That does seem very expensive. The associations I've looked at have free tryouts. Though I spoke to a parent of a kid wanting to tryout for Melbourne this year and they were told that MSAC court hire costs were very expensive, hence the tryout charges.

A difference between the two because they are trying to encourage more female participants.

I don't think court hire would be that much. Perhaps $50-$100 an hour. I think clubs are charging that much because the demand is high and parents are willing to pay.

It is also strategic as players might trial at one and then go and trial at another club to see which one gives them the better spot. So clubs are making them financially choose.

Agree, SixersFan.

High charges are a good way to top up the bank accounts while also trying to weed out those who aren't that good or committed or able to pay high season fees and travelling expenses to nationals etc.

Unfortunately, in working to keep tryout numbers to a manageable level, it emphasises that you need to be well-off to get the best opportunities, and many good talents are likely to have to miss out.

Same argument(s) as last year's tryouts: need to cover court costs or weed out those who are not committing 100% / trying out for multiple clubs.

Seriously though, this is just a money grab!

Some clubs charge more than $1000 for a season and have a separate cost for court hire! Then compare it to others that are around a flat fee of somewhere around $600.

IMO, court hire costs should be included in season fees, not paid up front.

Just beware when choosing a club: some -- if not most -- of the clubs charging HIGHER fees are doing so to help fund their senior Big V / NBL1 programs - it is not just because of high court hire costs.

I have no issue with covering costs, but I do think clubs should be transparent with parents as to why they have to pay extra money and what it is going towards. Particularly now with extra pressure on families. Open the books and make it clear. After all these are supposed to be not-for-profit organisations and transparency is important: if there is nothing to hide, there is nothing to hide. So, just be upfront. Tigers people - please educate us as to where the money is going.

Clubs should definitely be transparent with their members as to where the money goes. I would suggest most of the clubs actually are transparent.

All you have to do is get involved. Go to the annual general meeting. Put your hand up. Become a volunteer don't just sit back and complain contribute.

most of the VJBL clubs are community based volunteer lead, non-profit organisations. Before you complain, you should read your club Constitution and find out if you are a member and what your membership entitles.

Clubs should definitely be transparent with their members as to where the money goes. I would suggest most of the clubs actually are transparent.

All you have to do is get involved. Go to the annual general meeting. Put your hand up. Become a volunteer don't just sit back and complain contribute.

most of the VJBL clubs are community based volunteer lead, non-profit organisations. Before you complain, you should read your club Constitution and find out if you are a member and what your membership entitles.

Personally, I think $100 for a tryout is the club doing a little bit of gouging and could possibly reflect the culture of the club

Part of me wonders is the huge cost of tryouts is more than simply court hire.
Melbourne have been threatened with being kicked out of NBL1 if they don't start having more competitive teams and actually investing in them.

But just with what someone mentioned above with using juniors to bankroll NBL1 programs. Some clubs are just blatantly doing this, like Ringwood. Their junior program is so poorly run, with little to no care in player or coach development. Waverley and Melbourne are the same to a slightly less extent, Melbourne more by stating on their tryout form, "keep turning up and you’ll be in a team".

Melbourne has traditionally never run a domestic feeder program/competition, and therefore rely on attracting players from other Association run domestic competitions. It has been a model they have run forever, and to be fair, their first and second rep teams have traditionally been very strong and with some great coaches at the helm. They have a rich history at VJBL level, and one that should continue.

However the fact remains that Melbourne's primary (and perhaps only?) revenue stream is through their junior boys and girls rep programs. I'm happy to have it explained to me where else Melbourne may get any additional funding from to run their Big V Youth League and NBL1 senior programs...

This is exactly why Melbourne have around 10+ teams in some age groups (eg. U14/U16) - they will allow everyone trying out to play and make a team! The overwhelming majority of these teams end up playing in the low level divisions of VJL, and are essentially domestic level sides with parents being asked to coach the majority of them.

and... then Melbourne charge you a premium for the privilege to be a Melbourne Tigers player...

Being up front, I don't like the Melbourne Tigers model of operation, but I do respect their elite teams (#1 and #2 teams - those at the pointy end) and their talented coaches. Like many other clubs, they do some things exceptionally well, and are poor at others.

