Windsor Express celebrates 10th season

The Windsor Express are celebrating a milestone this season.

“It's our 10th anniversary, something we gotta be proud of,” said head coach Bill Jones, who has been around for all 10 seasons.

Many didn’t think the team would reach their fifth anniversary, let alone 10th.

“You can hear the level of respect that they have for a team that has been around for 10 years,” said team CEO Dartis Willis who credits the community, including fans and sponsors, for helping the Express stay in the game.

Despite a losing record last season, the Express broke their attendance record by over 10 per cent.

Administration and staff worked hard during the off-season to stay connected to the community.

“Making sure that they are a part of what's happening. Making them aware of all the different players and events and connections. Especially the 10th anniversary connection,” said Willis.

Willis feels the signing of six players from last year’s team was an important part in staying connected with fans.

“If they know who the players are they tend to have that connection,” he said.

Not since the early days have Express fans been able to say they are familiar with numerous players on the team to start the season.

“We want to bring them back to be able to have our fans come and say ‘yeah he's back’ and to be able to continue to support us and those players as well,” said Jones.

Billy White is one of the returning players and leaders on the team.

“The fans here are amazing,” he said. “I've been playing in this league for a long time and I just like Windsor a lot and the fans are very supportive.”

For the second straight year the NBL of Canada will be a four team league.

The core-four are Windsor, London, Kitchener-Waterloo and Sudbury and they’ll compete against teams in the U.S. league TBL.

Willis isn’t sure where the league is headed but says the NBL of Canada is exploring options to ensure Windsor has more milestones to achieve in the future.

“What does the perfect league look like? Is that an amalgamation? Is that a partnership? We haven't determined that yet but we're not counting anything out,” he said.