Pepper Money helps power Pople's green and gold dreams

Illawarra Hawks' principal sponsor Pepper Money continues to highlight the club's community-first approach through its Real Life Stories program. 

Most recently, Pepper Money presented Hawks graphic designer Luke Pople, who has been training with the Australian Rollers ahead of this year's upcoming FIBA World Cup Asian qualifiers and Commonwealth Games, with a $500 grant. 

“Receiving the grant is amazing - it means the world to me and will definitely help me on my upcoming quests with the Australian set-up,” Pople said.

“A huge thank you to the great team at Pepper Money - I really appreciate the support.”

Wollongong product Pople has been overcoming adversity his whole life, after being born with Spina Bifida in 1991.  

After a challenging childhood, Pople started playing hoops at the age of 13 and instantly fell in love with the game - before joining the Roller Hawks in 2004. 

“The Roller Hawks are like my second family, and we have been able to have success throughout that time - I look forward to adding some more silverware to our cabinet,” he said. 

Pople’s ascension continued at a rate of knots, making his green and gold debut four years later, during a friendly tournament against Great Britain and South Africa. 

“Being selected to play was a dream come true because representing your country at any level is very special,” the 30-year-old said. 

But it all hasn’t been smooth sailing for Pople, who just missed out on selection in Australia’s 12-man squad for Tokyo’s Paralympic Games. 

“[Missing selection] was a pretty tough one to take, being so close and feeling confident that I had done everything possible to be selected was pretty rough once I didn’t get the nod,” he said.

“But that’s sport and if you put in the hard work, more opportunities will come your way.

“I use these non-selections as motivation to work hard and make sure I put myself in the best situation to be selected in the future.” 

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">8??0??0?? games for the ?<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/WeAreIllawarra?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#WeAreIllawarra</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/FlyAsOne?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#FlyAsOne</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/NBL22?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#NBL22</a> <a href="https://t.co/uSnlT7yQ17">pic.twitter.com/uSnlT7yQ17</a></p>&mdash; Illawarra Hawks Basketball (@illawarrahawks) <a href="https://twitter.com/illawarrahawks/status/1516930105784041473?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 21, 2022</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Speaking to the character of Pople, he didn’t let this non-selection affect him too much - rather hitting the court soon after to ensure his close friends, who had been selected for Tokyo, were in top condition for the Paralympics. 

“I only had two days off after not being selected as another Wollongong teammate had made the team,” he said. 

“I continued training to help him prepare for Tokyo and that helped me get through the disappointment and add fuel to the fire to make sure I’m selected for these upcoming tournaments.” 

That commitment was rewarded recently with him being selected in the Rollers train-on squad for the Asian qualifiers, which have included a four-day camp at the Australian Institute of Sport in March. 

“Our first camp back after Tokyo was really beneficial,” he said. 

“It was great to get back together as a group and really break down how we want to play as a team moving forward and just to be able to get up and down the floor at a high level is always great.” 

This was all done while still managing his work commitments with the Hawks. 

“It’s admittedly tough to cram everything into one day and then still have the life balance to spend time with your partner, family and friends,” he said.

“But them being so supportive of my goals, makes it that bit easier to concentrate on being selected.

“I’m also very lucky with my job that they’re so on board with me pursuing my goals of playing for Australia.”

Pepper Money’s head of brand and sponsorships David Berry was thrilled they could assist in helping Pople get one step closer to his green and gold dreams.

“We’re really proud of Luke’s achievements in his sporting career, and his continued goals of representing Australia,” Berry said. 

“Luke is a true champion, a role model for the Illawarra community and represents everything we stand for at Pepper Money. 

“It’s particularly special for us to award Luke with this grant not only for his exceptional basketball skills but also for his connection and contribution to the Illawarra Hawks; a club that means a lot to us.”