Mother and Sons: Cherry Webster reflects on a Difficult Season

Sunday, May 9, 2021

Written for nbl.com.au by Tom Hersz

It was supposed to be a homecoming, a reunion of sorts, but it hasn’t worked out that way for the Webster family.

When Tai Webster chose to come home to play in the NBL and team up with older brother Corey for the Breakers, no one was looking forward to it more than their Mum, Cherry.

Tai had been playing overseas since he was seventeen years old basically, and this was a chance for Cherry – who never misses a game she can get to – and husband Tony, to watch their sons play together on home soil.

So when Cherry found out that due to COVID-related travel restrictions, the Breakers would be based in Australia for much of the #NBL21 season, naturally it was difficult for her.

“Gut-wrenching,” Cherry Webster told NBL Media on Friday of how that made her feel.

“Because I have been at basically every game I could since they started playing basketball, because I love sport so much myself and that’s what parents do I guess. And I knew this would be a really small window of opportunity for them to play together, so when this happened that they had to stay in Australia, it was just heart wrenching."

Cherry has always been active in her boys’ athletic pursuits. They were introduced to basketball through their father Tony, who came to New Zealand from New York (via the University of Hawaii) to play for North Shore and never left, but Cherry, who played and coached netball at a high level in New Zealand, has always played a major role as well.

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overflow:hidden; padding:8px 0 7px; text-align:center; text-overflow:ellipsis; white-space:nowrap;"><a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/B0dGuWJgi1X/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" style=" color:#c9c8cd; font-family:Arial,sans-serif; font-size:14px; font-style:normal; font-weight:normal; line-height:17px; text-decoration:none;" target="_blank">A post shared by Corey Webster (@coreywebster_)</a></p></div></blockquote> <script async src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script>

She has fond memories of both Corey and Tai being around both sports from a young age, as she and Tony stayed involved in some capacity.

“I guess for Corey, from the moment he could walk he had a basketball in his hand, and probably before that actually,” Cherry recalled.

“Tony was playing and then coaching in those days and Corey went with him every time. He hung out with him at trainings, all the boys knew him, he used to go into the changing rooms and I think Dillon Boucher was still on the team then.

“So, Corey was always the little guy, even at two or three years old, bouncing the ball. And he could do anything with a ball at a very young age, so it was just ingrained on him since he was born really.

“Tai always had Corey to look up to. Same thing with him, he was always bouncing up and down the side of a basketball court or a netball court, because I was a netballer. So having a ball in their hands is just second nature to both of them really.”

So do they get their talent from Tony or from Cherry?

“I always tell them they get their shooting from me when they’re shooting well,” she joked.

“And when they’re not shooting well, it comes from their Dad! I was a Goal Attack so technically I always try to give them a few pointers, but I don’t think they ever listen.”

It was pretty obvious to Cherry and Tony that both boys had talent from an early age. They were naturally gifted, had good genes from both sides, and a passion for sport instilled by both parents.

Cherry recalls that it didn’t take long for her boys to become the go-to players on their respective teams.

“From the moment they started playing, they always seemed to be the dominant kids in the team,” she explained.

“It was hard work for both of them really, because a lot of kids expected them to do it all and they were quite happy doing that because that’s what they saw their Dad do in his teams.

“As they got older, they got into much better teams. Both of them played for Westlake Boys and won National Secondary School titles. In the early days, when they were playing through primary and intermediate school, they just seemed to be so much better than the other kids. I think because of that background; their genes but also because they’d been around basketball their whole lives, it was just normal life for them.

“So I guess that helped them as they got into the professional stage of their careers, being able to absorb pressure has become reasonably easy for both of them, I suppose.”

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">That Brotherly Connection<a href="https://twitter.com/Tjawtherula?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Tjawtherula</a> follows up <a href="https://twitter.com/cwebster9?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@cwebster9</a>'s handy work ?<br><br>? <a href="https://twitter.com/SBSOnDemand?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SBSOnDemand</a> | <a href="https://t.co/oZ5mgvnPWJ">https://t.co/oZ5mgvnPWJ</a> <a href="https://t.co/Z7QK6aSiTE">pic.twitter.com/Z7QK6aSiTE</a></p>— The NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1163764053413466112?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 20, 2019</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Corey was also a talented rugby player at school. He was in an elite program at one stage, but ultimately had to make a choice.

“He played that into High School,” Cherry said.

“But he had a couple of bad injuries in the first year in High School and we had to make a decision about which way he wanted to go, because obviously rugby lends itself to more injuries than other sports and that would affect his basketball.

“He loved both games, but basketball was always going to take preference so he had to give up rugby and carried on playing basketball.”

It’s worked out pretty well. Corey has gone on to play professionally in New Zealand, Australia, Serbia, Greece, Israel, China and Italy. He has won three NBL titles, three NZNBL titles and made the All-NBL second team. He’s also had a few shots at making the NBA, being invited to a Pacers mini-camp and then spending training camp and preseason with the New Orleans Pelicans, as well as a Summer League stint with Dallas.

Corey has also played extensively for his National Team, the Tall Blacks, including at both the 2014 and 2019 FIBA World Cups.

Younger brother Tai, who was a standout at the University of Nebraska in his senior year, has been playing professionally in Europe since 2017 – most recently for powerhouse Galatasaray in Turkey. Tai also represented New Zealand at the 2014 FIBA World Cup as a 19-year old.

