One of the highlights of the basketball season in Gloucestershire is almost upon us.

The Grainger Cup, a one-off end-of-season showpiece game between Team Gloucester and Team Bristol, will take place at leisure@cheltenham on Sunday 12^th May.

The cup is named after Joe Grainger, who did so much for basketball in Gloucester in years gone by.

Last year’s match-up was played at Oxstalls Sports Arena in front of a crowd of 741 and Jay Marriott, who is the driving force behind the event, is hoping for another big occasion this time around.

“It’s a special event,” said the 43-year-old. “It’s definitely one of the best days of the season.

“We do it properly, we provide the full game-day experience with music, mascots, announcers. We’re hoping for a big crowd.”

And Marriott certainly knows his basketball. Before taking on the role of general manager of up-and-coming club Gloucester City Kings, who were formed three years ago, he played for and coached top English club Plymouth Raiders.

“I played in the US, Europe and Asia,” said Marriott, who stands at 6ft 5in. “I’ve also coached in the Middle East and I was a general manager in Utah.”

These days he’s also coaching the academy players at Gloucester, a key role if the club, who play in Division Three (South West) of the National Basketball League, are to prosper.

“We’re focused on performance,” he explained. “We have an academy at St Peter’s School and we run the club like a pro club.

“It’s about building a brand and raising the profile of basketball in the county.”

And the Grainger Cup clash will certainly help to do that.

Team Bristol can call on some top players and there will certainly be plenty of stars on show with Marriott using the contacts he has built up in the game over many years to attract some top names.

“There will be six to 10 pro players taking part,” continued Marriott. “They are players I’ve worked with or coached.”

They include Elvisi Dusha of Plymouth Raiders, Jordan Blount, who plays in Ireland, and rising star Louis Tucker.

They all play at a good level, of course, and Marriott wants to see Gloucester climb the divisions in years to come.

“The potential for basketball in this country is massive,” he said. “If you look at it statistically, it’s the second most played sport in England by young people.

“In Gloucester, basketball has been played predominantly at youth level and community level, that’s something we want to change.

“One of the things that Joe Grainger always wanted was to be able to keep the most talented youngsters playing basketball in Gloucestershire.”

Gloucester finished sixth in the eight-strong Division Three (South West) last season – the campaign ended in April – and Marriott is obviously hoping to kick on when the new season starts in September.

And 2024/25 is going to be a very busy season for Marriott because he has recently taken on the role of vice-chairman of Gloucester City Football Club.

He is also general manager of the club’s recently formed netball team and he admitted: “I’m going to be wearing quite a lot of hats!”

His basketball hat will be very much on Team Gloucester for the Grainger Cup, of course, with Marriott hoping that the home team can retain the trophy they won last year when Rhys Farrell was their last-gasp hero.

The Grainger Cup clash, which starts at 4pm,  will be preceded by the Gloucestershire Basketball Association’s Dexter Dawson Cup final between Gloucester City Kings and Malvern Mavericks. That game will start at 2pm.