Wasps are hooping for the heights

Hull Wasps: In existence for just over a year

Hull Wasps basketball team were formed at the beginning of 2008 and play in the English League Division Four.

The amateur side are hoping to power their way up the league's pyramid system until they hit the professional level with a place in the British Basketball League.

Despite their recent incarnation at the senior level, the club is associated with the Hull Stingers junior side which was formed in 1961.

The Stingers have a number of teams of different ages and both sexes.

The youth development side is a crucial part of the Wasp's plan to progress through the leagues as Wasp's co-chairman and assistant coach Mathew Fawcett explained:

"We're struggling to get new players in, which is why we are going into the schools. We're saying 'lets try something different, something new in basketball'.

And we are getting good talented basketball players who do latch on to basketball and are coming through the system."

The club is lucky in playing at the Gemtech Arena in the city's West Park. The venue can house 1500 spectators and is one of the best facilities in the English leagues.

One of the biggest battles is getting the public interested in watching the sport.

The game is popular in North America and Europe, with long established professional leagues with big stars and big money salaries; as well as regular television coverage.

Attendances for the Wasp's home games are growing and Matthew Fawcett believes the situation will change as more and more people are exposed to the sport.

"We're a country of tradition. So your football, cricket, rugby, very English sports we're very proud of, and we want to celebrate.

"So any new sports that come into the fold, such as basketball, at first people are worried about latching onto it and thinking well is this a sport I'd like to play? But it is slowly getting bigger and we are changing our perception."