Of the 11 Southwest Slammers Junior teams participating in the 2009 WABL season, 9 teams made the finals, which was a record for the club and a credit to the coaches involved in the Basketball Southwest programme. 6 of the teams made the Final Four with three teams advancing to the Grand Final game which took place on Sunday the 20th Sept 2009 at Perry Lakes Basketball Stadium.

The Greg Worthington-coached U18(2) boys were aiming for their record breaking 3rd consecutive championship. A very competitive first half against a very good Eastern Suns team resulted in only a 5-point lead before the Slammers pulled away in the 2nd half to produce a 28-point victory, 81-53. The Fossati twins, Tom and Sam, rebounded strongly garnering 12 rebounds each as well as both scoring in double figures. Guards Cory Richardson (5 assists) and Mitchell Thompson superbly controlled the game with James Goodlad producing a great all-round effort finishing with 12 points. Michael Kerrigan, Jesse Keller, Regan Crabbe and Luke Hegney made a valuable contribution off the bench in the team’s record breaking win. Tyler Hickert, despite foul trouble, again led the team in scoring with 23 points on 10 of 15 shooting before heading off to the Australian Institute of Sport in Canberra for a week-long Development Camp with the top U17s in Australia.

Neil Weir’s U18 girls had a really good season, ending up second in the Southern Pool. Unfortunately the girls were runner-up in a thrilling and competitive game that kept the crowd on the edge of their seats, was close throughout and had overtime at the end. The final score after overtime was Slammers 72 Lakeside 73. The girls played great as a team and it was an unfortunate last minute call that decided the game for them. Despite the outcome, the girls played with great intensity and it was an outstanding achievement for them and for Basketball Southwest.

The U16(1) boys came up against a very well drilled and disciplined Stirling Senators outfit in their Grand Final and went down by 36 points. After finishing 3rd in the South Division during the regular season, the team did very well to advance to their first Grand Final.