Sutherland District Basketball Association runs the Sutherland Sharks from a four-court stadium at Waratah Park. Juniors play local competition on weeknights and Saturdays, and the Sharks Junior Representative Program covers Under 12 to Under 18 in the Metro Junior League and Junior Premier League. Registration for 2027 rep trials is open, at $30 per athlete.
Last updated 9 October 2026.
Sutherland District Basketball Association Inc (SDBA) is the association for the Sutherland area, and its teams play as the Sutherland Sharks. It runs junior and senior local competitions, learn-to-play classes, an academy, holiday camps, and junior and senior rep programs that go up to NBL1 East. Basketball NSW lists it as Sutherland Basketball among its affiliated associations.
The centre of it all is Sutherland Basketball Stadium, a four-court facility the association calls the main hub for its local basketball. It also uses Menai Indoor Sports Centre, Endeavour Sports High School and Heathcote High School.
SDBA says its junior rep program aims at long-term improvement, not just results. Younger age groups, Under 14 and below, focus heavily on learning and strong fundamentals, while older groups balance team success with individual development.
Registrations are open for the 2027 Sharks junior rep trials, through the Sharks Player Info page. There are two kinds of trial. Open trials, which begin in Week 1, are for players who were not in a Sharks rep team in 2026. Invited trials, which begin from Week 2, are for 2026 Sharks rep players, Sharks development players included.
The trial cost is $30 per athlete. Unless directed otherwise, all trials are at Sutherland Basketball Stadium at Waratah Park.
The full trial schedule is published as an image, so we have not copied it here; open the trials page for your child's times. One change is printed as text: the Under 12, 14 and 16 girls open trials were rescheduled to Sunday 18 October 2026, and the Under 18 girls open trial to Saturday 17 October 2026.
Selections happen after each trial. Players moving to the next stage are announced through a link on the Sharks' social media each Wednesday after the trials, and final teams are confirmed at the end of Trial 4. Players are emailed individually and team lists go up on the SDBA website.
If your child has previously played rep for another association in the Waratah Junior Leagues, they need Basketball NSW's Intent to Trial form. Current Sharks rep players and players who have never played rep anywhere do not. The association can also grant an exemption from the selection trials if you apply with evidence.
For 2027 SDBA has announced its MJL and JPL coaching appointments for three Under 12 boys teams, two Under 12 girls teams, three teams each of Under 14 and Under 16 boys and girls, and two each of Under 18 boys and girls. Some coach allocations will be confirmed only after trials.
MJL is the Waratah Metro Junior League. Sharks MJL games are on Sundays, with tip-off times from 8:30am to 4pm; each game takes about 90 minutes and players arrive at least 30 minutes early. JPL is the Junior Premier League, which plays on both Saturdays, with tip-offs from 5:30pm to 8pm, and Sundays, from 8:30am to 4pm. Teams in the Barrengarry conference play on Sundays.
Depending on the team and division, away games can be anywhere in metropolitan Sydney and, for some teams, regional venues such as Canberra. The FAQ names away venues including Alexandria, Bankstown, Blue Mountains, Campbelltown, Hawkesbury, Hornsby, Liverpool, Manly, North Sydney, Penrith, Ryde, Springwood and St George.
Players train twice a week, at the stadium or another venue in the Shire, and must buy Sharks playing shorts ($40) and a training singlet ($50). Every junior rep player must also play SDBA local competition, at least 50 percent of the scheduled games, or face penalties such as a $250 fine and/or suspension unless a written exemption is approved. We could not find a junior rep season fee on the SDBA website.
Sutherland Basketball Stadium, Waratah Park. SDBA prints the address as Waratah Park, Rawson Ave, NSW 2232, without a street number. It has four courts and hosts local competition, Mini Ball, rep trials, the Sharks Academy and development classes.
Endeavour Sports High School, Taren Pt Rd & The Boulevarde, Caringbah NSW 2229, as the school publishes it. Rising Stars classes run here on Mondays and Wednesdays, and SDBA lists games played at Endeavour as TBC.
Menai Indoor Sports Centre and Heathcote High School are also on SDBA's venue list.
SDBA runs junior local competition in two seasons a year: winter across Terms 2 and 3, and summer across Terms 4 and 1. The Summer 2026/27 junior and senior competition starts in October 2026, and SDBA says to watch its socials for details.
