YORK Tornadoes Basketball Club are preparing for life in the Yorkshire Premier Division next season by appointing two new coaches for the upcoming season.

A year ago the club were known as Tadcaster Tornadoes and were getting ready for a seaosn in the bottom tier of the Yorkshire league system, after finishing bottom of the league the year before.

However, in the last 12 months the club have moved to York and taken on a new name, with the switch coinciding with huge strides on the basketball court.

The Tornadoes first team won both the league and the senior cup last season without losing a game and have been fast-tracked straight to the top tier of the pyramid.

That rise meant the Tornadoes, who boast more than 100 players from 13 different countries, were able to enter a reserve team into the league for the first time, as well as a team into the women's league.

The addition of a third men's side, the development squad, has meant that players of all ability are able to get involved in the game for friendly fixtures throughout the season.

Eager to continue to rapid improvement, Tornadoes officials went about recruiting the best coaches they could find for the men's sides.

A new head coach is poised to be appointed for the first team and he will be assisted by local standout Scott Richards next season.

Experienced York-based coach Jason Milner was also selected to take over the second team.

Milner, who averaged 9.5 points per game last season for the Tornadoes, will combine coaching and playing roles and will be targeting a strong debut season.

The club has already announced its busy pre-season schedule, returning to again play in the Leeds Summer League, while also hosting its own York-based round robin competition.

Warm up games with National League heavyweights are expected to be announced for later in the year also.

The women's squad are already eight games into their pre-season as they look to play as many games as they can before their inaugural season begins at the start of August.

The most recent outing was a convincing 68-26 win over the Manchester Divas, with Romina Rodriguez and new addition Alice Middleton leading the scoring with 11 and 16 points respectively.

Tornadoes, who have aspirations to become the city's first national league side in the future, have teamed up with Hickory's Roadhouse after an appeal in The Press for sponsorship.

The backing has provided much needed finances, which have not only allowed Tornadoes to provide all the teams with kit but have also made the 2014 York Summer League and the return of the hugely popular Christmas Cup competition possible.

The team staged their post-season awards dinner at Hickory's, with point guard Liam Hudson picking up the Most Valuable Player award for the 2013/14 season after scoring 383 points in his 15 games.

Pre-season training is under way and the Tornadoes are allowing any experienced players to attend the sessions as try-outs for the 2014/15 rosters.

Anyone interested in playing for the club should email Arnie Johnson on arnie@yorktornadoes.co.uk or phone 07723 303679.