Newcastle Eagles

Early years and move to Tyneside The club's roots can be traced back to the founding of EPAB Sunderland in 1976. The club played in Washington at the Northumbria Centre under various monikers throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, managing a second place league finish in 1983, as well as two play-off victories at Wembley in 1981 & '83. In 1995, the owner Dave Elderkin moved the club to Newcastle, to be known as the Newcastle Comets. In the BBL Cup the Eagles were beaten 204–182 on aggregate by the Mersey Tigers in the semi-finals. Eagles had won the first leg at home 97–90 but lost the second leg away 114–85. It was the Mersey Tigers who would beat the Eagles in the semi-finals of the BBL Trophy also. After a rare first leg draw (82–82) away from home, the Eagles went down 77–74 at home. Modern era was one of Eagles' star players, with three won BBL Cup MVPs. The club repeated the feat of 2005–06 by winning all of the trophies on offer in a season for a second time 2011–12. The previous season was the first time since 2003–04 that they had failed to win a trophy. They lost 7 league games, 3 less than in 2005–06, although this time around they were only required to play 30 games, 10 less than in 2005–06. They clinched the clean sweep with a victory over Leicester in the play-off final on 12 May. A hat-trick of sweeps was completed in the 2014–15 season. Eagles Community Arena In January 2019, the Eagles moved into their own purpose-built arena on the Scotswood Road. Success did not follow them there at first, as they crashed out of the BBL Trophy, Cup and Playoffs without reaching any finals, and finished 3rd in the BBL for the second consecutive season. On the night of their first preseason game ahead of the 2019-20 British Basketball League season, the club was rocked by the announcement that head coach Fabulous Flournoy would leave the club after 17 years. Flournoy joined the Toronto Raptors, the then-defending NBA champions, as an assistant coach, reuniting with his friend and mentor Nick Nurse, who gave him his first professional contract with the Birmingham Bullets in 1996. Assistant coach Ian MacLeod was announced as his interim replacement as head coach. In a season cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic, MacLeod was able to lead the Eagles to the 2020 BBL Trophy title, defeating NBL side Solent Kestrels, which had made an historic run as an invited team from the English NBL by beating established BBL clubs London Lions and Bristol Flyers, as well as fellow NBL side Worthing Thunder. In the following 2020-21 season, further success followed as the club defeated London in two tense finals to capture the BBL Cup and Playoffs titles, recording their 6th and 7th titles in those competitions respectively, the most for any BBL club. The following season, however, saw the Eagles slump to 9th in the regular season and miss out on postseason basketball for the first time since 2000. The 2022-23 season saw Great Britain coach Marc Steutel replace MacLeod as head coach. The team continued to struggle in all competitions, but returned to the Playoffs. Results improved in the following 2023-24 season, as the team avoided a third straight losing season, recorded a 6th place finish in the league, and advanced to the semi-finals in the Playoffs, where they lost to a dominant London Lions side which included former NBA players Sam Dekker and David Nwaba. Newcastle also fulfilled a dream long held by owner Paul Blake by making their first foray into European basketball since the club moved to the city, entering the European North Basketball League for the first time. A strong debut campaign followed, as the Eagles finished 3rd in their group and advanced to the playoffs, where they narrowly lost in a two-legged tie to eventual champions Bakken Bears of Denmark. Eagles guard Rickey McGill was named MVP for the 2023-24 ENBL season. In the off-season following the 2023-24 BBL season, the league's operating company was stripped of its licence to organise the league by governing body British Basketball due to financial concerns. A consortium of the participating clubs was issued a 3-year interim licence to organise a new league, which was christened Super League Basketball, and replaced the BBL as the premier professional league in Britain. In the first season of the SLB era, the Eagles secured their first silverware under Marc Steutel by winning the SLB Trophy in dominant fashion over Bristol Flyers. With this victory, team stalwart and captain Darius Defoe won his record-extending 28th British title. == Women's team history ==

After the 2017-18 Women's British Basketball League season, Northumbria University decided that they were going to focus on BUCS competitions going forward, which meant that their successful Team Northumbria WBBL team would be shut down. The Newcastle Eagles and the university came to an agreement where the Eagles would take over the Team Northumbria WBBL side and keep a top-flight women's team in the North East. In Newcastle Eagles colours, the women's team have been competitive, reaching the Playoffs final twice and the Cup final once, although a first major trophy as Eagles continues to elude them. The first Eagles women's head coach was Chris Bunten, who moved across to the Eagles from Team Northumbria after previously leading the university side to the WBBL Playoffs title in 2016. Several players moved across with him, including new captain Giulia Simioni and team regular Rachael Bland. The team's first season in Eagles colours yielded a 7th-place finish in the league and early exits from other competitions. The 2019-20 season, which was cut short due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, saw some improvement, as the Eagles reached the semi-final of the WBBL Cup. In the 2020-21 season, despite another 7th-place finish in the league, the Eagles reached the final of the WBBL Playoff, after defeating the 2nd-placed Leicester Riders 79-73 in the quarter-final and league champions Sevenoaks Suns 79-72 in the semi-final. An historic title for the underdogs was not to be, however, as the Eagles fell 93-71 to London Lions in the final. ==Home venues==

• 1976–1978 - Northumbria Centre, Washington • 1978–1991 - Crowtree Leisure Centre, Sunderland • 1991–1995 - Northumbria Centre, Washington • 1995–2010 - Metro Radio Arena, Newcastle upon Tyne • 2010–2018 - Sport Central, Newcastle upon Tyne • 2019–present - Vertu Motors Arena, Newcastle upon Tyne ==Season-by-season records==