Junior nights are Monday for Under 16 boys, Tuesday for Under 18 boys, Wednesday for Under 12 to Under 18 girls and Under 12 boys, and Thursday for Under 14 boys, with Under 13 mixed on Saturday. Weekday games start in slots between 4pm and 7:20pm, and you should expect a different time each week. Saturday games can begin from 10:15am.
Age groups go by year of birth. For 2026: Under 12 is born 2016/17, Under 13 born 2015/16, Under 14 born 2014/15, Under 16 born 2012/13 and Under 18 born 2010/11. To play finals, a player must have played 66 percent of the team's games.
Fees as at 17 February 2026, as published when we checked on 9 October 2026: a $75 team nomination fee and $1,550 per team in game fees for the junior competition, payable by week 6, plus a one-off $80 per team for semi-finals; grand finals cost nothing. Each player also needs a 12-month player registration, paid through SDBA's members portal, which covers membership and insurance: $60 under 8, $95 for ages 8 to 11 and $140 for ages 12 to 17. SDBA says Active Kids vouchers can be used for both.
Every junior team supplies one parent for duty at its own games, and SDBA supplies a coach for its own junior teams. Players without a team can submit the Want to Play form.
Super Sharks is for 5 to 7 year olds, on Tuesdays from 4pm to 5pm and Saturdays at 8am or 9am at Sutherland Stadium, for $165 per 10-week term. The Tuesday session runs together with Basketball Australia's Ford Aussie Hoops program.
Mini Ball is the entry-level competition for Under 7, Under 9 and Under 11, on Saturday mornings in school terms, with smaller courts, smaller balls and simplified rules. No experience is needed, and children do not have to be in a Sharks learn-to-play program to join. Under 7 costs $10 a week, paid by the term, and Under 11 teams pay a $75 nomination fee plus $1,550 per team for each summer or winter competition. There is also a Saturday Pink Ball League, an all-girls competition for Under 8 to Under 12.
Rising Stars, for 9 to 11 year olds, is pitched at children keen to join the Sharks rep program or simply wanting sharper skills. It costs $165 per 10-week term, on Mondays and Wednesdays at Endeavour Sports High and Saturdays at Sutherland Stadium.
Sharks rep squads include development players. For the 2027 trials, 2026 Sharks rep players, including Sharks development players, trial from Week 2, while players new to the Sharks program start in the Week 1 open trials.
The Sharks Academy is a term-based Tuesday program at Sutherland Basketball Stadium for younger players the club thinks could play rep basketball later on. SDBA says it usually spots them in its development classes, school programs, camps or local competition, so local competition is one route in. Sessions are an hour, for ages 7 to 9 from 4pm and older players from 5pm, and it costs $185 per term for returning athletes and $205 for new athletes.
For younger players, Rising Stars works on the fundamentals and the terminology used at rep level. And the weeknight local competition keeps your child playing every week.
New players first create a Sutherland Basketball account in the members portal, where registration is paid. Team managers nominate teams there too; for the summer competition SDBA said nominations would open in mid-August. Individuals use the Want to Play form. The association's phone number is (02) 9542 1999.
At Sutherland Basketball Stadium, a four-court facility at Waratah Park. SDBA prints the address as Waratah Park, Rawson Ave, NSW 2232. Some classes run at Endeavour Sports High School in Caringbah.
Registration is open on the Sharks Player Info page. Open trials for players not in a 2026 Sharks team start in Week 1, and invited trials for 2026 Sharks players start from Week 2. The trial fee is $30.
Sharks MJL games are on Sundays, with tip-offs from 8:30am to 4pm. JPL games are on Saturdays, with tip-offs from 5:30pm to 8pm, and on Sundays from 8:30am to 4pm.
As at 17 February 2026, junior teams pay a $75 nomination fee and $1,550 per team in game fees, plus $80 for semi-finals. Player registration is $95 for ages 8 to 11 and $140 for ages 12 to 17.
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Facts on this page were compiled from the official sources below and written up in our own words. Dates, fees and venues change every season, so confirm anything you are relying on with the association directly.
This page was last updated October 2026. Spotted something wrong? Tell us.
