Kings vs Hawks: Ep. 5 — Firepower Kings, Saville heads to Sydney and The "Resurrection Squad"

About this episode

The episode explores the intense rivalry between the Sydney Kings and Illawarra Hawks, focusing on key events and figures from the 2005/06 season and beyond.

We continue diving deeper into one of Aussie hoops' fiercest rivalries — Sydney vs Illawarra — picking things up right after the Kings' 2005 three-peat sweep of the Hawks and tracking how the "Freeway Series" evolved through the chaos of Firepower, the Kings' disappearance, the rivalry's rebirth in 2010, and the Hawks' huge 2015/16 rebrand and recruiting spree. Host Dan Boyce breaks down the 2005/06 shootouts (and that bizarre Roland Roberts dunk contest injury), the Hawks' underrated 2006 campaign, and the Kings' near-miss 4-peat that ended at the hands of Chris Anstey and Melbourne, before shifting into the biggest off-court implosion in Sydney hoops history — the Firepower Kings era — and how Glen Saville's move north became a "kick in the guts" moment for Wollongong fans (including a young Xavier Cooks ). Featuring first-hand accounts from Glen Saville , Brian Goorjian , Tim Coenraad and Greg Hubbard , this episode blends rivalry game recaps, locker-room stories, and the behind-the-scenes reality of the NBL's wildest period — from bounced cheques and broken promises, to the Hawks' "three-headed monster" era and the viral beer tipping incident as we approach the modern day…

People in this episode

Host: Dan Boyce

Guest: Glen Saville

Topics covered

• Sydney vs Illawarra rivalry
• NBL history
• Firepower Kings era
• Glen Saville's impact
• 2005/06 season recap
• rebranding of Hawks
• locker-room stories

Keywords

• Sydney Kings
• Illawarra Hawks
• NBL
• Glen Saville
• Firepower
• rivalry
• basketball history
• 2005 three-peat
• rebranding
• locker-room stories

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Firepower Kings, Sydney Kings, Illawarra Hawks, NBL

Places: Sydney, Wollongong

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