said: 

“We are excited to continue our partnership with Basketball England’s NBL Division One clubs.  

“Last season’s competition was a big success and our sponsorship will further extend our help and support of the Trophy in 2022/23. 

“It’s an exciting time for the sport in the UK as basketball continues to grow. We’re pleased to be a part of that, and to be able to support Basketball England’s D1 clubs through this partnership.” 

Tim Brown, former BE Board member and chair of the Men’s Division One group, said: 

“I would like to thank KitKing.co.uk for their ongoing support as we push the competition from strength-to-strength.

“The D1 men’s clubs are continuing to grow and move the league forward as a group with Basketball England’s support, making this an exciting time for both the sport and the Trophy itself.” 

The group stages of the competition will be played from 16 September through to 24 September, with the 16 contenders split into four groups of four teams.

The games will provide a curtain raiser to the Men’s NBL Division One season, which gets under way in October.  

Playing each other once, the top two sides in each group will progress to the quarter-finals then semi-finals, with the final set to take place later in the year.

Magic’s group schedule:

Group 4      
16/09/20237.30pmDerby Trailblazers v  Manchester Magic
17/09/20233pmNewcastle Universityv  Manchester Magic
23/09/20237pmManchester Magic v  Bradford Dragons
Manchester Magic and Mystics Vacancies

Development Officer and Volunteer Safeguarding Lead

We are recruiting a Development Officer (Community) and Volunteer Safeguarding Lead.

Development Officer (Community)

We are looking for a passionate advocate for basketball with a can-do attitude.

You will have a commitment to community engagement and reaching a wide audience to encourage a love for basketball.

You must be able to create a fun and safe environment for children to learn and thrive in.

Our community programme is at the core of all our activity at Manchester Magic and Mystics. We are committed to engaging as many children as we can to play basketball for fun. Many children develop from having attended our Community programme to join our national league teams even going on to represent the country at junior and senior levels. Others come for their love of the sport and later bring their own children to learn as they did. As such, Community is at the heart of all that we do. We want children to develop their basketball ability whilst having fun and learning about good sportsmanship.

For information on how to apply see our Vacancies page here

Volunteer Safeguarding Lead

A special opportunity has arisen for an experienced safeguarding specialist to assist in the redesign and embedding of  the Club’s safeguarding function across the Club.

We are looking for a safeguarding specialist with a proven track record in child safeguarding to volunteer as a Safeguarding Lead. We are looking for someone enthusiastic about putting welfare and safeguarding at the heart of the Club with leadership skills that can help and support the processes and practices to enable this to occur.

Ideally the suitable applicant will be able to offer training focused to our Club (or be able to direct us to some high quality and individualised training). Suitable applicants will also be comfortable with adopting a highly visible role within our Club as a point of contact for safeguarding.

We are looking for an individual that can take a proactive approach and advise on the review and design (where necessary) of existing practices to enable excellent service delivery across the Club both in our national league teams and in the delivery of our community programme.

For information on how to apply see our Vacancies page here

Magic and Mystics to feature heavily at Aspire All-Star Tournament

Congratulations to Manchester Magic and Mystics players selected to represent the North at the second annual Aspire All-Star National Tournament at the National Basketball Performance Centre next weekend (8th-9th July).

Manchester Mystics players selected:

Sophie Brittain, Akeala Daniel-Small and Mojan Malek (U13 Girls, coached by Mystics’ Natalie Feurtado), Isabelle Aldcroft, Wayet Gore, Paige Jagger, Sonia Maria Matei, Irene Oboavwoduo, Jane Oboavwoduo, Tiana Walker and Anya Williams (U15 Girls).

