Mother’s Day: Perspectives from Jenny Froling

Saturday, May 8, 2021

Written for nbl.com.au by Tom Hersz

There’s something to be said about passing on what you love to your children.

As a parent, you want to share your passion so you can have something in common, spend time together and hopefully impart some knowledge or wisdom along the way.

Jenny Froling has done that in spades.

If you don’t know who Jenny Froling (nee Lind) is, well here’s a quick history lesson. She was a star WNBL player in the 1980s, winning three championships as a player: two with Nunawading (a third as Team Manager) and 1 with Hobart. Jenny went on to coach as an Assistant with Hobart and then also became a referee, where she refereed at QBL, WNBL and NBL level. She was awarded WNBL Life Membership last year.

She married Shane Froling (ex-NBL player and coach) while both were still playing and they eventually had four kids who you may have heard of. Alicia and Keely (twins) who both play in the WNBL, and then Harry (Brisbane Bullets) and Sam (Illawarra Hawks).

That’s quite the basketball family.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">4x <a href="https://twitter.com/WNBL?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@WNBL</a> champion <a href="https://twitter.com/jennyfroling?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@jennyfroling</a> & husband Shane last night watched 23yo daughter <a href="https://twitter.com/KeelyFroling?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@KeelyFroling</a> become <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WNBL19?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WNBL19</a> champion ?<br><br>20yo son <a href="https://twitter.com/HarryFroling?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@HarryFroling</a> tonight was voted <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBL19?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBL19</a> best rookie<br><br>Their other kids <a href="https://twitter.com/AliciaFroling?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@AliciaFroling</a> & @sfrol13 are just as good<br><br>Some gene pool ??‍????‍?? <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBLAwards?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBLAwards</a></p>— John Casey (@JohnCasey2880) <a href="https://twitter.com/JohnCasey2880/status/1097090893884973056?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 17, 2019</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Of course when both of your parents are ex-professional players in the same sport, chances are you’re going to be pushed in that direction, but Jenny’s kids did have a choice. In fact, the girls didn’t take to basketball right away.

“The girls actually didn’t want to play when they were quite young,” Jenny told NBL Media this week.

“It wasn’t til they were about nine, which is still quite young, that they decided to play.

“The boys, and Harry in particular, he was five. You weren’t allowed to play at Townsville Basketball until you were five in under 8s, and he wanted to play before then; he was always waiting to play. So he started playing when he was five. He started before the girls.

“I think for the girls, Shane was still playing State League and he was coaching the Crocs, so I don’t think they had any concept of what basketball was, except watching their Dad beat up people on the court – and the Crocodiles.

“So when I said ‘do you want to play basketball?’, they were just like ‘no’, and I wondered why. And it was probably because they didn’t know junior basketball. I’m not sure if they thought they were going to go out with Dad!”

Ask any basketball parent and they’ll tell you it’s a big commitment. There’s a lot of driving involved and it usually increases the better your kids become. Playing on representative teams, extra training sessions, tournaments, state trials … it adds up quickly.

Magnify that four-fold and add in some coaching and you might start to get a sense of what Jenny and Shane had to navigate for their kids to play. Jenny’s earliest memories of her kids playing largely centre around driving them to games and trainings, scoring their games or coaching.

“Earliest memory is just getting everyone into the car and going to the game,” she recalled.

“Basically, when they were quite little, all of Saturday was spent out at basketball, and when they got older, there’d be Friday nights at basketball, Saturday at basketball and then Sunday afternoons at basketball, plus all your trainings as well for local comp. So, a lot of driving, but that was just locally.

“When they started to make the Townsville teams, you had your drives to Mackay and Cairns, and then they had State Classic every year, which was usually in Brisbane, which we used to drive to, just for cost effectiveness. So there was a lot of driving and going back and forth with the kids.”

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Brothers at Arms.<br><br>The Frolings are rolling in <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/HWKatBNE?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#HWKatBNE</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBL21?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBL21</a> <a href="https://t.co/iLMCs8Q31V">pic.twitter.com/iLMCs8Q31V</a></p>— The NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1350349921090641922?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 16, 2021</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

It became obvious pretty early on that the Froling kids were talented and could go far in basketball. But their athletic prowess didn’t stop on a basketball court. It extended well beyond the hardwood and Jenny wasn’t surprised.

“I think we knew they were going to be talented at whatever sport they chose, because they were tall and they were athletic,” Froling explained.

“So at school, with athletics and the swimming carnivals, they dominated their age groups in their school stuff, and I guess they just had everything they needed if they wanted to be good at any sport.

“They had the physical ability, they had coaches at home – as well as some good coaches along the way too – and I think the most important thing is that they loved it. Because if you love something and you’re good at it, you get better at it. So, whatever sport they chose they’d have been good at.

“The girls did a little bit of swimming, but not at any sort of level, but they also did some athletics – just running mainly. I always thought that if you can run and have a good technique, that will help you in whatever sport you choose, so they had some coaching in that in High School.

“And the boys played Aussie Rules as well, so that was Saturday morning. And both boys were really good at that cos of their height, because of their hand-eye coordination and they were both on the [Gold Coast] Suns’ development academy – I think Sam may still be on it.”

When both parents have played and coached at the highest level, it’s only going to benefit their kids’ development. Jenny and Shane obviously helped with their on-court skills, but off the court they managed to instil in their kids a work ethic, a level of commitment and a respect for the sport they were playing through the provision of advice, based on their own experiences.

“It would probably be Shane more than me,” admitted Jenny.

“He has always said to them, ‘if you want to be good at it, you have to do all the right things’. He was prepared to help them, but they had to be all in.

