After the Team England 3x3 basketball teams were named last week, the official squad reserves can be confirmed. They are:
Women’s
Abby Lowe (2021/22 club Durham Palatinates, GB) (Hometown: Stockport)
Tèmi Fágbénlé (2022/23 club CBK Mersin, Turkey) (Hometown: London)
Men’s
Andre Arissol (2022/23 club Worthing Thunder, GB) (Hometown: Northampton)
Danny Evans (2022/23 club Cheshire Phoenix, GB) (Hometown: Leeds)
The players have entered the official Team England Immersion Camp at Loughborough this week. They will move onto the Commonwealth Games Village next week, ahead of the Games starting on 28 July.
See a gallery of pictures from the Immersion Camp at the foot of this article.
The reserve players have been an integral part of Team England’s 3x3 preparations on the road to Birmingham 2022 and are on stand-by to replace any of the selected Games players in case of injury or illness.
Since the summer of 2021, a Commonwealth Games selection process has been underway, which rebooted in May 2022 as a long list of players assembled in Manchester for a four-day invitational camp, before being slimmed down through preparatory 3x3 tournaments in Romania, Serbia and France.
A host of players had been considered at the May camp, but Lowe, Arissol and Evans made their marks and were called up to the England squad forthwith.
At the National Team 3x3 Tournament in Belgrade, Evans bolstered the squad with his shooting and driving prowess and contributed to performances against Romania and Mongolia, taking the scalp of the former.
Guard Arissol used his rapid-fire handles, pin-point passing and scoring ability to help England to wins against France 3 and Portugal at the Big Twelve International 3x3 Tournament in Voiron, France, and was at the helm when GB beat Turkey, Spain and Denmark at the FIBA 3x3 Europe Qualifier in Romania.
Lowe came into the women’s group in Serbia and contributed to England wins against Mongolia and Hungary, and was part of the quartet that beat ranked number one in the world side Germany to bag themselves a bronze medal.
Since the end of the 2021/22 season, GB international and Turkish Cup winner MVP Fágbénlé has been recovering from an injury, but a rehabilitation programme means she is available as a reserve.
Honourable mention also goes to Shequila Joseph, who was also part of that bronze winning England side in Belgrade.
“Player selection is always a difficult task for any coach, and it’s proven even harder in 3x3.
“We must recognise and applaud our players Tèmi Fágbénlé and Abby Lowe, they have shown unwavering commitment in our Commonwealth Games 3x3 journey since last summer in Manchester.
“They are two fierce competitors who have shown a real passion and enthusiasm for 3x3. We’ve been very fortunate with our preparations, and I know when called upon they will be ready to support the team in any way possible to be successful. We certainly wouldn’t be where we are today without them.”
“Selecting the team for the Commonwealth Games has been challenging and a difficult task due to the quality of the players up for consideration. Our reserves Andre Arrisol and Danny Evans have shown true professionalism throughout the process, while others, such as Max Richardson, have also been selfless and understanding in supporting our mission.
“As we continue to prepare towards Birmingham, these guys have been working just as hard as the selected team and their commitment and efforts are truly appreciated. The team will only be successful with quality players in the squad and these guys deserve every credit. They are not just reserves but part of the England 3x3 men’s team.”
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