For anyone trying out anywhere, just venture to any new club with your eyes open. There are many great programs out in VJBL world that do not charge $1,000+ per season (and some with hidden extras like training court fees on top of this). Many excellent and proven VJBL programs can be found that charge around a flat fee of $600 (plus informs) for a season.

Yes see Geelong United are trying to get to fifty VJBL sides,no way it's for development,it’s obvious what it is for

How much are Geelong Uniting charging anyone know. Plus add in all the players that have private coaching and wow it adds up. 50 coaches be hard to find that could even offer development.

Geelong charged $440 in 2023. One of the lower registration fees going around in VJBL.

After the AFL W now dealing with the soccer crowd for junior players.

Basketball Aust must get on the PR machine so our sport maintains a profile.

There will some interest in all sports and we want other sports but let's be an equal - as with all other sports.

I'm seeing a big return to what we had before COVID - many kids playing 2 or 3 sports over a weekend, including basketball. And because female soccer and AFLW are frustrated by the number of grounds, I think basketball will go back to having strong numbers in the girls.

I think we agreed in a thread on here a couple of years ago that the reason so many girls went to AFLW was because basketball was being over-coached, their game was controlled too tightly, and it was no longer fun. If we change that, then I would also expect many girls to return to basketball.

"Basketball Aust must get on the PR machine so our sport maintains a profile."

Basketball Australia and PR Machine unfortunately do not go together :(

"Melbourne has traditionally never run a domestic feeder program/competition, and therefore rely on attracting players from other Association run domestic competitions."

This is changing. BV created Melbourne Central Basketball Association a while ago, essentially to run basketball at MSAC. This includes Tigers VJBL teams which will transition to MCBA management over next 12-18 months. So MCBA will control the courts at MSAC, run the domestic comps (junior and senior) and the VJBL program. So it starts to look like most other Associations across Vic.

The big challenge will be creating a strong domestic comp that feeds into rep program. Many, probably most, Tigers rep players still coming from all over Melbourne and participation by rep players in the domestic comp is very low. With kids coming from all over Melbourne, mandatory domestic participation will be unpopular and see players leave and much weaker teams. The domestic comp has very little serious basketball at the top end and very little depth where advanced, intermediate and beginner teams can be graded appropriately.

Sitting behind this is the fact there have been ZERO domestic basketball clubs located in the area....it's all been school and friendship based. A couple of clubs have sprung up in last few months which gives hope for a better domestic comp.

Welcome to the madness that has been basketball in Port Phillip. MCBA is a step in the right direction but they have years of incompetence to set right. There are some positive signs however.

Re tryout costs - this is consistent with the very concerning movement of basketball towards being a sport for the middle classes and up.

To excel you need to pay for domestic, rep (fees plus petrol and assumes parents have jobs that allow them to ferry their kids) and private coaching (required to keep up). Tournament travel and further BV pathways also cost.

Good luck to a working class family with a kid who wants to pursue hoops.....

Just beware when choosing a club: some -- if not most -- of the clubs charging HIGHER fees are doing so to help fund their senior Big V / NBL1 programs - it is not just because of high court hire costs.


And Melbourne is one such club, though they give zero to their women's program it all goes to the men’s, Bendigo is the opposite, all their money goes into their women’s NBL1 program and their men get zilch

Tryouts should cost nothing more than a door fee to cover court hire at best. To try to restrict numbers due to finances makes no sense at all, vast majority of parents fork out a lot of money that would eat into any family budget to allow their kids to enjoy sport at a decent level, but many kids still do t get those opportunities due to financial constraints, why make it more difficult, isn’t the aim to get as many kids involved in the sport as possible.
Clubs and associations need to have a reality check

Tigers is an odd place indeed. They are trying to get their boys and girls programmes aligned, but they just don't get it. Mate tells me that they had a joint awards ceremony yesterday and gave an award to the mvp of each of the many boys teams ... and one award per age group to the girls. If true that’s a bit weird these days.

Wow! $50/$100 is expensive for a tryout.

I hope other clubs don't follow. There is money in Basketball, especially, now after Covid. Noticeably, a lot of basketball programs and training centres are opening up. They are selling the dream to us parents and we are buying them. lol