By JARROD POTTER
AN INTERNATIONALLY sized headache of the rest of the Big V has just landed on the Casey Cavaliers’ roster.
Matt Pebole, 24, from Red Bank, New Jersey, has pledged to play Cavalier ball in 2014 and has already made a significant impact on the court.
Pebole has used his basketball talents like a passport – playing in the Italian and Danish leagues after finishing college with Hobart College, New York.
“I played my whole life – played college at Hobart, a small college in upstate New York, played in Italy for a little bit this season and Denmark last season,” Pebole said.
Previously playing at Jonstrup in Denmark – the nearly two-metre tall swingman will offer Casey some great intensity at the basket and help Cavaliers centre Dean Johnson out on rebounds.
He’s now found himself down under and ready to push the Casey Cavaliers towards an inaugural men’s championship and was pivotal in the Cavaliers pre-season campaign over the Labour Day long weekend in Frankston.
“So far it’s great, everyone has been good to me, and it’s a really high level of competition, so I really like it so far,” Pebole said.
Casey coach Stewart Baird said Pebole and other older recruits for the Cavaliers will give the side a much-needed experience boost heading into the Big V season this weekend – with Casey heading to Wodonga and Shepparton for a country double header.
“We wanted some more experience,” Baird said.
“We had a very young group last year and they played their hearts out and they’re very talented – but the lack of experience and age showed up mid-season and we had that run of losses that really hurt us.”
Casey faces Wodonga at 7pm on Saturday.