Manchester Magic players selected:

Ben Ashraf, Oluwatimileyin Babalola, Ege Cakmakkaya, Dylan Deans, Owen Iguma, Reiley McGlade, Theo Westwood (U13 Boys), David Akhidime, Harley Blake, Rufus Everatt, Dominic Goodwin, Camran Hanson, Jack Odongo and Ayomikum Olofintila (U15 Boys)

Schedule

Saturday 8th July

9:00am

Court 1 U15 Girls North 61-43 London

Court 4 U13 Girls North 47-35 London

10:45am

Court 2 U15 Boys North 60-75 London

Court 3 U13 Boys North 33-69 London

12:30pm

Court 1 U15 Girls North 37-55 Central

Court 4 U13 Girls North 49-39 Central

2:45pm

Court 3 U15 Boys North 72-40 Central

Court 4 U13 Boys North 67-49 Central

4:00pm

Court 2 U15 Girls North 58-38 South

Court 4 U13 Girls North 30-47 South

5:45pm

Court 1 U13 Boys North 52-69 South

Court 2 U15 Boys North 64-67 South

Sunday 9 July

11:45am

Court 2 U15 Girls Final Central 63-72 North

Mystics’ Irene Oboavwoduo was MVP, Sonia Matei won the shooting point contest, plus Irene Oboavwoduo and Anya Williams made the All-Star 5.

Court 4 U13 Girls Final South 63-40 North

Mystics’ Mojan Malek made the All-Star 5.

2:00pm

Court 2 U15 Boys Third Place North 85-47 Central

Court 4 U13 Boys Third Place North 69-60 Central

Magic’s Ege Cakmakkaya made the All-Star 5.

All players receive two tickets each for spectators. Entry for all others is £3 (£1 concessions) per day and can be purchased using the button below.

Buy Tickets Here
Manchester Magic and Mystics Summer Community Basketball Camps

Magic and Mystics Summer Basketball Camps

Manchester Magic & Mystics Basketball Community Summer Camps

Monday 31st July – Friday 4th August 2023
And Monday 7th August – Friday 11th August 2023

Manchester Basketball Centre, Whalley Range High School, M16 8GW


Primary Age – Half Day 9am-12pm
Secondary Age – Half Day 9am-12pm or 1-4pm or Full Day 9am-4pm


Half day is £10 per day or £45 for the 5 days
Full day is £18 per day or £85 for the 5 days (athletes will need to bring pack lunch with them – this must not contain nut products)


To book you must complete the camp application form and then a payment request will be sent to you, places are not confirmed until payment is received – scan the QR code or click the link below, this will take you to the form. https://forms.gle/ALPpcukVuCDFYaEo6

For more information, email: info@manchestermagicandmystics.co.uk

Manchester Magic and Mystics Vacancies

Volunteer Assistant Coaches

We are recruiting Volunteer Assistant Coaches.

We are looking for assistant coaches with a child first approach to development and learning, and a commitment to player development and continuous personal improvement.

This is a great opportunity to develop coaching skills for those new to coaching but experienced as players or newly qualified and established assistant coaches.

For information on how to apply see our Vacancies page here

Summer of International Basketball 2023

Summer of International Basketball Schedule 2023

It’s come to that time of year when our players represent their national teams at the FIBA European Championships, here we’ll bring you up to speed with the latest results as and when they happen and let you know how our current and former players have been getting on. (Dates and times subject to change)

All links are to LiveStats, for LiveStreaming you must sign up to https://gbbasketball.tv

Great Britain Senior Men No games

Great Britain Senior Women 15-25 June 2023: FIBA Women’s EuroBasket – Israel/Slovenia – Group C (Former Mystic’ Nicolette Fairley (Fong-Lyew-Quee)

15 June – GB Women 76-71 Slovenia at 5:00pm – Nicolette did not play.

16 June – France 63-57 GB Women at 2:00pm – Nicolette did not play.

18 June – Germany 62-61 GB Women at 11:15am – Nicolette did not play.

20 June Qualifiers to ¼ Serbia 66-60 GB at 8:00pm – Nicolette played 3 minutes, had a rebound.

Great Britain U20 Men 7-16 July 2023: FIBA U20 Men European Championships Div B – Skopje, North Macedonia – Group B (Magic’s Joseph Buchanan and former Magic’ Victor Faroukou).

7 July GB 72-63 Austria 8:00pm – Victor started, played 29 minutes, had 14 points, 5 rebounds and a block, Joe played 6 minutes.

8 July Portugal 63-55 GB 3:00pm – Victor started, played 35 minutes, had a team-high 11 points (11/11 Free Throws) and 6 rebounds, Joe played 15 minutes, had 4 points and 2 rebounds.

