Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

‘I grew up in rural Perthshire – now I’m a rising basketball star in the States’

Ella Doherty, who plays in Ohio in front of thousands of fans, has revealed her dream to have a professional career in the sport.

Ella Doherty from Powmill playing basketball.
Ella Doherty is pursuing her basketball dream in Ohio. Image: Supplied/Ella Doherty

A woman who left rural Perthshire to play basketball in the States in front of thousands of fans says she wants to have a professional career in the sport.

Ella Doherty, 20, had a quiet childhood in the village of Powmill in Kinross-shire.

She discovered a love of basketball at a young age and played for her local club in Kinross.

Despite the team being male-dominated, it did not stop her from becoming a rising star in the sport.

Now she is in America, where she plays in front of crowds bigger than those at many football matches in Scotland.

Perthshire player discovered love of basketball aged 10

Ella, who also played for Perth Phoenix Basketball Club, told The Courier: “I discovered my love for basketball at the age of 10.

“I had started playing for a local club in Kinross which was mostly made up of boys.

“From then, I moved on to play for Perth Phoenix and we formed one of the first girls’ teams at the club.

“These were some of my favourite years and memories I made playing basketball.

“My coach, Russel Kesson, taught me some of the most important fundamentals when it came to basketball that I am still so grateful for today.

Ella Doherty holding a basketball when she was younger
Ella as a young player with Perth Phoenix. Image: Fraser Band

“We had many consecutive successful years as a team at Perth Phoenix, which I will always cherish.

“All of this combined helped my love for basketball grow.”

In 2019, Ella was a finalist in Perth and Kinross Young Female Sports Personality of the Year.

She went on to compete as part of Great Britain’s Under-16 National Team and was scouted by an American side.

That led to her moving more than 3,000 miles to Ohio to pursue her dream.

Ella now competes for Toledo Rockets while studying business.

Ella Doherty scouted for American university basketball team

She said: “While playing for the Great Britain Under-16 National Team in Bulgaria, I was scouted and later contacted by my current coach, who had come to the tournament to find future players for her team.

“We stayed in contact and then in the summer of 2020, I committed to the University of Toledo.

“There is a bigger emphasis on sport here – it’s so much bigger than it is in Scotland.

“On average, we compete in front of around 4,000 fans and we’re in the top 30 in the country for attendance for women’s basketball.

“It’s a great atmosphere and it’s just great knowing that so many people are there to support women’s sport.”

Ella Doherty from Powmill.
Ella is studying business alongside competing as part of Toledo Rockets. Image: Supplied/Ella Doherty

Ella says while there is a big difference between life in Powmill and Ohio, her love for the sport has helped her settle in.

She said: “It was an easy transition. I’ve been travelling a lot with basketball since I was young.

“It’s something I’ve always wanted to do. It’s talked about a lot but not a lot of people are given the opportunity.

“It really excited me as it’s a different experience – so I jumped on it.

‘Basketball is what I want to do’

“I do miss home a lot, especially the food. I think I do miss the quieter lifestyle. But I know my family are proud of me.

“As long as I’m happy, they’re happy – they’re very supportive.

“I’m loving everything about my experience. It’s a challenge but I love that.”

She added: “I hope to continue playing basketball professionally after my degree, whether that be back home or in Europe.

“Basketball is what I want to do.”

Ella is not the only basketball star from Perthshire – in 2022, Perth man Chris Dodds revealed how he was living the dream as a referee.

Conversation