Kent side Sevenoaks Suns have announced that they have withdrawn from the league and cup due to Covid-19.

A statement from the basketball side lays out their reasons why they have decided to withdraw from their upcoming games. It reads:

“Due to the current pandemic situation, our WBBL team has decided to postpone our Championship games until the end of the international window on 8 February 2021 and to withdraw from the WBBL Cup Final on 24 January 2021. We would like to share an open letter from our WBBL team to the whole basketball community explaining our decision:”

To the Basketball Community,

“As a founding member of the WBBL, we, the players, and staff of Sevenoaks Suns have always prided ourselves on standing up for what we believe and doing things the right way.”

“After deliberating and discussing with all members of our WBBL program, we have decided we cannot participate in any league games until after the end of the National team break on February 13th at the earliest. Also, we cannot play in the Cup Final on January 24th. This decision is not taken lightly but is made with consideration for the safety of ourselves, our loved ones and our Sevenoaks community.”

“We appreciate all the work that has gone into making it possible for our league to continue. We also realize what a great opportunity it would be for the club to play the Cup Final on Sky. That being said, the COVID situation in the UK has markedly changed since we started our season in November and this has hit Suns especially hard.”

“We have multiple players whose important work puts them in regular contact with the public. For example, we have a player who works in the NHS. Another player is a physiotherapist working with COVID patients. A third player is a teacher. Many of our players live with families, some members of which are elderly or otherwise vulnerable. These circumstances make any form of bubble impossible.”

“We love playing basketball and we love playing in the WBBL. To decide to not play has been a painful decision for us to take but we are united and believe that suspending our participation is the right thing for us to do for the health and safety of our players, coaches and families.”

“We will meet weekly as a team and continue to monitor the situation. Hopefully, the urgency of the situation will lessen, facilities will reopen and we will find a way to get started again.”

“Our hope is that everyone will understand our situation and know that we are committed to the WBBL and all the promise it holds for women’s basketball in the UK.”

“Sevenoaks Suns, WBBL”