The UC Capitals have returned to Canberra following a valuable weekend of preseason basketball at the Townsville Tip-Off, with the squad gaining their first opportunity to test themselves against WNBL opposition.
The Caps opened against tournament champions the Geelong Venom, before finishing the weekend with a win over the Southside Melbourne Flyers.
With a largely new-look group coming together for the first time, the two games provided an important opportunity for the Caps to begin building chemistry, establish their style of play and put their preseason work into practice.
Head Coach Paul Goriss was encouraged by the way his team moved the ball and created scoring opportunities across both games, while acknowledging there is still work to do defensively as the group continues to develop its chemistry and continuity.
“Our pillars are we want to play with great pace and great spacing. I think that over the two games, even going back-to-back, we scored enough points in both games.
“We’ve definitely got some evaluation and some work to do with the defensive end of the floor. That will come with chemistry and continuity and getting to play with each other. But I definitely like the way that the ball moved and we showed that we can score,” Goriss said.
The tournament also marked the first opportunity for new recruit Amy Atwell to get to know the team, who joins the Caps following her time with the Perth Lynx and an impressive offseason representing Australia in 3x3 basketball.
After arriving in Canberra, Atwell headed straight to Townsville to join her new teammates, spending the first few days of her Capitals journey on the road with the group.
“I loved my time at Perth, but I think I was ready for something new and to get out of my comfort zone a little bit. I’ve had a lot of energy the last three or four days just from that new environment, and I’m super excited to be here.
“It’s a great bunch of girls. I’ve been with them for three days, but it feels like two weeks. That probably helps when we’re stuck on a road trip together for three days.”
For Atwell, the opportunity to step into a new environment comes after a breakout six months on the international 3x3 circuit, where she experienced success with the Australian Gangurrus program claiming an Asia Cup title and Commonwealth Games gold medal.
“If you’d have asked me six months ago if I thought that any of that was coming, I would’ve said no and probably laughed,” Atwell said.
“Doors kind of open when you least expect it, and you’ve got to be ready for opportunity. I’ve had a really good last six months and had some success with it and had a lot of fun along the way.”
With the Townsville Tip-Off now under their belt, the Capitals return to Canberra to continue their preparations for WNBL27, with Atwell officially joining the group for training.
Goriss says the next four weeks will be about continuing to build the team's chemistry while integrating Atwell into the Capitals' systems.
“We’ve still got Amy to come back into the lineup, and you could see the glimpses of what she can bring,” Goriss said.
“We all know how good a shooter she is. The next four weeks is about bringing her up to speed with how we want to play and how we integrate playing with her.”
The UC Capitals open their 2026/27 season at home against the Bendigo Spirit on October 17. Memberships are now on sale to secure seats for every game at AIS Arena.
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