Newcastle Falcons (NBL1 East)

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Newcastle Falcons
Newcastle Falcons (basketball, 2022).png
Leagues NBL1 East
Founded1983
HistoryNewcastle Hunters
1983–2021
Newcastle Falcons
2022–present
Arena Newcastle Basketball Stadium
Capacity2,200
Location Newcastle, New South Wales
Team colorsRed, navy blue, white
   
CEOIan McKensey
PresidentErica James
Vice-president(s)Larry Davidson
Head coachM: Josh Morgan
W: Kristy Bultitude
OwnershipNewcastle Basketball
ChampionshipsMen:
ABA (1)
Waratah League (2)
Women:
Waratah League / NBL1 East (4)
Conference titlesMen:
SEABL (1)
Website newcastlebasketball.com.au

Newcastle Falcons is a NBL1 East club based in Newcastle, New South Wales. The club fields a team in both the Men's and Women's NBL1 East. The club is a division of Newcastle Basketball, the major administrative basketball organisation in the region. The Falcons play their home games at Newcastle Basketball Stadium.

Contents

Club history

In 1983, Newcastle Basketball began fielding a men's team in the South East Australian Basketball League (SEABL). [1] The Newcastle Hunters were SEABL South champions [2] [3] and ABA National champions in 1986. They were ABA runners-up in 1987. [4]

In 1990, Newcastle Basketball entered a team in the inaugural SEABL women's competition. [1] The women's team was originally known as the Newcastle Scorpions. [5] Both the men's team and women's team left the SEABL following the 1998 season. [1]

In 2000, the Hunters men won the Basketball NSW Premier League. [6] The following year, the Premier Division was renamed the Waratah League, with the league joining the Australian Basketball Association (ABA). [7] The Hunters men were Waratah League runners-up in 2004, 2005, 2008 and 2011. [7]

In 2016, the Hunters women were crowned Waratah League champions for the first time. [8] In 2018, the men won their first championship since 2000. [9] In 2019, the women won their second championship in four seasons. [10] The 2021 women's championship was shared by the Hunters and the Sutherland Sharks after the season was cut short in August due to lockdowns as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. [11]

In late 2021, following the club's admission to the new NBL1 East competition replacing the Waratah League, [12] Newcastle Basketball surveyed the local community to gauge support for a potential rebranding of the club. The club was subsequently renamed the Newcastle Falcons (after the defunct national league NBL franchise of the same name) after 51% of the survey's respondents voted for the change of name. [13] [14]

In 2024, the Falcons women reached the NBL1 East Grand Final, where they defeated the Sutherland Sharks 85–78 to win the NBL1 East championship [15] [16] led by league MVP Nicole Munger. [17]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 "SEABL Ladders History" (PDF). seabl.com.au. Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 July 2008.
  2. ↑ "PAST CHAMPIONS". seabl.com.au. Archived from the original on 7 June 2002.
  3. ↑ "FORMER CHAMPIONS". seabl.com.au. Archived from the original on 25 June 2008.
  4. ↑ "ABA PREMIER AND RUNNERS-UP CLUBS". ababasketball.net.au. Archived from the original on 7 April 2001.
  5. ↑ "NAME OUR TEAM". Newcastle Basketball. Retrieved 3 November 2021.
  6. ↑ Keeble, Brett (17 August 2018). "Newcastle Hunters aiming to do the double - winning both the men's and women's Waratah Basketball League grand finals". newcastleherald.com.au. Retrieved 4 November 2021.
  7. 1 2 "History". Waratah League . Retrieved 4 November 2021.
  8. ↑ "2016 MOLTEN WARATAH LEAGUE CHAMPIONS". Waratah League . 15 August 2016. Retrieved 4 November 2021.
  9. ↑ Gardiner, James (8 March 2019). "Basketball: Hunters ready to be the hunted in Waratah League championship defence". newcastleherald.com.au. Retrieved 4 November 2021.
  10. ↑ Keeble, Brett (18 August 2019). "Basketball: Hunters save best for last to win championship". newcastleherald.com.au. Retrieved 4 November 2021.
  11. ↑ "BASKETBALL NSW COMPETITIONS, HIGH-PERFORMANCE & COMMUNITY PROGRAMS UPDATE". bnsw.com.au. 12 August 2021. Archived from the original on 12 September 2021.
  12. ↑ "NBL1 East teams unveiled". NBL1.com.au. 21 October 2021. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
  13. ↑ Gardner, James (30 October 2021). "Newcastle basketball fans vote to resurrect Falcons" . Newcastle Herald. Australian Community Media. Retrieved 31 October 2021.
  14. ↑ "TAKING FLIGHT". Newcastle Basketball. Retrieved 3 November 2021.
  15. ↑ Pike, Chris (10 August 2024). "Recap NBL1 East | Women's Grand Final". NBL1.com.au. Archived from the original on 11 August 2024. Retrieved 11 August 2024.
  16. ↑ "Newcastle Falcons win the 2024 NBL1 East women's championship". NBL1.com.au. 10 August 2024. Archived from the original on 11 August 2024. Retrieved 11 August 2024.
  17. ↑ "Nicole Munger wins the 2024 NBL1 East MVP". NBL1.com.au. 9 August 2024. Archived from the original on 12 August 2024. Retrieved 12 August 2024.
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