9 July GB 60-67 Luxemburg 12:30pm – Victor started, played 22 minutes, had 3 points, 3 rebounds and 3 assists, Joe played 2 minutes.

11 July Hungary 54-57 GB 12:30pm – Victor started, played 22 minutes, had 10 points, 4 rebounds, an assist and a steal, Joe played 16 minutes, had a point and 2 rebounds.

14 July Quarter Final North Macedonia 66-49 GB 5:30pm – Victor started, played 33 minutes, had 7 points, 6 rebounds and an assist, Joe played 8 minutes, had a rebound.

15 July 5th-8th Classification Games GB 78-82 Netherlands 12:30pm – Victor started, played 15 minutes, had 5 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists and a steal, Joe played 11 minutes, had 2 points and a rebound.

16 July 7th-8th Classification Game GB 74-82 Switzerland 10:00am – Victor started, played 22 minutes, 7 points, a rebound, 2 assists and a steal, Joe played 14 minutes, had 10 points and 2 assists.

GB U20 Men finish 8th out of 16.

Great Britain U20 Women 28 July-6 August 2023: FIBA U20 Women European Championships Div B – Craiova, Romania – Group A (Former Mystic’ Charli Wroe)

28 July Ukraine 54-74 GB 1:30pm – Charli played 12 minutes, had 4 assists and a steal.

30 July GB 41-65 Germany 1:30pm – Charli played 8 minutes, had 2 rebounds and an assist.

2 August GB 61-72 Switzerland 4:00pm – Charli played 7 minutes, had 2 points.

4 August 9th-17th Classification Games GB 78-44 Georgia 11:00am (Group E) – Charli played 22 minutes, had 6 points, a rebound, 5 assists and 2 steals.

5 August 9th-17th Classification Games GB 57-67 Greece 1:30pm (Group E) – Charli started, played 26 minutes, had 6 points, a rebound, 6 assists and a steal.

6 August 11th-12th Classification Game GB 59-68 Slovakia 2:00pm – Charli started, played 32 minutes, had 4 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists and a steal.

GB U20 Women finish 12th out of 17.

Great Britain U18 Men 21-30 July 2023: FIBA U18 Men European Championships Div B – Matosinhos, Portugal – Group A (Magic’s Matthew Goodwin)

21 July GB 77-68 Iceland 8:30pm – Matthew played 8 minutes, had 4 points, a rebound and an assist.

22 July North Macedonia 68-84 GB 6:00pm – Matthew played 7 minutes, had 2 rebounds.

25 July GB 79-64 Austria 3:30pm – Matthew played 15 minutes, had 6 points and a rebound.

26 July Norway 73-84 GB 1:00pm – Matthew played 11 minutes, had 2 rebounds and 2 assists.

28 July Quarter Final GB 62-65 Montenegro 1:00pm – Matthew played 3 minutes, had an assist.

29 July 5th-8th Classification Games GB 79-67 Romania 1:00pm – Matthew played 6 minutes, had a rebound and a steal.

30 July 5th-6th Classification Game GB 95-94 OT Netherlands 6:00pm – Matthew played 11 minutes, had 8 points, 2 assists and 2 steals.

GB U18 Men finish 5th out of 22.

Great Britain U18 Women 30 June-9 July 2023: FIBA U18 Women European Championships Div B – Sofia, Bulgaria – Group B (Former Mystic’ Olivia Forster)

30 June Bosnia and Herzegovina 55-48 GB 6:30pm – Olivia played 18 minutes, had a team-high 14 points (4/8 3pts), 2 rebounds and a steal.

2 July GB 55-58 Ireland 11:00am – Olivia played 24 minutes, had 12 points, a rebound, 3 assists and a steal.

5 July Norway 57-55 GB 1:30pm – Olivia played 24 minutes, had 9 points, 2 rebounds, an assist and 3 steals.

6 July 9th-18th Classification Games Denmark 51-57 GB 1:30pm (Group E) – Olivia played 31 minutes, had a team-high 23 points (4/7 3pts), 4 rebounds, 2 assists and 7 steals.

