Not only was Tanya Fisher an SBL and WNBL championship winner along with racking up the individual accolades along the way, over a lifetime in basketball nothing will come close to sharing the passion for the sport with twin daughters Eryn and Bree.
Fisher had a standout playing career where she was a dominant force including being part of the 1987 WAIS Rockets team that won the then Women's Basketball Conference before they became the Breakers and joined the WNBL as of 1988.
She would go on to play 141 games in the WNBL and win Grand Final honours in the club's lone championship to this day in 1992.
At the time the then SBL, now NBL1 West, season ran side-by-side with the WNBL season but Fisher would star in the league and up until the end of 2002 go on to play 222 games with the Perth Redbacks, Willetton Tigers, Cockburn Cougars and lastly the Mandurah Magic.
Along the way, she was part of the triumph in the inaugural SBL season in 1989 for the Redbacks who claimed the first ever championship where she dominated with 22.7 points and 9.5 rebounds a game.
She would end up winning the league's MVP award along the way too in 1995, and was even able to get back playing for three more seasons in Mandurah after giving birth to her twin daughters.
Both Bree and Eryn would end up fine basketball players themselves with Bree amassing 101 games before life took her in another direction while Eryn has now worked tremendously hard to return from a knee injury at the Perry Lakes Hawks to build on a 103-game career.
Reflecting on lifetime in basketball
Not only did Fisher have her own remarkable basketball career, but since retiring she also got back involved with the game to coach her daughters. She ended up being in charge at the East Perth Eagles for several seasons where they continued to grow and develop as players, and young women.
What she is most proud of is that while her daughters ended up sharing her love and passion of basketball, she deliberately didn’t push them in that direction which ended up making it a much more genuine connection.
In fact, it was the opposite where it was the urging, and threats, of Eryn that brought Tanya back to basketball to get involved as a coach.
"Eryn actually handed me an ultimatum to get them into basketball (it was either coach them in a team or she was playing netball instead!) and I’ve been able to be a part of their journey as they fell in love with it," Fisher said.
"Basketball has been a major part of my life for over three decades now and the source of most of my most enduring friendships as well. I’ve been so lucky to have played with and against some of the most talented, driven and dynamic women in the sport (on and off the court) and it’s still one of my passions to this day.
"I consider myself very fortunate that both of my girls loved playing. I deliberately didn’t get them involved until much they were older as I didn’t want my love becoming theirs by default.
"If they wanted to play, I wanted that passion to be theirs alone. It wasn’t until they actually started playing that they realise how involved I had been and other people they met were telling them about me as a player."
Sharing basketball passion with daughters
Fisher will always be deservedly proud of everything she has done in her own lifetime in basketball, but there's nothing that will ever quite beat seeing your children grow into wonderful young women.
It just happened to be a bonus they shared that passion for basketball in the end where their mother couldn’t have been a better person to help them develop that into becoming fine players in their own right.
Things started at the Warwick (then Stirling) Senators, but it was at the East Perth Eagles where Tanya would end up coaching and Bree would end up the starting point guard, and Eryn as a powerful forward presence on that team with almost 100 games together.
It's an experience that Tanya will forever cherish.
"My biggest joy was being able to share the same passion with my daughters," she said.
"In the same way that I was determined that I wouldn’t push my passion onto them, once they had chosen their path I was clear about what this commitment entailed - the extra off court work, skills and fitness training - if you wanted to achieve success, hard work is key and they never let me or themselves down.
"That’s where the joy is, seeing your children learn work ethic and commitment and enjoying their passion - there are no words and I am incredibly grateful for this experience as well."
Eryn's determination to return
While Eryn and Bree are twins, they couldn’t have ended up as more different basketball players. Eryn continued to develop into a post presence with a strong game largely on the inside even though she wasn’t immune to stepping out to shoot.
She's always embraced the physical side of the game and her 2018 season at the Eagles was especially strong with her putting up 12.0 points and 7.6 rebounds a game.
