Melbourne's north splits between two junior competitions. Diamond Valley runs the NJBL out of Greensborough with twenty clubs and more than five thousand players, while the EDJBA reaches north through Ivanhoe, Fairfield, Mill Park and Doreen. Darebin, Eltham, Sunbury and Whittlesea sit across that line, so neighbouring kids can end up in different leagues.
Written by Cameron James, founder and head coach at Liddicoat Basketball. Over a decade coaching junior basketball in Melbourne, including at Big V level, and rep teams from Under 12s through to Under 18s.
Last updated August 2026.
Five northern associations have pages on this site. Darebin, Diamond Valley, Eltham, Sunbury and Whittlesea. They are not evenly spread, and they do not all run the same competition, which is the first thing to understand about this region.
Diamond Valley Basketball Association operates out of Greensborough and is the largest of them by a distance. Darebin Basketball Association plays at Narrandjeri Stadium, entering its domestic teams as the Giants and its representative teams as the Phoenix. Whittlesea City Basketball Association, the Pacers, plays at Mill Park Basketball Stadium.
Eltham Wildcats has been running since 1965 out of Montmorency and reports more than seven thousand members, which makes it one of the largest clubs in the state. Sunbury Basketball Association sits well to the west of the rest, at 120 Wilson Lane in Sunbury, with ten affiliated clubs.
None of those five is a bad option. What separates them for a parent is which competition the domestic teams get entered into and how far the weeknight training drive is.
Diamond Valley runs the Northern Junior Basketball League, the NJBL. It takes in twenty clubs across Melbourne's northern region, supports more than five thousand players and plays on Saturdays. Girls compete at Under 8, 10, 12, 14, 16 and 19, and boys at Under 8, 10, 12, 14, 16 and 18.
The EDJBA also operates up here, despite the eastern name. Its member list includes Banyule Hawks, Darebin Giants, Doreen Cougars, Eltham Wildcats, Fairfield Shooters, Greenhills, Ivanhoe Knights, Mill Park Titans and Pascoe Vale Panthers. That is a substantial northern presence in a competition most people assume is purely eastern.
The practical result is that two children living a few streets apart can play in completely different leagues on completely different circuits, purely because of which club their school friends joined. Neither is wrong. They are just separate competitions.
If it matters to you which one your child ends up in, ask the club before you register, not the association. Clubs are the ones entering teams.
One of the more useful things Diamond Valley publishes is its ball size table, because parents buying a ball for the driveway routinely buy the wrong one.
In the NJBL, Under 8 through Under 12 use a size 5. Under 14, Under 16 and Under 19 girls use a size 6, and so do Under 14 boys. Size 7 is used by Under 16 and Under 18 boys only.
If you are unsure which age group your child falls into, ask the club rather than working it off their birthday. Associations publish their own eligibility cut off and it is the one thing worth confirming before you pay.
Sunbury runs a simpler structure, with junior domestic from Under 12 to Under 19 and no tryout required to enter. Its representative program, the Jets, enters VJBL teams from Under 12 to Under 18 and fields senior sides in Big V.
The core of the north is reasonably compact. Greensborough, Montmorency, Mill Park and the Darebin suburbs sit close enough together that a domestic season does not involve serious highway driving.
Sunbury is the exception and it is worth being honest about it. It sits out past the airport, and its affiliated clubs pull in from the Macedon Ranges, including sides based around Riddells Creek and Woodend. If you live in Sunbury, your local basketball is genuinely local. If you live in Sunbury and your child makes a rep team, your Friday nights change considerably.
That is the trade every northern rep family makes. The VJBL is a statewide competition played on Friday nights across more than eighty venues, so distance from the middle of Melbourne shows up in the fixture. The Regional League tier introduced in 2026 is pooled geographically to reduce exactly this, which should help outer northern teams graded into it.
Darebin runs one of the gentler entry points in the region. Its D League plays Saturday mornings, with six and seven year olds at 9am and eight and nine year olds at 9.45am, four on four on lowered rims, with a jersey included. For a first ever season that is about the right amount of commitment.
Start with the weeknight, not the weekend. Domestic teams train once a week and rep teams commonly train twice, so the training venue is the address you will drive to most often across a season.
Then ask the club which competition it enters. In this region that single question decides whether your Saturdays are spent on the NJBL circuit or the EDJBA one, and those are different sets of venues.
If your child has never played, look at what the association offers below Under 12. Eltham takes children from age three and Darebin runs its Saturday morning D League. Starting in a program built for beginners is a far better first experience than being the smallest kid in a graded competition.
Finally, do not over think it. Domestic registration is open entry. If the first club is not the right fit, you can move at the end of a season without any drama, and most families in the north know at least one child who has.
The Northern Junior Basketball League, run by Diamond Valley Basketball Association out of Greensborough. It takes in twenty clubs, supports more than five thousand players and plays on Saturdays.
Because its footprint has grown well past the eastern suburbs. Its club list includes Banyule, Darebin, Doreen, Eltham, Fairfield, Greenhills, Ivanhoe, Mill Park and Pascoe Vale sides.
Size 5 for Under 8 to Under 12. Size 6 for Under 14, 16 and 19 girls and Under 14 boys. Size 7 for Under 16 and Under 18 boys.
Yes. Sunbury Basketball Association runs junior domestic from Under 12 to Under 19 across ten affiliated clubs at 120 Wilson Lane, with no tryout needed to enter.
Darebin runs a Saturday morning D League for ages six to nine on lowered rims, and Eltham Wildcats takes children from age three. Both are entry programs rather than graded competition.
Next questions parents ask
Every competition in this guide
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 August 2026. Spotted something wrong? Tell us.
Online coaching plus a monthly in person session. Skill work that fits around a Saturday morning fixture.