Seifi: Three players from Raad Padafand were invited to the national basketball teams / Armaghani is a class coach
According to IRNA, Jamal Seifi, the head coach of the Raad air defense basketball team, said in an interview with IRNA on Sunday about the start of his team’s training: “We are the first team in the Premier League to start training.” This happened about a month ago and we set up the first camp in the holy city of Mashhad. In this camp, 20 people participated for testing and we selected the right people.
He further added: The next camp that was held in June was in Chaharmahal Bakhtiari province. Nearly forty talented players from the country attended the test and were evaluated. The best people were attracted and we will serve them. Our team is different from last year. Well-known people such as Adnan Dourghi, Ishaq Hatamifar, Vaez Mahmoudi, etc. left us at the end of their service. However, new members such as Moin Khorsandi, who was in the national youth team, and Sajjad Ebrahimi, a player of Avijeh Sanat team, will be with Raad team for the next season. Almost 50% of the team has changed.
The head coach of Raad Padafand team further noted: 50% of the team has changed. The policy of the Thunder Defense Club is, as always, youthfulness and attracting talented people. We try to provide a space for young players to show their abilities.
“We had bad luck and we could have won more,” he said of his team’s performance last season. Our 2 games against Avizjeh Sanat and Sepahan were extended in overtime and we lost there. Nevertheless, we were generally satisfied with the children’s performance. They did their best and went to the field with great motivation. As a result of this play, Hossein Makarian was invited to the senior national team, and Ishaq Hatamifar joined team B, or “Iran-Novin”. Arian Rahmani is also in the three-man national team. We sent three players to the national teams.
Seifi admitted about Raad’s goal for the upcoming season: “This year, we started earlier than the other teams.” We are trying to go to Kohkiluyeh and Boyer Ahmad to have a camp in Yasuj. God willing, our main training will start in September with the presence of the main people in Tehran.
He clarified about the support of the management of Raad Padafand club and also the meeting that was held with the president of the basketball federation: Colonel Mohammad Sanei, as the managing director of the club, always supports us with all his being. This support applies not only to the basketball team and Premier League disciplines, but to all teams. They do not differentiate between teams and try to bring thunder teams into competitions in different disciplines to succeed and get the best rankings, despite the limitations that exist in the hardware debate. Regarding the meeting with the president of the federation, I must say that this happened on Monday last week. We discussed the situation last year as well as this year. Javad Davari promised to fully support the military teams and the Raad Padafand Club so that we can continue our work without any worries.
The head coach of Raad Padafand team said about the situation of the Iranian national basketball team: Saeed Armaghani has just joined the team. He is a classy and knowledgeable coach. On the other hand, the federation has changed and they should be given time to implement their ideas. Unfortunately, some media outlets have started to collapse. We should not put pressure on a fledgling federation like this. They must be given time. The return of Hamed Haddadi to the national team is also a very good event. He can help the team technically and emotionally.
In the end, Seifi said about the problems that the previous league had and that should be solved this season: “It is not clear yet when the next season’s matches will start and we must consider the national team program.” I guess October or November is the time to start the new season of the Basketball Premier League. Two seasons ago there was a crisis due to the special circumstances caused by Corona disease. We were in Mashhad and the children’s strength was taken away. Last season we moved to Tehran and our accommodation was not a problem, but the city teams faced a difficult challenge. They could not practice in the main competition hall and were faced with accommodation restrictions. I hope that next season, as we have heard, the games will be played back and forth and the spectators will return to the halls to add to the charm of the competitions. I also call on the federation to improve the conditions for military teams. The Army of the Islamic Republic of Iran manages all the forces and we try to put the basketball talents in the best physical and technical condition while serving in the army so that they can help the national team.