Men SLB season-by-season Women • - Season in progress ==European record==

=== European North Basketball League === • - Season in progress ==Club statistics records==

Accurate as of 7 October 2014 (Includes BBL Championship games only) • 3 pts scored – Russ Saunders 716 • Assists – Fabulous Flournoy – 1,528 • Blocked shots – Fabulous Flournoy – 320 • Defensive rebounds – Fabulous Flournoy – 1,497 • Field Goals scored – Charles Smith – 1,621 • Free Throws scored – Charles Smith – 761 • Games Played – Fabulous Flournoy – 393 • Offensive Rebounds – Darius Defoe – 894 • Personal Fouls – Fabulous Flournoy – 1,075 • Points – Charles Smith – 5,897 • Steals – Fabulous Flournoy – 605 • Total Rebounds – Fabulous Flournoy – 2,139 • Turnovers – Fabulous Flournoy – 910 ==Honours==

League • BBL Championship • Winners: 7 (2005–06, 2007–08, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2011–12, 2013–14, 2014–15) • Runners-up: 6 (1990–91, 2004–05, 2010–11, 2012–13, 2015–16, 2016–17) • NBL First Division • Runners-up: 1 (1982–83) • NBL Second Division • Winners: 1 (1977–78) Playoffs • BBL Playoffs • Winners: 7 (2004–05, 2005–06, 2006–07, 2008–09, 2011–12, 2014–15, 2020–21) • Runners-up: 5 (1989–90, 1990–91, 2012–13, 2013–14, 2016–17) • WBBL Playoffs • Runners-up: 2 (2020–21, 2023–24) • NBL Playoffs • Winners: 2 (1980–81, 1982–83) • Runners-up: 1 (1981–82) Trophy • SLB Trophy • Winners: 1 (2024–25) • Runners-up: 1 (2025–26) • BBL Trophy • Winners: 7 (2004–05, 2005–06, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2011–12, 2014–15, 2019-20) • Runners-up: 4 (2000–01, 2006–07, 2007–08, 2015–16) Cup • BBL Cup • Winners: 6 (2005–06, 2011–12, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2020–21) • Runners-up: 3 (2007–08, 2012–13, 2013–14) • WBBL Cup • Runners-up: 1 (2021–22) • English National Cup • Winners: 1 (1990–91) • Runners-up: 1 (1989–90) European competitions • European North Basketball League • Runners-up: 1 (2024–25) ==Players==

Men's team roster Women's team roster Notable former players :To appear in this section a player must have either: – Set a club record or won an individual award as a professional player. – Played at least one official international match for his senior national team at any time. • - Tosan Evbuomwan • - Olu Babalola • - Stedroy Baker • - Flinder Boyd • - Tony Dorsey • - Perry Lawson • - Richard Midgley • - Peter Scantlebury • - Tom Sherlock • - Andrew Sullivan • - Andrew Thomson • - Stuart Thomson • - Steve Leven • - Eddie Matthew • Nigel Lloyd • Zarko Jukic • Pétur Guðmundsson • Andre Jones • Shawn Myers • Jeremy Hyatt • Scott Martin • Trey Moore • Dwayne Morton • Kadiri Richard • Charles Smith • Lynard Stewart • TJ Walker • - Ian Whyte Head coach Stats correct up to and including 31 May 2025 Retired numbers • 5 TJ Walker, Guard, 2000–2007 • 10 Charles Smith, Forward, 2000–2016 Hall of Fame • TJ Walker 2000–2007 • Lynard Stewart 2007–2010 ==Staff==

• Chief Executive Officer - Sam Blake • Managing Director - Paul Blake • Chief Operating Officer - Susan Hunter • Head coach – Marc Steutel • Assistant coach – Gary Stronach • Team Manager – Eric Wilson • Club Doctor - Dr Graeme Wilkes • Physiotherapist - Vicky Percy • Sports Therapist - Katie Stienlet • Strength & Conditioning Coach - Anthony Reed • Development Manager - Ian MacLeod • Sales & Communications Manager - Dan Black • Business Strategy Consultant - David Broom • Media Manager - Simon Rushworth • Press Officer - Jeff King • Digital Team - Dave Moore, Gary Forster, Abbie Orwin, Reece Alderson, Phil Duggan, Stu Dryburgh & Logan Forster • Public Announcer - Howard Leighton • Events & F&B Manager - Rachel Sweeney • Arena Operations Supervisors - Neil Curry, Gerda Morkunaite & Kyle Stewart • Primary Participation Specialist - Anthony Forrester • Secondary Participation Specialist - Graham Heath • Development Specialist - Chris Applewhite • League Specialist - Martin Walton • Officials Specialist - Matty Langley • Administration Officers - Taylor Rendles & Laura Ridley • Receptionists - Kelly Sibblies, Katie Tolic & Liam Bateman • Arena Assistants - Les Harris & Leroy Sibblines • Cleaning Technician - Dot Stubley • Academy coach - Calvin George • Academy coach - Chloe Gaynor • Academy coach - Ellen Totten • Academy coach - Marina Fernandez • Community Coach - Joan Ducasin • Community Coach - Adam Hall • Community Coach - Frank Thomas • Community Coach - Max Flint • Community Coach - Carl Thompson • Community Coach - Jacob Jonas • Community Coach - Kristen Morten • Community Coach - Mark Sowerby • Community Coach - Jack Bertram • Community Coach - Zak Whitlam • Community Coach - Laura Ridley • Community Coach - Mark Sowerby • Community Coach - Zoe Willis ==References==