Tafari Toney energised by Newcastle's sporting obsession

May 1 2009 by Mark Douglas, The Journal

Tafari Toney is hoping to put the seal on a superb first season at the Newcastle Eagles with play-off success in Birmingham – as well as striking a blow for basketball in a football-obsessed city. Mark Douglas reports

TAFARI Toney has ‘tapped’ into Newcastle’s sporting obsession – now he hopes to play a part in extending the region’s love of sport to it’s all-conquering basketball team.

Fab Flournoy’s Newcastle Eagles travel to Birmingham for the BBL’s final-four weekend, looking to add to the two trophies that have made them arguably the region’s biggest sporting success story of the 2009.

Winning that silverware garnered the Eagles some much-deserved attention in a city where football is king and the trials and tribulations of Newcastle United dominate the sporting agenda.

Even Toney, born more than 3,000 miles away in the New York borough of Brooklyn, finds himself energised by the passion of the city for its football club – a fanaticism that he would love to see replicated at the Arena when the Eagles play.

The 23-year-old rookie, who is nicknamed ‘Tap’ on account of the unique way he used to convert rebounds during his high school days, has revelled in his first season as a professional athlete – finding a home away from home in Newcastle.

And affection for his new home has been matched by a string of excellent displays on it, with Toney developing into a stellar performer since injury ruled out Eagles’ key man Lynard Stewart at the turn of the year.

The University of Houston graduate has looked so assured on the court that he has earned a call-up to the Great Britain summer training squad – where he will rub shoulders with NBA icons Luol Deng and Pops Mensah-Bonsu as he bids for a place in the 2012 basketball team.

Reflecting on an enjoyable first season in England, Toney feels that the game, like the Eagles, will continue to flourish.

“In the rest of Europe – Spain and Greece – basketball is bigger,” he admitted.