Niel Gillard

Niel is the Coach of the BUCS First Team and UKCC Level 3 Coach. He joined the basketball programme as a player in October 2011 after a successful junior career which included representing the England National Teams at U16 and U18 age groups. Alongside studying his undergraduate degree he played for a range of Club teams including the Cheshire Phoenix in the British Basketball League and Manchester Magic of the National Basketball League. He graduated from Chester in 2014 with a degree in law and commenced studying towards a PhD in Law. As a player, Niel has helped the team to win BUCS Northern Division 2A, Northern Conference Cup, NBL Division 4, NBL Division 3 and the National Shield, and won NBL Division 4 Player of the Year. He began coaching the BUCS First Team in 2017/18. In his debut season as Coach, the BUCS First team won the Northern Conference 2A earning promotion to Division 1A and won the BUCS Northern Conference Cup. In his second season, the team reach the quarter-finals of the BUCS Trophy and finished 3rd in Division 1, missing out on the top spot in the final game of the season.