BIO: Simon Cottrell was born in England and began playing basketball as a junior with the Beaconsfield basketball program. Cottrell received a scholarship to attend the Australian Institute of Sport (Canberra) in 1981. He spent three years year there and played for the program’s state league team (1981, 1982, 1983).

NBL EXPERIENCE

Simon Cottrell made his NBL debut with the Launceston Casino City Tigers at 18 years of age. He scored six points in his first game.

ILLAWARRA HAWKS
1983
Illawarra opened 1983 amid turnover, losing captain/playmaker Gordie McLeod (to Sydney) and import Alonzo Weatherly (returned to the USA), while veterans Ray Hannett and Ted Holcomb retired from the frontcourt rotation.

Returning contributors from the previous era included long-time scorer Jim Slacke, while former NBL MVP Michael Jones rejoined the club after a season away to anchor the offense once more alongside local rookie center Simon Cottrell and the returning teenager Tim Morrissey.

Charlie Ammit took over as head coach—Illawarra’s fourth different coach in four seasons—with Tom Penrose assisting, and recruited American guard Jerry Steurer to replace Weatherly, while elevating Morrissey back into the squad (after sitting out the 1982 seaosn) and adding Cottrell (via Launceston) to bolster size and aggression on the glass.

The season began with a 95–113 road loss at Newcastle despite big nights from Jones (35 points), Cottrell (24 points) and Steurer (20 points), foreshadowing a difficult opening stretch that grew into an eight-game skid before the breakthrough arrived at Beaton Park in Round 8, a 102–100 escape over Devonport sparked by Slacke’s masterpiece (29 points on 10-of-12 FG, 9-of-9 FT) with support from Jones (33 points, 6 rebounds, 3 blocks) and Steurer (24 points, 8 rebounds).

Key mid-season markers included Jones’ season-high 46 points in a 92–109 loss at Coburg and Steurer’s season-best 31 points (13-of-22 FG, 5-of-5 FT) in a 71–82 home loss to Bankstown, while the late-season surge delivered consecutive home thrillers—89–88 over Coburg behind Steurer (31) and Jones (30, 11 rebounds) with Slacke adding 12, and 92–90 over Frankston led by Steurer (30) and Jones (25).

Illawarra closed with a 90–98 home loss to Brisbane despite Jones’ 34 and Steurer’s 22, finishing 4–18 and seventh in the Eastern Division after a campaign defined by narrow heartbreaks, constant adjustments, and a home crowd willing the Snakepit to life each week.

Michael Jones (32.7 points, 8.5 rebounds, and 1.1 steals) led the entire NBL in scoring and topping 30 points in 16 of 22 outings, combined with Jerry Steurer (23.7 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 1.7 steals) to form a potent one-two punch for the Hawks. Other key contributors included Jim Slacke (11.0 points, 3.5 rebounds), Tim Morrissey (7.9 points, 2.9 rebounds), and Simon Cottrell (7.6 points, 3.9 rebounds).

HOBART DEVILS
1984
At age twenty and in his third NBL season the bruising forward was already a monster. In 1984, the Hobart Devils had minimal talent on their roster and would win only four of their 23 games that season, but Cottrell had a breakout season for the team, averaging 24 points, 14 rebounds, and 1 assist as one of the few positives of the Devils season.

Cottrell’s play in 1984 propelled him into national team selection and saw him earn a Boomers jersey for the 1986 FIBA World Championships.

Simon Cottrell played thirteen seasons across six NBL teams. This included the Launceston Casino City Tigers, Nunawading Spectres, Hobart Devils, Illawarra Hawks, Adelaide 36ers and Canberra Cannons. He averaged 12.9 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 1.1 assists in 304 NBL games.

CAREER RANKINGS:

– 46th in total rebounds