She has spent time playing NCAA Division 1 basketball since at the University of Maryland – Baltimore County, but it's been a nagging knee injury that has proved tough to overcome.
Eryn did return to the NBL1 West last season at the Eastern Suns playing 19 games for 8.8 points and 5.0 rebounds, but it's been that knee injury that kept her sidelined upon joining the Perry Lakes Hawks up until last weekend.
She made her Hawks debut against the Cockburn Cougars for the 103rd game of her career, and nobody admires her more for the hard work it's taken to return than her mother.
"Eryn’s had to cope with things that I never experienced as an athlete. Her knee injury was extensive and I had never faced a mid-career injury like hers," Tanya said.
"Watching her battle through it was challenging for me (although not as much as for her obviously!) but she has been meticulous in her rehab and I could not be prouder of her - big shout out to Dave Dawes her physio who was nothing short of amazing - but I know she’s impatient to be back to her usual self out on the court."
Life has taken Bree in a different direction
While Eryn turned into that strong, powerful inside player, Bree ended up being a natural ball handler and playmaker as a guard for a lot of her 101-game career with 92 of those games played at East Perth.
The best of her seasons was also in 2018 where she produced 9.3 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists, but the numbers don't tell the whole story of her being a key playmaker and defensive presence.
However, life took her in a different direction at the end of 2022 when she moved to Singapore to take up a New Colombo Plan scholarship to continue her studies, but she hasn’t left basketball behind either.
"Bree is a ferocious competitor who enjoyed her time playing but whereas Eryn loved basketball, Bree liked it and therein lies the key difference," Tanya said.
"When Bree applied for and was awarded the NCP Scholarship to pursue her studies in Singapore there was really no question, she followed her passion. She has been playing as a forward in Singapore though!
"Your children will be what they want to be, all I have ever wanted is that they are passionate about their lives - whether that be in basketball, academia or other pursuits."
Historic first championship at Redbacks
The SBL competition was formed in 1989 and Fisher was there as part of it with the Redbacks, and played a starring role in that historic first ever championship.
She went on to do plenty more in her career, but that will always remain a special memory.
"The championship was special for so many reasons. They are just so hard to come by with so many variables contributing to the journey," she said.
"I’ve been lucky enough to have played (and coached) with many of the clubs here in WA and in a time where basketball was prominent and our league was incredibly strong."
Reflecting on success she was part of
There was plenty of individual accolades Fisher racked up during her career including the SBL MVP award of 1995 and the WNBL Grand Final MVP of 1992, but nothing will beat being part of team success.
To win a national championship with the WAIS Rockets, the first ever SBL title at the Perth Redbacks, and then the only ever WNBL championship for the Perth Breakers, now Lynx, are memories to last her a lifetime.
The catch ups with those championship teammates remain a highlight all these years later and there was the chance for majority of that Breakers team from 1992 to get back together for the Lynx Grand Final game in the WNBL earlier this year.
When Fisher looks back, it was anything but easy, but she will always cherish the memories.
"One of my frustrations back when I was playing was that the WNBL season was played over the same time as the (then) SBL, meaning that many of the dominant players in the league could often only play 50% of the games which impacted the season ladder in so many ways," Fisher said.
"I was a part of the Rockets who took out the National Title, a member of the 1992 Breakers who took out the WNBL GF and also have the Redbacks Premiership as part of the trifecta.
"I can honestly say that it is only as you age that you really understand how special these accomplishments are and appreciate how much you had to sacrifice and commit to achieve them but I can sincerely say that it was worth every drop of sweat that was given."
Remaining currently involved
Fisher continues to be involved in basketball and currently is a regular commentator on NBL1 West games, and is glad to remain part of the game in some capacity while still seeing room for improvement.
"The league is improving exponentially each year now, it’s fantastic to watch the progress," Fisher said.
"What I would love to see is better off season development leagues to assist our local players attain higher levels as we still don’t have the same depth in competitions that are available in other states and rely quite heavily on imports to supplement the league.
"I still love the sport though! Commentating has provided another avenue to remain involved and I am grateful for the opportunity."