“Probably from me, I’m a bit the same. If you’re gonna do something, do it properly. I also think you have to enjoy it and you as a coach, you’ve got to make it fun for everyone. And winning is fun, but there are lots of other things that make it fun.

“And one of my things with anyone I’ve coached and my own children is just being punctual, just being respectful, turn up on time, you don’t miss training unless something’s really wrong, so all those habits that I certainly had and Shane had as well, were instilled in them.”

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Townsville natives, Alicia and Keely Froling, will face off on home soil tonight when <a href="https://twitter.com/BendigoSpirit?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@BendigoSpirit</a> meet <a href="https://twitter.com/UCCapitals?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@UCCapitals</a> in <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WNBL20?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WNBL20</a> action. <br><br>?<a href="https://t.co/p1CO4EUxaK">https://t.co/p1CO4EUxaK</a><br>??<a href="https://t.co/iTHSd0ueup">https://t.co/iTHSd0ueup</a><br>?<a href="https://twitter.com/kayosports?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@kayosports</a> at 6.30pm AEST / 7.30pm AEDT<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WeAreWNBL?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WeAreWNBL</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/thisisqueensland?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#thisisqueensland</a><a href="https://twitter.com/TCC_News?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@tcc_news</a> <a href="https://t.co/DoZdu3C7YA">pic.twitter.com/DoZdu3C7YA</a></p>— WNBL (@WNBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/WNBL/status/1332525309376094209?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 28, 2020</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

With four children playing professionally at the highest level in Australia, Jenny spends a lot of time watching her kids play. It may be live or on TV, but she’ll always be watching.

Jenny and Shane will be in attendance tonight in Cairns to watch Harry and the Bullets take on the Taipans.

When she watches her kids play, Jenny still looks at them through coach’s eyes. She can’t help but look at their game and think about what they should be doing, what they should be doing better and what they do well.

“I actually find it really stressful to watch my children,” she confessed.

“When I watch, you hope that they play well. You hope that they win, but it’s okay if they don’t. You just hope that they play well, that it’s a good game and that everyone comes through unscathed.

“Sitting watching with Shane is … he yells at the television and I always turn to him and say ‘you know they can’t hear you?’ That’s his way.

“But I don’t think I’ve ever watched basketball as a true spectator. I’ve always watched it as a player, watching my brother, watching my husband or coaching and watching my kids play. I think there’d be very few times that I’ve ever sat in a stadium and watched the game for the sake of the game because I’ve always had someone involved in it.

“I watch on TV, but if I’m at a live game it’s usually because there’s someone that I’m involved with [who’s] playing.”

Of course as much as Jenny may be watching and critiquing in her mind when her kids play, viewing from an ex-player and coach’s perspective, she won’t offer anything unless prompted or invited to do so.

“I actually don’t give them any advice, unless they ask me for my opinion,” Jenny explained.

“They rarely ask for my opinion on their game. I will volunteer information, but I’m also aware because I’ve been a coach, that sometimes you don’t want noise from outside coming in. So often I don’t volunteer anything unless the kids specifically ask me something.

“If it’s about contracts or who they should play for or just my opinion on someone or something, I will give it, but I don’t volunteer information unless [asked].”

Jenny does reach out to her kids before each game though.

“All the kids I always message before they play,” she said.

“On the day of their game, just ‘good luck, love you’. I’ve always done that whatever game they’ve played. [But] when they play against each other, I don’t say good luck, I just say ‘have a good one tonight’.”

Naturally, her children play each other regularly in the WNBL and NBL. When they go head to head, as a mother, she has a unique perspective. This is especially true of Harry and Sam as that big brother versus little brother battle kicks in.

“I hope they both play well. I don’t actually care who wins,” she admitted.

“But I can tell they’re brothers. I’m watching to see what they’re going to do to each other and the trash talk, which I know will be happening. I probably see things that they do to each other that others don’t see.

“And then you see the Snapchat and back and forth after the game about who got the upper hand; in fun though, in jest – but it is quite funny.”

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">It's a proper family affair in the 'Gong.<a href="https://twitter.com/ShaneFroling?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ShaneFroling</a> & <a href="https://twitter.com/KeelyFroling?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@KeelyFroling</a> courtside to watch @sfrol13 & <a href="https://twitter.com/HarryFroling?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@HarryFroling</a> battle it out ?<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ADEatILL?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ADEatILL</a> live on <a href="https://twitter.com/ESPNAusNZ?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@ESPNAusNZ</a> + <a href="https://twitter.com/SBSOnDemand?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SBSOnDemand</a> <a href="https://t.co/Rbylcj0two">pic.twitter.com/Rbylcj0two</a></p>— The NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1186225201022820352?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 21, 2019</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

For the record, Sam has bragging rights over big brother Harry for this season as the Hawks won the season series 3-2 against Brisbane.

With Mother’s Day on Sunday, Jenny couldn’t be prouder of her kids. With all she achieved in her career, having four kids playing professionally is pretty remarkable.

But what makes her most proud of her kids is that they all love the game that she and Shane have both loved for a very long time now.

“I love that they all love the game,” Jenny explained.

“I love that they can make a living out of the game – the boys more than the girls. The girls can’t yet and maybe they never will.

“[But] all the things that are good about sport; your friendships, your teammates, the travel, the learning experiences that you get from the bad things as well as the good things – I love that they’ve all gotten to do that.

“I do love that they all love the game like we did and certainly like I did when I was younger.

“So, I’m glad that they’ve all done well. Certainly they all want to do better than they’re doing right now. I know it’s a cliché, but it is just a step on the journey and where they’re going. And where they get, who knows?”

Happy Mother’s Day to Jenny Froling and all the NBL, WNBL and basketball Mums out there.