On Sunday, BC Nokia advanced to the men’s Korisliiga finals for the first time in its history. In the final series starting on Wednesday, it will face the defending champion Helsinki Seagulls.
After the semifinals are decided, the hottest topic of conversation is where BC Nokia will play its home matches. The team received an exception permit for this season to play in the 800-seat sports hall, but the permit does not include the finals.
According to the league regulations, there must be a playing field with a seating capacity of at least 1,200 people.
Chairman of BC Nokia Marko Pirhonen told Urheilu late on Sunday evening that the club is not going to play elsewhere.
– We have made our decision. We don’t leave our house anywhere. If we don’t get to play there, we won’t play at all, Pirhonen announced his strict condition regarding the Harjuniity sports hall.
The Seagulls will host the final matches in Helsinki Kisahalli. According to Pirhonen, it is a more questionable place to play from, among other things, the point of view of safety factors.
– We will have a new hall next year. Now there is no question that we would go somewhere, Pirhonen’s line.
The options were not valid
Competition director of the Basketball Association Tom Westerholm says that the association has been in contact with BC Nokia several times in the spring regarding the match venue for a possible final place. Pirhonen claims that the Basketball Association has not been involved in looking for an alternative venue for Nokia, but Westerholm refutes this.
– They have had a really good option for themselves, and we have also offered them two options that are cost-effective. They are the Kaupin Sport Center and the Tesoma ball hall, Westerholm says.
According to him, Tesoma would have been the most valid option because it has all the facilities suitable for Korisliiga.
– They have rejected these options.
For the general public
Westerholm has asked BC Nokia immediately for explanations regarding playing in Harjuniity’s hall. The match schedule for the finals also says that BC Nokia’s home location will be confirmed on May 6-7.
Is it possible that the finals will not be held at all?
– I guess there won’t be such a situation. It’s a shame that this has turned out like this. We had a good open conversation with them since the fall. When, after 6-7 rounds, they and the Seagulls had broken a clear neck with the others, I first asked them if they had thought about this matter.
– They had one alternative idea that materialized. It was investigated at the beginning of February. We had promised them parquet floors, baskets and a clock system. Apparently, other things came up, because of which that option was not successful, says Westerholm, who does not want to reveal the name of the place in question.
The Finnish Basketball Association has been criticized for not properly promoting domestic club basketball in Finland. Because of this, the association wants to take the finals to bigger stands.
– We complain about the fact that there are no people in the stands and Korisliiga is not a well-known series. Such critical statements come regularly. During the final stage, there is a lot of movement and the audience can come from further away than Pirkanmaa, so we want to give the opportunity for as many people as possible to get into the stands, says Westerholm.
“We don’t play anywhere”
Urheilu contacted Pirhose again on Monday. Even after a good night’s sleep, the position had not changed.
– We will not play if we are not allowed to play at Harjuniity. If these are the rules, we won’t play in Kisahalli either, because it’s an illegal place, Pirhonen says.
Pirhonen justifies his view with the inadequate conditions of the Kisahalli, that the ends do not meet the necessary measures.
– In the semi-finals against Bear, an injury occurred when one guy flew there. There are a lot of things that don’t go through in the union’s rules. Still, they have an exemption. If there is a decision that we are not allowed to play in Harjuniity’s hall, we will not play in Kisahalli either.
So you don’t play at all?
– Then we don’t play anywhere, Pirhonen acknowledges.
Pirhonen says that BC Nokia will be able to make additional seats in the Harjuniity sports hall, which will allow almost 1,000 spectators to attend.
– What does Finnish basketball lose because we can’t fit more than 1,000 people in the hall? We lose money in that.