By Chris Wilson

Carrie Graf handed Tom Maher a plastic cup of chardonnay after Saturday's Women's National Basketball League grand final. Maher handed Graf back the Canberra Capitals, title in tact.

Having had a year off to rest, two-time Capitals championship coach Graf will be back at the helm when the Canberra club aims for a three-peat of WNBL titles next season.

Graf said she was honoured that her coaching mentor, Tom Maher, had been able to "babysit" the Capitals for a season and guide them to another championship - their third in four years.

But Graf is keen to rejoin the Capitals and finish what she started in 1999 - creating a basketball dynasty.

Graf came to the Capitals for the 1999-2000 season and led the club to its inaugural WNBL championship.

Having won five titles as a player with the Nunawading Spectres - the greatest dynasty in Australian women's basketball - Graf immediately forecast similar success for the Capitals.

That was enhanced on Saturday when the Capitals beat Sydney Flames 69-67 at the AIS Arena.

"I think we're on the way," Graf said. "Three championships in four years is a pretty special feat, and to be in four consecutive grand finals.

"We're pushing into the realms of the Nunawading Spectres and the Adelaide Lighting. Nunawading were the dynasty of the '80s, Adelaide dominated the '90s and the Capitals are making their mark at the start of this century."

Graf said she was like a "proud mother" at Saturday's grand final, "watching people you've done something special with do it again."

She said the tag-team of coaching, from Graf to Maher and then back to Graf again, would make sure the program did not get stale.

"There's a freshness," Graf said. "They've seen Tom work now and, from the players' perspective, they can draw on the best of Graffy and the best of Tom to help them be the best players and best team they can be."

Maher left Canberra yesterday happy, but still unsure where his next job will come from. Graf, a long-term assistant to Maher with the Australian Opals program, was in constant contact with Maher this season. She said she would continue to bounce ideas off her mentor.

"For him to have coached my team and for me to get it back was a really special thing for me," Graf said. "Here's someone that's impacted on my coaching career more than anyone. For me to hand over my team to him and babysit it for a year and win a championship was special for me."

The Capitals show no signs of slowing down next season and they will almost certainly retain their starting five.

Lauren Jackson and Kristen Veal are contracted to the club for two more years, Lucille Bailie has committed to coming back as captain, while Eleanor Sharp and Kellie Abrams have said they want to remain in Canberra. Indeed, any changes the Capitals do make should only be positive.

The Capitals are still negotiating with AIS sensation Hollie Grima, who has been hailed as the next Lauren Jackson. Grima is likely to pick between three clubs and the Capitals will meet again with her manager in the next two weeks. By that time, Graf said the club could also have come to an agreement with another AIS graduate, either Emma Randall (17, 188cm) or Georgia Woodyard (19, 187cm).

Graf has also been appointed as New Zealand's coach.