7 July 9th-18th Classification Games GB 64-62 North Macedonia 1:30pm (Group E)- Olivia started, played 28 minutes, had a tied team-high 11 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists and a steal.

8 July 9th-18th Classification Games Netherlands 74-53 GB 11:00am (Group E) – Olivia started, played 27 minutes, 10 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists.

9 July 11th-12th Place Classification Game GB 40-53 Estonia 11:00am – Olivia played 3 minutes, had an assist.

GB U18 Women finish 12th of 18.

Great Britain U16 Men 4-13 August 2023: FIBA U16 Men European Championships Div B – Pitesti, Romania – Group B (Magic’s Jack Walton)

4 August Estonia 86-55 GB 1:30pm – Jack started, played 25 minutes, had a team-high 14 points, 7 rebounds, an assist and 7 steals.

5 August GB 57-59 Ukraine 6:30pm – Jack started, played 23 minutes, had 3 points, 3 rebounds and 3 steals.

6 August Norway 64-100 GB 1:30pm – Jack started, played 20 minutes, had 9 points, 4 rebounds, 7 assists and 3 steals.

9 August GB 60-67 Hungary 4:00pm – Jack started, played 25 minutes, had 6 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists.

11 August 9th-16th Classification Games Iceland 63-83 GB 11:00am – Jack played 18 minutes, had 7 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists and a steal.

12 August 9th-12th Classification Games GB 69-64 Sweden 4:00pm – Jack played 13 minutes, had 2 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals.

13 August 9th-10th Classification Game GB 69-83 Denmark 4:30pm – Jack played 25 minutes, had 11 points, a rebound and 8 assists

GB U16 Men finish 10th of 21.

Great Britain U16 Women 10-19 August 2023: FIBA U16 Women European Championships Div B – Podgorica, Montenegro – Group C (Mystics’ Irene Oboavwoduo and Maisie Keyes)

10 August GB 65-54 Iceland 12:30pm – Irene started, played 35 minutes, had 13 points, 6 rebounds, 3 assists and 9 steals, Maisie played 23 minutes, had 10 points, 2 rebounds, an assist, 2 steals and a block

11 August Bosnia and Herzegovina 46-61 GB 8:00pm – Irene started, played 26 minutes, had 6 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, 4 steals and 2 blocks, Maisie started, played 33 minutes, had 11 points, 10 rebounds, an assist and 2 steals

12 August GB 78-49 Netherlands 5:30pm – Irene started, played 25 minutes, had 12 points, 5 rebounds, an assist and 2 steals, Maisie started, played 27 minutes, had 3 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, 5 steals and a block.

14 August Denmark 50-75 GB 8:00pm – Irene started, played 14 minutes, had 4 points and 4 rebounds, Maisie started, played 20 minutes, 9 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists and a steal.

17 August Quarter Final GB 65-66 Estonia 8:00pm – Irene started, played 21 minutes, had 8 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists and 5 steals, Maisie played 22 minutes, had 6 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists and a steal.

18 August 5th-8th Classification Games Romania 53-67 GB 3:00pm – Irene started, played 17 minutes, had 14 points, 5 rebounds and 3 steals, Maisie played 22 minutes, had 2 points, 3 rebounds and 3 assists.

19 August 5th-6th Classification Game Iceland 69-62 GB 3:00pm – Irene started, played 27 minutes, had 14 points, 3 rebounds, an assist and a steal, Maisie played 14 minutes, had 3 points, 2 rebounds, an assist and a steal.

GB U16 Women finish 6th of 20.

Manchester Magic and Mystics Appoint new Operations and Finance Manager

Manchester Magic and Mystics appoint new Operations and Finance Manager

The Manchester Magic and Mystics Basketball Club are delighted to announce the appointment of Sam Longley as the new Operations and Finance Manager. Sam brings to the club a wealth of experience in sports development, management, and governance, as well as substantial expertise in financial management and compliance. Sam has held similar positions both in sport and industry and will no doubt make a significant contribution to the continuous growth of the club on and off the court.

