Tahlia Tupaea is gone, Chloe Tugliach's season has ended before it could even begin, and Bec Pizzey won't be sighted for two months.
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The Canberra Capitals rollercoaster is already racing around the track days out from their WNBL season opener against the Adelaide Lightning at the National Convention Centre on Sunday.
Tupaea, who missed last season due to personal reasons, was entering the second of a two-year deal but Capitals officials have confirmed she will not suit up for Canberra this season.
Knee injuries have dealt another major blow to the Capitals, with Tugliach ruled out for the entire campaign and Pizzey expected to miss the first two months of the season.
It leaves Capitals coach Kristen Veal with nine rostered players and a handful of development players to start the season against Adelaide on Sunday.
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Veal admits it is far from an ideal start as Canberra look to bounce back from a forgettable two-win season, with club officials set to elevate a development player to a full contract and add another rookie to fill a development spot.
"Whilst it's been a really good pre-season, unfortunately we've had a couple of injuries that will affect the start of the season in both Chloe and Bec Pizzey. We'll start the season with nine rostered players and a couple of DPs [development players]," Veal said.
"It doesn't really change the game plan we had going in, but it has dramatically depleted our depth and our ability to stay at the intensity level we want to stay at for long periods of time during a game due to that.
"It'll shuffle our starting line-up a little bit, but in terms of our style of play, we definitely have the two shades we spoke about last year. We'll start with a certain way, and with 'Bunts' [Alex Bunton], we'll blend another style in as we go.
"Overall it doesn't impact us greatly, it's just from a depth and endurance standpoint."
Yet a Capitals outfit led by 21-year-old Jade Melbourne and new recruit Alex Sharp - with the two unveiled as co-captains - is buzzing about the challenge ahead.
"The mood is good. Last week there was a little bit of nervousness and anxiety," Veal said.
"Having the [pre-season] game against the [Centre of Excellence] on Friday was exactly what we needed, there was a crowd, referees, stats, it felt like a genuine game which allowed us to get some of that adrenaline out.
"Generally speaking, everyone is really excited about round one this weekend."
INDIGENOUS JERSEY
War paint, the footprints of a wedge-tailed eagle and a nod to history.
These are the markings of the Capitals' Indigenous uniform, with Canberra set to wear the black, blue and gold strip in their round one clash with Adelaide on Sunday.
Ask Ngunnawal man Richard Allan what it means to see his design come to life and he says "I haven't felt a feeling like it to be honest".
Nine circles represent Canberra's WNBL-record nine championships. Within those circles, cross patterns represent basket weaving and coming together.
"Which is what the girls do," Allan said.
"Whilst they come together on the court, they come together in the community and everyone they're working with. In Ngunnawal country, community is a big thing for us, especially me and my family. How much the girls do in the community is just amazing. The weaving and the dots in the circles are about the journey, for each step you have to take to reconciliation."
Pink and purple markings represent women, the colours standing for healing. The light lines spread across the design mirror war paint, because the Capitals are going into battle of their own.
The footprints of the wedge-tailed eagle - the Ngunnawal totem - line the middle of the jersey.
"It's our guidance," Allan said, "and our spirits guiding us to a better future."
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