Great Britain captain Andrew Sullivan has signed for Newcastle Eagles for the third time in his career after agreeing to return to the club until the end of the current 2009-10 BBL season.

Having originally arrived on Tyneside back in 2004 where he went on to enjoy two hugely successful seasons, he later re-joined for the start of the 2008-09 season before departing to play with Samara in Russia.

He has since made history by becoming the first ever player to captain Great Britain at Eurobasket after leading out his country in Poland last September. The forward arrives having played with Apollon of Cyprus since last November

Managing Director Paul Blake is delighted to have captured Sullivan again and feels he can benefit the club both on and off the court.

“We are rightly proud to have Sulli back on board and not least because he is the only potential 2012 Olympic captain playing sport in the North East region.”

“This is a significant coup for us in this wider perspective and in a strictly basketball sense, it is fantastic to have such a big name not just back on the roster here at the Eagles but back in British Basketball.”

“He is a quality player and it’s great that the GB captain is playing his basketball in the British league once again.”

“It’s incredible to think that we have signed a player with this kind of pedigree. He has played and captained his country at Eurobasket, played in EuroChallenge, EuroCup, the Belgian league, the Russian Superleague and of course in the ACB in Spain – widely recognised as the best league in Europe.”

Having seen fellow Great Britain international Flinder Boyd depart the Eagles without getting on court after activating a clause in his contract, Blake was quick to allay fears that history might be repeated with the Londoner.

“I can reassure everyone that the player will be here from now until the end of the current season and won’t be activating any clauses in his contract to leave.”

“He is committed to helping us try to win the three trophies that we are still fighting for and to make sure we have another successful season.”

“I am sure that he would also tell you that he considers Newcastle to be his home now and a team he supports. Everyone knows he would come and support us whenever he was back from playing abroad.”

Player-coach Fab Flournoy meanwhile has watched his team really find some form in the last couple of weeks and he is hoping that Sullivan will help the team really push on.

“It’s good to have Sulli back and we all know what he is capable of. He sets high standards and knows what is required to win trophies.”

“He is the final piece of our jigsaw and he can deliver at both ends of the floor and will now bring even more experience, maturity and leadership to our team.”

“While we all know he has talent, third time around we can expect him to have even more smarts than before and to be another leader in this team.”

“We have to make sure that we maintain the chemistry that we have but that shouldn’t be a problem because Sulli works as hard as anybody and is a winner.”

“I am sure everyone from his team-mates to the fans will be really pleased that he is pulling on that Eagles vest yet again.”

Sullivan will make his debut this weekend in the double header at Worcester and Milton Keynes while he will return to the MetroRadio Arena on Sunday 28 February when the Eagles host arch rivals Everton Tigers in the semi-final of the BBL Trophy.