Just as important as their skills development is their team development, and the boys have really started to shine in this area in 2026, with dramatically improved performances on the court. Despite being undermanned and undersized since we resumed in 2026, the boys have competed hard in their domestic games at Dandenong, losing by small margins against much larger teams. In all of those losses, the boys could have easily won them all. In between those Dandenong games, the boys played in the Eltham Dandenong Tournament and the South East Junior Basketball tournament. Importantly in these tournaments, the boys were playing in their correct age group. In both tournaments, the boys performed admirably.

In the Eltham Dandenong tournament, the boys played five games and led in all five games, despite only winning one. That one win, though, was against an Altona Rep team that they demolished by 20 points. That win, and their performances throughout the tournament, built confidence and, more importantly, belief amongst the boys. That belief led to two amazing efforts by the boys. In the South East Junior Basketball, the boys started hot out of the gates, winning their first game and didn’t look back, winning all four of their group games in emphatic fashion. Sadly, we got ahead of ourselves and lost the semi-final against a team that they would defeat nine out of ten times. For the boys, though this was their first taste of finals since coming together, it once again helped build belief amongst the boys as to what they are capable of, which led to their next amazing result.