| Newcastle Falcons | |
| Leagues: | NBL1 East |
| Founded: | 1983 |
| History: | Newcastle Hunters 1983–2021 Newcastle Falcons 2022–present |
| Arena: | Newcastle Basketball Stadium |
| Capacity: | 2,200 |
| Location: | Newcastle, New South Wales |
| Colors: | Red, navy blue, white |
| Gm: | Jan Stirling (Interim) |
| President: | Erica James |
| Vice-Presidents: | Larry Davidson |
| Coach: | M: Josh Morgan W: Kristy Bultitude |
| Ownership: | Newcastle Basketball |
| League Champs: | Men: ABA (1)Waratah League (2)Women: Waratah League / NBL1 East (4) |
| Conf Champs: | Men: 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.
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. 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.
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.
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]