Along the way, Cherry has been ever-present. She was not afraid to impart some motherly advice to her sons as their games were developing and it was founded on her years of experience in team sports.

“I suppose my main thing, because I had been involved in netball in a coaching aspect, was always to try and be a team person,” she explained.

“They were so dominant as young kids in their age groups and it can be easy in basketball to become a bit of a ball hog. But I guess my thing was you’re only as good as the weakest person on your team and so your whole team has to be strong through you being a team person, not just you trying to beat everyone else. So the main thing for me was the team aspect of it.”

She tries to watch every game they play, whether in-person or on TV. Seeing her two sons play on the big stage sounds exciting, but for a mother it can often be quite a different experience.

“It’s nerve-racking, you know,” admitted Cherry.

“It really is. It’s worse than playing yourself. And having been in both situations, being a Mum or Dad and watching your kids play at that level is the most terrifying thing, because you just want them to be successful and not make too many mistakes, and be the best that they can be on any given night.

“And it is, it’s terrifying watching them; my heart’s in my mouth most of the time. But underlying all that, I’m just really proud of how far they’ve gotten, the work that they’ve both put in to get where they are, especially this year.

“This year’s just been shocking for them, [for] the whole Breakers team mentally. I just worry about all of their mental health, the staff included, having to be away from their family and their kids, and live in a hotel has just been horrific. That’s what worries me the most.

“I know they can all be happier in themselves, which makes them better athletes – the whole team, if they were on an equal footing with the other teams at the moment. But they’re not; they’re so handicapped by the situation. And your heart breaks for them because you know how mentally tough it is for them to be in that situation every week.”

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">WEBSTER ² <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBLCup?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBLCup</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBL21?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBL21</a> <a href="https://t.co/AhGgxqzKul">pic.twitter.com/AhGgxqzKul</a></p>— The NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1365547718488154113?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 27, 2021</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

For Corey and Tai, being reunited this season was never something Cherry expected to see. Corey has a young family and is settled in New Zealand, but Tai has been pursuing his career in Europe successfully and coming back to the NBL wasn’t originally in his plans.

The opportunity for them to play together with the Breakers was really borne out of necessity given the global pandemic and how it was playing out in Europe. And Cherry, as any mother would, certainly played a big role in helping Tai to navigate that decision.

“That was a long conversation we’d been having, he and I, about what his next move was going to be once COVID hit,” Cherry explained.

“Of course, my gentle nudging and advice was that he should come home and be safe because from a mother’s point of view, you just want your children to be safe wherever they are and whatever they’re doing. And I knew that if he was going to be in Europe somewhere, he wouldn’t be safe.

“And same with Corey even doing these offseason stints that they do; he’s been to China and all sorts of different places. I said to Tai you haven’t been home since you left home at seventeen basically, how cool it would be to have a season at home, play with your brother and be back in an environment with your friends and your family.

“Even if it’s just for one season, you’ll really enjoy and it’s not going to impact on your professional career down the track; in fact it might help it. You can still go and pursue your dream of playing in Europe or wherever it might be once COVID’s over, but one year out of your career is not going to make a huge difference in the bigger picture.

“So, I was just trying to get him to look at the bigger picture rather than what I’m doing now and what I want to do next season. And I think everyone he spoke to within the family and his friends, it was pretty obvious; pretty good advice that home would be the best place while COVID was happening.”

So he does listen to his mother, right?

“Well I guess he does,” she laughed. “I guess you call it selective hearing!”

Unfortunately for Cherry, while Tai has been back playing in the NBL, he hasn’t been home amongst family and friends after all, with the Breakers based in Australia this whole season to-date.

She’s not been able to see them play together in-person yet, but is certainly looking forward to the team returning home for the final rounds of this season.

“I’m just so grateful that they’re getting to play these last few games at home,” she said.

“I’m trying to work out ways to get around New Zealand and follow them, because I know that could be the last time ever that they get to play together like this – apart from maybe on the national stage and quite often that’s overseas so it’s not as easy to see them.”

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When she does get the opportunity to see them play together, it’s always special, even if it’s on TV. But there’s nothing better than seeing it live and Cherry relishes any chance to do so, whether for the Breakers or the Tall Blacks.

“It’s incredible,” she described.

“Just so proud, just so proud of them both. And my extended family, I’ve got two sisters and they’ve got kids, so Corey and Tai’s cousins and my two sisters, we all went and followed them to the last World Cup in Spain.

“We did a family trip, so went through London, Paris, Rome [and] ended up in Spain all together and went and watched them play. So that’s a memory that we’ll all treasure forever. And there weren’t that many Kiwis there, so being in the crowd, in our black with our flags and we had t-shirts made up and everything. It was amazing.”

And as much as she’s looking forward to being able to watch them play together, like any mother, she’s just counting down the days til they can all be re-united on the North Shore and spend some quality time together, as a family, for the first time in a long while.

As you can imagine, Cherry is most looking forward to what any mother would be looking forward to.

“Just a big hug from both of them and just being able to sit down and spend time with them,” she said.

“I’ve got a really close, extended family so as soon as they get back we’ll be out having a big dinner or a gathering at someone’s house. And just seeing them be happy and within themselves, and Corey’s got two children and being amongst their friends and family again, that’s all that any parent wants really – is just to see their kids happy.

“So, the best thing will be just sitting down and able to have face to face conversations with them and hugging them I guess, will be the best thing.”

Happy Mother’s Day to Cherry Webster and all the NBL and basketball Mums out there.