Canberra Capitals

Canberra Capitals are Canberra's female basket ball side. They've enjoyed success in the WNBL having won the Premiership no less than seven times. Unfortunately the last of those wins was in 2010 and the last few years following the retirement of super-star Lauren Jackson have been a bit barren.

Sporting attention in Australia's capital city often turns towards the Canberra Raiders (rugby league) or the occasional Aussie Rules (AFL) game at Manuka. Of course there's also two or three decent games of cricket a year. In that respect the Capitals are a bit of a niche market. We'd seen them play probably four or five times at their old home of the AIS (though they also played a few games at Tuggeranong in Canberra's South).

For this season though the games are being held at Canberra's Convention Centre in the centre of town. The idea appears to be to build interest by having a sporting code in Canberra's centre - a precursor to the stadium that may or may not be built nearby in the space currently occupied by the somewhat ancient 'Olympic' pool.

Being predominantly set up for concerts makes the venue a bit odd. Seating is all on one side of the court, though in fairness the seats (being concert seats) are quite probably the comfiest (and cheapest) I've sat in for any sport, anywhere!

In the game we went to Canberra played Melbourne (and sadly lost by 29 points) so the game was all a bit one-sided. I took Audrey along with one of her friends and the two girls enjoyed the spectacle. Canberra have some good players, including captain Natalie Hurst who never stopped running. It was a nice afternoon out and they do their best to build an atmosphere. I hope the team continues to improve, it would be good to see their success return to the Capitals.

Managed to capture a three pointer on its way in!