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Williams will fill Toney role
Sheffield Sharks player-coach Atiba Lyons has admitted it is a blow to lose Tafari Toney to BBL rivals Mersey Tigers.
Toney, who Lyons snatched from Newcastle Eagles last summer, was a victim of Sharks refusal to overspend during recruitment this year and decided to accept a more lucrative offer from the Liverpool-based club.
Not only did the power-forward known as 'Tap' have an excellent first season in Sheffield, he was also considered a British player which allowed Sharks to sign Americans such as Mike Cook.
Now with Toney gone Lyons has had to look overseas to find his replacement. The club has now confirmed that 6'10" centre Paul Williams will be in a Sharks vest next season.
Lyons says New Jersey born Williams, aged 26, who has spent the last two years in the Spanish leagues, will be a more than adequate replacement for Toney.
"Paul won defensive player of the year a couple of seasons ago in Spain and he put up good numbers last year so he is a good signing for us," conceded Lyons.
"He is a different sort of player to Tap but he's long, he's athletic and he's tough.
"We decided that we'd offer Tap as much as we thought possible but we weren't going to break our wage structure. The big loss is the fact that he's a British passport holder."
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Weather for Sheffield
Wednesday 23 May 2012
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