The Cobras have announced their National Wheelchair Basketball League team for the 2018 season.

The Cobras are headlined by Kilsyth junior and Paralympian Josh Allison, and reigning league high-point MVP, Tristan Knowles. Knowles was a standout in 2017, leading the Cobras in scoring (24.5ppg), rebounding (7.0rpg) and assists (11.1ppg). Michael D’Amelio, Shawn Groenewegan, Damon Fent, David King, and Phil Turner will all return in 2018, as will Under 23 Australian Spinners duo Brian Carminati and Jontee Brown and Head Coach Shane Furness.

Following a down year which saw the Cobras finish the season in fourth place, coach Shane Furness says that his team is determined to bounce back and contend for their third championship in the past four years.

“We were pretty disappointed with where we finished last season,” Furness said.

“We ended last year with some injuries and off court distractions, but the guys have rallied with some strong pre-season trainings and additional weekend work to prepare for the 2018 season.”

“Most of the guys have been on court three times a week and training extremely hard as we look to incorporate some additional offensive structure with a more uptempo defensive set.”

The Cobras roster consists entirely of returning players in 2018, and Furness hope that the team’s cohesion will offset the fact that nine players will suit up this season – a number down from 14 in 2017.

“Unlike previous years where we had a large squad to cover injury and off-court commitments, we now have only nine players so health and injury management will be key,” Furness said.

“We’ve been at practice for a month now and the guys have a renewed sense of energy to prepare ourselves for an improvement on 2017.”

The Cobras tip-off their 2018 campaign on Saturday March 17, when they take on Adelaide in the first of four Round 1 games.