Kodi Augustus
A POTENTIAL season-ending injury to import Kodi Augustus is threatening to unravel the Ballarat Miners’s push to play in South East Australian Basketball League finals for the first time since 2006.
Ballarat Basketball Club yesterday confirmed the United States import had a broken right arm.
He sustained the injury when he landed on his elbow against Albury-Wodonga at Albury on Saturday night. X-rays have confirmed a fracture in the radius bone.
The Holden Miners have been told that two months is the quickest recovery time they can expect.
They were yesterday seeking another medical opinion in the hope of getting a better outlook, but head coach Guy Molloy told The Courier he was not optimistic.
The SEABL regular season still has more than three months to run, with play-offs beginning mid-August.
However, even if he is fit to resume training in two months, he will still be short of match fitness.
Molloy said having the break in his shooting arm did not help.
“It’s a kick in the guts for Kodi and the team,” he said.
Molloy said this setback would stretch the Miners’ playing stocks to the limit.
It leaves them with just eight permanent players on their roster.
Augustus continues a horror run for the Miners and Ballarat Rush in the SEABL women’s conference.
Rush guard Cass Hobbs will miss the rest of the season after suffering a knee injury against the Lady Bandits on Saturday.
Hobbs tore an anterior cruciate ligament, which will require reconstructive surgery.
Augustus is one of four imports the Miners have had in their ranks this year. He was recruited after the departure of the Miners’ initial imports Gerard Anderson and Joe Harden, who quit their contracts on the eve of the season to return to the US.
The Miners only last month secured a second import, Wollongong Hawks forward Tim Coenraad.
Augustus arrived in Ballarat underdone, but Molloy has been working hard with him and was pleased with his progress.
“It’s fair to say he came out here out of shape.
“I’ve been taking him for four extra sessions a week.”
Molloy said Augustus had been starting to show that he would be a significant factor in the SEABL.
“He was beginning to show some touch. Importantly, he is committed and enjoying it. He is a good fit for us.”
The Miners will have to decide whether to keep Augustus in Ballarat while he recovers in the hope of having him back on court late in the season or allow him to return home to the US.
The Miners and Rush face testing assignments against Hobart in Ballarat on Saturday night.