Club Trustee Will Brown expressed his excitement at the appointment: “Sam is a perfect fit for our family. She will be a great asset to the club as we embark on a series of brand-new development initiatives across both the community and national league programmes”

Sam is also excited at the prospect of taking the helm at the Manchester Basketball Centre

“I’m really pleased to be appointed the Operations and Finance Manager for the club. I’m keen to work with the Trustees to develop and grow the club to its full potential whilst supporting the growth of the sport alongside the Director of Basketball. The passion of the athletes and the drive of the club volunteers is something I look forward to embracing and developing further. Success requires hard work, determination, a team approach and setting realistic yet ambitious goals. These are things I look to embrace during my journey.”

For anything related to the club’s operations and finances, and to discuss potential partnerships please contact Sam at sam@manchestermagicandmystics.co.uk

Manchester Magic and Mystics Vacancies

Vacancies: Court Supervisors

Court Supervisors

We are recruiting Court Supervisors.

We are looking for individuals with a can-do attitude and a commitment to great customer service to welcome and support our players and visitors to the Manchester Basketball Centre.

You will be the first point of contact for parents and children in our community programme as well as visitors and players on game day.

You will ensure that the Manchester Basketball Centre is a safe, clean and comfortable environment for all spectators, players, volunteers and employees. This includes monitoring spectator behaviour to ensure that it is maintained in line with the Club’s Code of conduct, health and safety, and safeguarding procedures.

You will be able to provide First Aid to players on court or to visitors to the Centre, if so required.

You will act as the event manager in the presentation of Senior Men and Women’s games (or support the event manager).

You will be passionate about working in an environment that supports the development of young people through sports.

For information on how to apply see our Vacancies page here

Manchester Magic and Mystics lead the way for England U14s at the Tri-Nations in Dundee 2023

Manchester Magic and Mystics lead the way for England U14s at the Tri-Nations in Dundee

Manchester Magic and Mystics lead the way for England U14s at the Tri-Nations in Dundee, as Magic’s David Akhidime (pictured directly below second from right) and Mystics’ Mojan Malek (pictured below second from right) earn All-Star 5 honours.

Magic’s David Akhidime Tri-Nations All-Star 5
Mystics’ Mojan Malek Tri-Nations All-Star 5

In the girls’ standings England 2 finished first, with England 1 as runners up and in the boys’ England 2 remained undefeated to win their crown and Wales took second. 

On hand to present the medals was Scottish and British basketball legend Kieron Achara. 

Manchester Magic players selected were, David Akhidime, Luca Boothe, Ege Cakmakkaya and Camran Hanson. Manchester Mystics players selected were, Mojan Malek, Tiana Walker and Anya Williams. 

Results:

Saturday 27 June

Girls – Court 1
9:00: England 1 113-20 Wales
11:00: Scotland White 29-110 England 2
13:15: Scotland Blue 54-78 England 1
15:15: England 2 103-17 Wales
17:00: Scotland White 23-104 England 1 – Tiana Walker top scored with 22 

Boys – Court 2
9:00: England 1 50-53 Wales
11:00: Scotland White 19-70 England 2 – Camran Hanson scored 34
13:15: Scotland Blue 71-85 England 1
15:15: England 2 83-60 Wales – David Akhidime scored 24
17:00: Scotland White 44-96 England 1

Sunday 28 May

Girls
9:00: Scotland Blue 54-73 England 2 – Mojan Malek scored 26, including 10 field goals
13:00: England 1 39-44 England 2

Boys
9:00: Scotland Blue 61-96 England 2
13:00: England 1 50-56 England 2

Manchester Magic and Mystics England U14 Tri-Nations Tournament 2023

Magic and Mystics selected in England U14 squads for the Tri-Nations tournament this month

Boys and girls teams will travel to Dundee to take on the other home countries – Scotland and Wales – from 26-28 May.  

Dan Petts and Ruth Eytle will lead the boys and girls respectively, as the players continue their England Talent Programme development following their recent trip to Spain for the Globasket tournament. U14 and 15s teams will also travel to Serbia this summer.

Schedule:

Manchester Magic and Mystics players selected:

U14 Boys 
David Akhidime, Luca Boothe, Ege Cakmakkaya and Camran Hanson.
U14 Girls 
Mojan Malek, Tiana Walker and Anya Williams.