Alan Kennedy | 17th November 2011

IT'S a bit of a mixture for the Rockhampton Rockets as the team looks to the future under a new corporate banner while embracing the past with the re-appointment of coach Neal Tweedy and his assistant Darren Richardson.

Yesterday the Rockets and Minecorp Rockhampton expressed their delight at the new two-year sponsorship arrangement, seen by both parties as an ideal partnership.

Richardson was quick to point out the benefits the Rockets received under their previous sponsorship flags, The Republik night club and before that Stadium night club, but said it was time to move on.

"It is a new era and very exciting," Richardson said, "a chance for us to work with Minecorp."

Richardson said he and Tweedy had been looking at the talent available to fill the 2012 roster.

"We have a bit of unfinished business," he said.

Last year the Rockets made it through to the QBL grand final only to suffer defeat at the hands of Mackay.

The only player known to be a definite non-starter is Ryan Jeffries who has signed with Ipswich for the coming season but Richardson said the club would provide regular announcements over the coming months as the complicated procedure of contracting players gets underway.

An upbeat Shane Lacey said as a director of Minecorp Rockhampton he was delighted to be associated with the Rockets brand.

"We believe we have similar characteristics to the Rockets," he said, "they are energetic and dynamic which is how we see our brand."

Although not a basketball player, Lacey said he enjoyed the package the Rockets produced to entertain their public and the success the club had achieved.

"We can see this as a vehicle to promote our brand with their brand," he said.

With Minecorp's business being with the mining industry, Lacey wants to see the Minecorp Rockhampton Rockets take basketball out west.

"We want to get the game to the youngsters in places like Emerald and Blackwater," he said.

As Tweedy enters his 14th year in charge of the Rockets he could be forgiven for having seen it all before.

However, the master coach said he is as motivated as ever and one of the reasons is the great program the club has produced through the years.

"I'm doing something I love," he said.

Having been around basketball as a player and coach for the past 30 years, Tweedy knows a change of direction would be very difficult.

"Success helps," he grinned.

Few could doubt Tweedy has had more than his fair share of success with the Rockets but it is also obvious he aims for more.

Apart from the recruitment of players, Tweedy is looking to tour western towns and provide a coaching clinic pre-season, possibly even putting on a practice match at one of the centres.

While the QBL team is a priority, it is not the only one for Tweedy as he sees growing basketball in Central Queensland as an achievable objective.

"With the changes at the elite level, basketball is back on a growth surge," he predicted.

He said everyone wants children playing sport but some parents are not keen with their youngsters spending lengthy periods in the sun, therefore basketball provides the perfect answer for both boys and girls.