Emotional night; singlet No 35 retired for good
“Two years ago, I got some pretty shocking news, and I can’t say enough about this franchise, this community, this city, for the way you helped get me and Bailee through a pretty difficult time."
Sometimes in sport, the result ends up being secondary. It’s what transpired in Invercargill on Thursday night.
For the record, the Southland Sharks were beaten 96-87 by the Canterbury Rams at ILT Stadium Southland.
But it was what unfolded after the game that prompted tears before people walked from the stadium into a chilly Invercargill winter’s night.
The game was big man Alex Pledger’s last at ILT Stadium Southland as the 36-year-old prepares to finish up his glittering career and retire from basketball.
To mark the occasion Sharks officials decided to retire Pledger’s singlet No 35 forever. Following the game his playing number 35 was hoisted into the rafters.
No other Sharks player will ever wear the No 35 playing number.
It joins Kevin Braswell’s No 12, the only other playing number retired in the Sharks’ 13-year history.
The speeches attached to the occasion soon after fulltime highlighted what Pledger means to the Sharks organisation, and on the flip side what the Sharks organisation means to him.
There has been a fair bit of loyalty from both sides since Pledger first decided to link with Southland’s National Basketball League club in 2016.
It was actually then Sharks coach Judd Flavell who lured Pledger south seven years ago.
Fittingly Flavell was inside the stadium on Thursday night in his role as Rams coach and got to witness Pledger’s big moment as his playing number was retired.
Pledger played over 80 games for the Sharks amassing over 1000 points, just the second Shark to do so alongside Braswell.
He’s the Sharks’ all-time leading rebounder and helped the organisation to a championship in 2018.
But the emotion on Thursday was spurred on by more than just basketball.
In 2021, when he was with the Sharks, Pledger was diagnosed with cancer.
He had to tell his team mates at the Southland Hospital of his situation and the fact he was in for the fight of his life.
The Sharks and Pledger walked side-by-side through that journey.
Pledger fought cancer and won and in a special moment returned to the court for a game in 2021.
Then midway through this season, Pledger returned for what has turned out to be a basketball swansong with the Sharks organisation.
In a purely professional sporting sense, welcoming back a 36-year-old coming off a long cancer battle probably wasn’t all that wise.
But again, sometimes sport has a bigger meaning to it than just the Xs and Os that features on whiteboards.
Pledger has got to walk away from the game he loves on his terms, and that too added to Thursday night’s emotion.
Pledger asked the crowd if he could now be considered an honorary Southlander.
The reaction was in the affirmative as if that hadn’t already been confirmed some time ago.
“Two years ago, I got some pretty shocking news, and I can’t say enough about this franchise, this community, this city, for the way you helped get me and Bailee through a pretty difficult time,” Pledger said.
“I just can’t thank you guys enough.”
“To the boys, quite a few of you guys were here two years ago in that hospital room when I told you what the deal was, so I’m glad so many of you are still here. I couldn’t ask for a better group of guys to play one final season with.”
Southland Sharks operations manager Jill Bolger said Pledger will always be part of the Sharks family.
She spoke of the delight when Flavell in 2016 suggested Pledger as a potential player for the Sharks. Seven years on she is even more pleased Flavell made that connection happen.
“[Pledger] was already a legend in basketball in New Zealand, and from the day he arrived in our stadium and in our community, I knew that we got a dam good one.”
“Alex epitomises professionalism, loyalty, integrity, excellence on and off the court.
“As a club, we’ve learned from him, and we are grateful and proud to have stood alongside him through the good and the bad.
“We will forever be grateful that Alex has been part of our Sharks family and he always will be. This is not bye, it’s see you next time.”
Bolger also thanked Pledger’s wife Bailee who also has found a second home in Southland during her husband’s playing days in the deep south.
“She eventually self-confessed to a love of Southland. It wasn’t always easy for big-city kids to come to Southland and fit into the community like they have. We will always be proud, we will always be grateful, and we will always love you both.”
Pledger will get to play one final game in a professional basketball career which stretches back to 2009.
He will line up for the Sharks in its final game of the 2023 NBL season against the Nelson Giants in Nelson on July 16.