Hoops

district winter junior teams

anon #521517

I really like the ideas, your passion and the discussion you are having about the club hoppers and what is the correct way to move forward.

The VJBL have their own problems but they do not like to see it as a real problem because it is a large revenue stream for them. Just before the start of the season proper 829 players had requested clearances to go to another rep club.

A lot of players leave their smaller junior rep clubs because of the carrot of playing Championship level is so bright and shiny and the age group at their club will not make it. In the VJBL the first team is generally picked on ability so you can have bottom aged players. The thing about leaving a smaller club that there still is the opportunity to play in Championship in the 2nd team at the larger clubs.

I would love to see Victoria adopt what you have that only one team can play Champioship and one team in Championship Reserve. You would probably have to have four conferences in Victoria and only teams that have two teams in each and every age group 12's to 18's boys and girls would play in the Champ and Champ Res.

Clubs who have more than 2 teams in an age group would go through grading to play against like ability in a step below. Would this kind of idea be of benefit to the senior club? Knowing that each club was going to play the highest level would players come to the smaller clubs to even out the competition? If players wanted to play at highest level would it be a shift in parents thought processes?

Junior Basketball has issues, if you read a lot of what college coaches of many sports are saying they like kids who have played a variety of sports. In the VJBL it is almost a 12 month commitment. When do the rep teams train, Sunday which is junior football day in metropolitan Victoria during autumn/winter. Saturday is netball, cricket (summer) and junior domestic basketball at the larger associations.

Every state has their own set of issues, but it seems like SA could do with more stadiums to try and keep all the junior basketball on a more even footing.

Will the decision makers get out in the real world and care about the long term prospects of the game and more importantly the juniors that participate in it? Junior sport organised by adults for what suits the adult on the basketball boards, not often suiting parents or kids.....