-------"A Starry, Starry Night"-------
Annual Ball and Presentation Night

The Taipans Starry Starry Night Gala Dinner was celebrated in fine style over the weekend with over five-hundred people turning out to congratulate the Taipans players and staff on a tremendous season

The evening saw the presentation of the clubs major awards along with great entertainment to create what most attendees are calling the best Starry, Starry night on record

The four major awards for the night were the Club Person of the Year, Coaches Award, Best Defensive Player and the MVP

Nick Sinopoli collected the CaPTA Group Of Companies Club Person of the Year Award for his role as Score-bench Chairperson since the Taipans inception into the league in 1999, as well as his contribution to Junior Basketball in Cairns over the past twenty years

Kane Oakley received the Irelands Coaches Award in his comeback year in the NBL

There were no surprises with Darnell Mee collecting the Reef Hotel Casino Best Defensive Player after being voted best defensive player in the NBL for a record fifth time

The top prize for the night, the Cairns Post Most Valuable Player, went to Martin Catallini
This capped of a tremendous season for Catallini who was a clear winner, finishing ahead of Gary Boodnikoff and Darnell Mee in the race for the title

There was not a dry eye in the in the place as the Taipans paid tribute to retiring forward Melvin Thomas with a touching video and presentation of his Taipans singlet framed, along with a montage of photos of Melvin in action during his glittering career
The quietly spoken Thomas was overcome and received a standing ovation from the five-hundred strong crowd

The Starry Night was much more than just a gala dinner, with performances by the hot and mini squads, a live band and some unforgettable skits from the players and coaches
Co-captain Anthony Stewart looked stunning as Cindy Lauper, Gary Boodnikoff wowed the fans as Madonna while Kane Oakley 'turned back time' with his uncanny impersonation of Cher

However the coaches weren't about to be out-done as Alan Black, Aaron Fearne and Mark Beecroft strutted their stuff as Jessica Simpson look alikes and showed the crowd that their boots were made for walking and not for dancing

Cairns Taipans Sales and Marketing Manager Brad Tassell hailed the night as a major success
"We as a club place a great deal of effort into our Gala dinner and see it as one of the most important nights of the year
It is our last event of each season and it is vital that we put on a great show for our fans and that they leave having had a great night
The event has established itself as one of the premiere nights in Cairns and this years was definitely one of our best yet"

Tassell also added
"I think MC Steve Carfino summed it up perfectly when he said he couldn't believe how big the event was and that nothing in the league compares to it
Despite being nervous at the start Steve did a fantastic job and it was great having him here"

The Starry Starry Night was the perfect conclusion to what has been the Taipans best ever season
With two players receiving top NBL awards and a maiden semi-final appearance, the future looks bright and the Taipans are looking forward to a bigger and better season in 2006/07