Willetton Tigers

Background

Willetton Basketball Association (WBA) was formed in 1973 as a division of Willetton Sports Club (WSC), with teams representing the club competing in the Canning Districts Basketball Association competitions in Riverton at the Bill Cole Centre (now the site of the Riverton Leisureplex). In 1978/79, following strong growth in numbers for basketball, the council built four asphalt courts at the Burrendah / Willetton Reserve. With the new venue, Willetton basketball teams relocated from Canning Districts Basketball Association to form its own domestic competition as the Willetton Basketball Division of WSC.

In 1979/80, following much deliberation, Tangney Districts Basketball Association was formed by amalgamating Melville Districts Basketball Association and Willetton Basketball Division of WSC. This was done in order to strengthen the Melville Districts Association whilst enabling Willetton players to compete at the elite level.

Following further growth in numbers, Willetton Basketball Stadium was expanded to eight outside courts including fencing and lighting, entirely financed by the Willetton Basketball Division of WSC. In 1985, four indoor courts were constructed on the site.

In 1988, Willetton Basketball Association was formed in place of Tangney Districts Basketball Association, taking on Tangney's nickname of the Tigers. The previous year, the Tangney Tigers won the A-grade District competition championship. Early legends of the District competition from Tangney included Kerry Clarke (1981 women's MVP), Brad Gray (1982 men's MVP) and Jeff Anderson (1984 men's MVP).

SBL

1989 saw the formation of the State Basketball League (SBL) with both a men's and women's competition. Willetton, trading as the Tigers, entered a team into both the MSBL and WSBL. While the women missed a playoff spot with a 6–15 record, the men finished in the top six with a 17–5 record. They went on to lose to the Geraldton Buccaneers in the semi-finals. Jeff Anderson was subsequently named the Co-Most Valuable Player of the MSBL's inaugural season alongside Pete Hansen of the Perry Lakes Hawks. Anderson went on to win the MVP award outright in 1990 before retiring following the 1995 season. In 174 SBL games for the Tigers between 1989 and 1995, Anderson averaged 25.2 points per game. Upon retiring from playing basketball, he took on the head coaching role for the Tigers men in 1996, winning MSBL Coach of the Year honours in his first season. Despite Anderson's individual success, he was unable to lead the Tigers to a maiden SBL championship during his time at the club.

While the men were unable to taste success, the women's team quickly became the dominant force in WSBL, reaching four straight grand finals and winning two championships between 1996 and 1999. During this time, the team was led by future Australian Opal and WNBL star Rohanee Cox. The Tigers women had another dominant run beginning in the mid-2000s, playing in six of the eight WSBL Grand Finals between 2004 and 2011, and winning championships in 2004, 2005, 2009, 2010 and 2011.

In 2010, the men finally broke the club's MSBL championship hoodoo thanks to a Grand Final MVP performance from Cameron Tovey. The team had fallen short in 2002 and 2008, reaching the grand final both years, so with their 2010 title, they completed a double-championship season for the club alongside the women.

In 2015, the Tigers women made it back to the WSBL Grand Final for the first time since 2011 (their 11th since 1996), but despite being led by Perth Lynx centre Louella Tomlinson, they were outclassed by Sami Whitcomb and the Rockingham Flames, losing 68–63. The women redeemed themselves the following year, as they made it back to the grand final and defeated the Joondalup Wolves 60–58 to claim their eighth championship behind an MVP performance from Kate Malpass (28 points, eight rebounds).