Jewel Heist - Jewels recruit first rostered player Keely Froling

The Tasmania Jewels have pulled off a major heist, recruiting one of the most valuable

players in the WNBL - Keely Froling.

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Froling is a two-time WNBL winning champion, two-time medal winning Opal, and one of

the most revered and respected players in the national league.

“When you go to war on the court, you want Keely on your team,” Jewels Coach Claudia

Brassard said.

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“Every game Keely starts with the belief that we’re going to win, that we’re going to beat

you, and you can’t teach that.”

Jewels Assistant General Manager of WNBL Kayla Steindl said Froling was a prime target for

the team.

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“She plays a brand of basketball that’s tough; she trains hard, plays even harder, she’s a

blue-collar worker who knows how to get the job done,” Steindl said.

“She is the perfect first rostered player for the Jewels and exactly the kind of player and

person we want building this program with us.”

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Froling is one of the most experienced WNBL players in the country, having now played in

the league for nearly half her life, notching more than 200 games and 2,000 career points.

The 30-year-old has been keeping one eye on the emergence of the league’s 9th team, the

Tasmania Jewels, with the single-minded goal of joining the team for their inaugural year.

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“There’s one team for me, and that’s the Jewels, I’ve known that for a long time now,” she

said.“I love what the club has achieved with the JackJumpers, the way they’re engrained in the

community and built their success from the ground up. I want to be a part of that, to

achieve the same success, to inspire more girls and boys, on the women’s side.”

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Another major attraction for Froling was the recruitment of Coach Claudia Brassard.

“I’ve known Claudia since I was a kid, I watched her as a player and she coached me when

I was around 15 too,” the Townsville local said.

“When I was little, I’d do anything to spend time around the game, including being the floor-

wiper at games.

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“I’d get my frozen coke, wipe the floors, and watch the greats like Claudia, and that was it

for me, I knew that this is what I wanted.

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“It’s incredible to think that here we are now, back together as player and coach and about

to embark on this incredible opportunity here in Tasmania.”

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The Townsville local first started at the age of 15 with the Fire, before moving to the

Canberra Capitals where she won back-to-back WNBL championships. The power forward

joined the Opals in 2021, winning Bronze at the FIBA Women’s Asia Cup (2021, 2023).

Froling joins two Development Players on the Jewels roster so far, including North

West Tasmanian Nikki Parker and Kingston local Andie Smith. More players will be

announced in coming weeks.

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Tasmanian Jewels inaugural membership information is coming soon. The season will start

in October, with the Jewels playing half their games in Hobart at the MyState Bank Arena

and half in Launceston at the Silverdome.

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