“We don’t want to take a step back now, when the whole country wants this gold medal”. Brian Goorjian had set the tone before the start of the competition, ensuring that any result other than the final victory would be considered a failure.
Since the defeat against Germany which ended the Boomers’ dreams of victory, the situation has changed somewhat, and the Australian coach now wants his group to keep their heads up there, despite the disappointment.
“I respect everyone’s opinion, but what I said to the group is that I’m not ashamed. I return to Melbourne with my head held high. I have the impression that we are in the continuity of Rose Gold”, he explainednamed after the Australian epic that led to the bronze medal at the 2021 Olympic Games. “When this group came together, I think we had a chance to win a medal. This will be our goal in the future. But I also knew that with the change, the experience, the style of play and playing together, it was going to be a process that was going to take time.
In the same way as France or Spain, also in a transition phase, failure does not mean that everything is to be thrown away, especially as close to a deadline as that of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games which will take place in the summer. next, and for which Australia is qualified as the best nation in the Oceania zone.
For Brian Goorjian, it’s time for solidarity, evaluating what worked and what didn’t.
“When I started with the Boomers, they hadn’t qualified for the world championships. I brought in Joe Ingles, Patty Mills and Andrew Bogut, and it took eight to ten years for the team to become a winning team,” he recalled. “We are starting from scratch and building something exciting and beautiful. This is a very good point for our next Olympic campaign in ten months. So there are a lot of good things, but also frustration. As Joe Ingles said, we wanted to keep going and we had a chance against Germany. We missed a few free throws and our last possession… If you win this game, you move on, but we were close. We also had a chance against Slovenia”.
The coach also knows that the next few days are likely to be difficult and that he will be under fire from critics, but intends to hang on. “I’m ready for the next challenge”he concluded, although he is at the end of his contract, his mind already riveted on Paris 2024 and the adjustments he will have to make.
