Basketball: Breakers will feel the loss of 'The Bear'

But Tony Ronaldson accepts his body can no longer deliver the goods on a regular basis. Photo / Paul Estcourt

Father Time has something to say and 20-year career draws to a close

Strangely enough, it was his best performance of the season that told the Bear - aka Tony Ronaldson - the game was finally up, that Father Time had caught up with him.

The ANBL's most-capped and most successful player poured in 27 points against Melbourne on January 14. His season-high haul included seven of 10 three-pointers. It was vintage Ronaldson - a player regarded as one of the better outside shooters in the league during his 20-year stint.

And that was the problem. But while his performance reminded the two-time Olympian of what he once did on a regular basis, it also underlined the fact that his 37-year-old legs permitted such displays only rarely these days. Having pondered his future over Christmas, the glimpse of what once was convinced Ronaldson of what should now be.

"You just know when it is time," Ronaldson said, after announcing that one of the ANBL's greatest careers would end at the completion of the Breakers' season.

"[The Melbourne game] was part of the reason I thought it was time to hang them up. That's what I used to do a lot more regularly. It made me feel good that I could still do it but I was just not doing it every couple of weeks like I used to. So that helped put my mind at ease that this was the right time.

"It is time to move on."

It wasn't just his declining numbers this season - he has averaged just 10 points and 2.7 rebounds, compared with career numbers of 15.3 points and 5.2 rebounds - that convinced Ronaldson to pull the pin.

Being demoted to the bench after close to two decades as a starter was a major factor. Although he has tried to make a decent fist of it, the bench role hasn't suited him. At times he has looked off the pace coming into a game already in full flow, while the bench role was tough on a mentality that was always that of a starter.

"I don't know how to put it without sounding cocky - I guess it's just that my new role is not fit for someone who is 38 years old," he said.

"I think there comes a time that you don't want to keep hanging on for the sake of playing.

"The body is on a downward spiral as far as not being able to do what I used to be able to do. I'm not sure if it is just coming off the bench but it is not responding the way it used to."

Another factor was the chance to leave on his own terms.

He hadn't been told whether he would be offered a contract for next season, but would have known there were no guarantees.

Instead his swansong will be of his own choosing - a first and last season with Waikato in the New Zealand NBL, something he had committed to before deciding to quit the Australian league.

His decision leaves the Breakers with a huge hole to fill, literally and figuratively. Ronaldson's signing in 2007 was the catalyst for a turnaround in the struggling club's fortunes.

A proven winner, he brought a wealth of experience and a record of having missed the playoffs just once in his career - in 1991.

With the Breakers cracking the post-season for the first time in his first season, and then following that up with a strong run to the semifinals last season, Ronaldson's personal playoff streak now stands at 18 straight seasons.

Now, with the Breakers' playoff hopes hanging by a thread, that remarkable record is in danger of lapsing at the final hurdle.

While the Melbourne match crystallised Ronaldson's thoughts on retirement, it was also a decent metaphor for the Breakers' season, with the pre-season title favourites starting brightly before fading badly and eventually coughing up a 15-point lead to slump to a defeat that ultimately may have wrecked their season.

It would be tough on Ronaldson if his stellar career was to peter out in the same limp fashion. But whether that happens is no longer up to him and his team-mates.

A run of three wins on the bounce has kept them alive but, sitting fifth with a 12-13 record, the Breakers could still miss the playoffs even if they win their final three matches.

Their fate is as much in the hands of tomorrow night's opponents Wollongong (13-11) and third-placed Townsville (14-11) as it is their own.

"We can't control what other teams do so there is no point stressing about that," Ronaldson said.

"It would be a tough way to go out. We are still hoping [making the playoffs] will happen but we are not focusing on that.

"But if we do make it I can guarantee you no one will want to play us."

TONY RONALDSON
* Born: May 25, 1972.
* Height: 203cm.
* Birth Place: Adelaide, South Australia.
* NBL Clubs: Eastside Spectres 1990-91; South East Melbourne Magic 1992-98; Victoria Titans 1999-2002; Perth Wildcats 2003-07; NZ Breakers 2008-current.
* NBL games: 662.
* NBL points: 10,116.

International Career
* 1996 Olympic Games.
* 2004 Olympic Games.
* 2006 Commonwealth Games (co-captain, gold medal).