The Sydney Flames have remained tight-lipped on Shane and Shyla Heal’s unexplained absence from the WNBL after the father-daughter pair missed a second consecutive sport this week.
One of probably the most recognisable names in Australian basketball, Shane Heal was listed as “unavailable” to educate towards the Southside Flyers on Wednesday, with guard and daughter Shyla additionally lacking the 96-91 loss citing “personal reasons”.
The Flames wouldn’t elaborate on the character of the pair’s absence when it prolonged into Saturday’s sport towards Perth Lynx, which led to an 87-68 defeat.
On each events, the Flames issued a quick assertion indicating assistant Shelley Gorman would step up as interim coach and didn’t reveal a timeline for Shane Heal’s return.
Kiera Rowe changed Shyla Heal within the beginning 5 for each matches.
Heal is in his second season teaching the Flames, who sit in seventh place on the ladder with 4 wins from their 15 video games.
AAP tried to contact the WNBL on Saturday however didn’t obtain a reply.
With the Heals absent, marquee Flyers recruit Lauren Jackson reached 30 factors towards the Flames, the primary time she has hit that mark since making her WNBL comeback.
The sport was additionally Jackson’s first since revealing she had been taking part in on a damaged foot since spherical 5 however the damage did little to quell her affect on a decent sport at Sydney’s Quaycentre.
She completed with a game-high 30 factors and 5 rebounds because the Flyers rallied with a 20-11 closing quarter that received them the competition.
Jackson performed restricted minutes within the Flyers’ follow-up sport, a 97-81 defeat of the University of Canberra Capitals, leaving the court docket within the second quarter with 10 factors to her identify from five-for-five capturing from the sector.
On Friday, Adelaide Lightning captain and World Cup bronze medallist Steph Talbot made her return from a leg damage however shot at solely 27 per cent from the sector and couldn’t forestall her aspect from falling 92-63 to the dominant Townsville Fire.
The Lightning have now misplaced eight of their final 9 and sit sixth on the ladder, three wins forward of the last-placed Capitals.
The Lightning’s two upcoming clashes with the Caps, and one with the Flames, will go a protracted solution to deciding which aspect finishes the season on the underside.
