Whilst every player is important to head coach Marc Steutel and Newcastle Eagles, there may be one player that others will lean on for advice and support in Sunday’s SLB Trophy Final against Bristol Flyers.

Josh Ward-Hibbert has emerged this season in particular, his second with the club, as a real on and off court leader for the Eagles and a player and person his teammates really respect and defer too.

The British forward, who celebrates his 31st birthday on the eve of the Final, has also been a winner in British basketball finals with both Leicester Riders and London Lions, bringing a wealth of experience and knowledge could be invaluable to Newcastle.

“I feel great. We’ve had some good practices, had a nice week of build-up”, said Ward-Hibbert.

“This team has had so many games so it’s been nice to have a little bit of build-up and preparation going into the final. So, it’s been amazing.

“The team feels amazing, individuals are I think feeling amazing because I know I feel amazing and we’re all looking forward and just excited to getting down there and getting to it.

“I think I can and will bring as much as I can to benefit the team but we have a team full of winners at different levels from different places. Everyone has a lot to bring. I’ll just try to impart some knowledge as to how the finals look.

“Whether its time before the game or how it might be set-up which may aid them. But really we’re all like one-hand so everyone’s got good information and good experience to part in the same way I’ll try to part mine with theirs and build towards the right result.”

When Ward-Hibbert signed for the Eagles in the summer of 2023, he was well aware of the club and franchise’s legacy as the club looks for their eighth Trophy win and a 28th national title in all.

“It’s been said and it’s a massive thing about the Club how good it’s been and the legacy that has been passed on”, the 6’5 British star added.

“So it would be a massive achievement and something I’ll strive towards to be able to add to that and create a new legacy for the club.”

“That’s definitely something that pushes me and drives me and that’s not going to change for the final or the rest of the season either.”

The loss in Bristol a couple of weeks ago is on the team’s mind, but has given the Eagles insight into what could be the keys to the game and their opponents’ strengths and weaknesses.

“Our strength is everyone on our team. We have a team full from top to bottom full of serious players and talent”, Ward-Hibbert told us.

“I think that’s our biggest strength because it’s hard to guard or scout because anyone can be the person on any given day and impact winning on any given day. That’s our strength.

“For them they’ve got a lot of good players that are able to do a lot of things but we’re very clear about what we’re able to do so in truth we’ll just be focusing on that and doing what we need to do.”

Emerging as a real fan favourite and someone that interacts with Newcastle’s loyal following, which he loves playing in front of, it’s clear that Ward-Hibbert relishes the opportunity to reward that great support.

“We have the best fans in the league, for sure”, the forward stated.

“They show that at all our home games and you can hear them on the bench and on the court, feel their energy and they’ve inspired some of our comebacks and big results.”

“The same when we’re away, we’ve had some good results and the fans have always travelled whether it’s here or in Europe.

“We’ve had some amazing travelling fans, so to give them something to celebrate on Sunday would not only be great for us but great to share it with them as well.”

Ward-Hibbert’s commitment and energy will be felt in the arena in Sunday’s showpiece final for those not travelling the game is free to watch live on DAZN and YouTube.