Taylah Giliam wins WNBL championship ring

When Taylah Giliam left her Nilma North home to play basketball in Queensland she didn’t expect to return eight weeks later with a championship to her name.

Her team, Southside Flyers won the WNBL championship last month defeating the Townsville Fire in Townsville.

It was a baptism of fire for Taylah, COVID-19 quarantine before eight weeks in a hub and an intense season culminating in the grand final.

“It was worth every bit of it, but even now it feels like a blur,” she said.

The team spent eight weeks living in two hubs - one in Townsville and the other in Cairns, sometimes playing four games of basketball a week.

“In many ways with our schedule we were very lucky and I wouldn’t change it. In the circumstances we were playing basketball and able to have a season. It was crazy but it was better than not playing.”

Taylah said the hub gave her the opportunity to bond with the players she had spent so much time admiring including Liz Cambage, Jenna O’Hea, Leilani Mitchell and Rebecca Cole.

“Liz, Jenna and Leilani all played with the Opals so we had so much strength and experience in our team. Our bench was awesome."