Meet Martin Edwards
Sport has always played a large part in my life. Football was and is my true sporting love, with Manchester United being at the heart of that. Growing up I was captain of my high school team, and I won a commendation for my talent. Each weekend, my late Grandad Frank would drive me to matches where I would compete for several different clubs. I was fortunate to win many league titles and cups over the years. I have also successfully tried my hand in a few other sports; representing my hometown of Bury in both rugby and basketball, winning gold in both at the Greater Manchester school games. I also won gold in the 400m athletics championship in the Bury schools' competition. In March 2007, aged 18, my life took a sudden unexpected turn.
I was involved in a road traffic accident which resulted in me having both of my legs amputated. I was devastated as it meant I could no longer play football. Whilst in hospital, my Dad took me to watch the wheelchair basketball at the Paralympic World Cup. The physicality, skill and competitiveness on display instantly caught my attention, and I knew this was a sport which I wanted to compete in myself. Upon being discharged from hospital I went along to my local team Bury Blue Devils who gave me the platform to learn the basics of the game and compete in the national development league, which we won. The following season I moved to the Oldham Owls. It was a club with a great history of success within the sport, which also had a pathway to enable me to play for both their Division 2 and Premier League teams.
In late 2008 I was invited to my first GB national team camp. I wasn’t up to the standard required, however being able to train at this level gave me the inspiration and determination needed to put in the extra work. I started to train 2/3 times a day, 5 days a week and my skill level quickly began to improve. Over the following years I was able to establish myself as a first team player for The Owls, successfully winning the league on several occasions and also competing in the European club competition. With the guidance and support of my coaches Garry Peel and Dan Johnson, my level continued to improve and in 2013, I was selected for Great Britain in my first major competition. Since then, I've played professionally in Italy for 6 seasons, with 4 different teams. Winning the Italian Scudetto and Super Coppa with Briantea84. I have been fortunate to represent Great Britain at 5 major championships, winning 2 European gold medals and perhaps most notably becoming a World Champion in 2018.
In 2022 I returned to play in the UK for Manchester Revolution, a newly formed club merger between The Owls and the Manchester Mavericks. I am proud to be the first team captain of The Revs, and in our first season we won the Premier League playoff title. We're now into our third season, and we're striving to secure some more silverware this year. In April we will travel to Turkey to compete in the EuroCup competition, and the National League playoffs will take place in the middle of May in Worcester. We train and play our home matches at the National Basketball Centre, Belle Vue. All supporters are welcome to come down and watch one of our games, or even have a go at the club's development session on a Thursday evening 8pm-10pm.
Please follow the clubs journey on the clubs social media channels.