The South Australia Junior Basketball League referred to as the SAJBL By-Laws provide clear guidance for parents, players, and coaches. These by-laws are designed to ensure the safety and wellbeing of all participants including players, spectators, coaches, and referees.

This document outlines the rules and regulations that all participants in the SAJBL competition must follow. In addition, all members are expected to uphold the SAJBL Code of Behaviour, which sets the minimum standards for players, coaches, administrators, and spectators.

SAJBL participants are also covered under the Sturt Sabres Basketball Club’s Member Protection Policy.

Member Protection Procedures can be found here

Sturt’s Code of Behaviour can be found here

The rules in which games in the SAJBL competition are played is under the latest edition of the F.I.B.A Rules, except for further rules outlined and/or adjusted within the SAJBL By-laws will replace the F.I.B.A. rules.

The SAJBL reserves the right to discipline any member found to be in breach of Sturt Sabres Basketball Club and/or Sturt Domestic League policy.

Day-to-day interpretations of the SAJBL By-Laws shall be the responsibility of the Domestic Coordinator and theCourt Supervisor.

All queries must be directed to the Domestic Coordinator or Court Supervisor.

1.     Definitions

1.1  The SAJBL is the league abbreviation South Australia Junior Basketball League

1.2  The ‘Domestic Coordinator’ is an employed staff member of the Sturt Sabres Basketball Club, or other person with delegated authority to act in this capacity by the Management of the SAJBL.

1.3  ‘Basketball Connect’ is the official scoring application on a tablet device, used in stadiums to record theofficial result.

1.4  ‘Court Supervisor’ is the supervising SAJBL staff member at the stadium on the day of thecompetition.

1.5  Where any Member is disqualified or banished from ‘the proximity of the court’ under

any of the F.I.B.A. Rules and/or these By-Laws, they must:

1.5.1       Leave the stadium; or

1.5.2       Move to a position away from the playing court where they have no visible access to the playing court and must remain there until 5 minutes after the game has ended.

2.     Competition Structure

2.1  Grading

2.1.1       Teams may be regraded, either up or down, within the first six weeks of the competition. While the aim is to complete most re-grading by Week 4, in exceptional circumstances, at the discretion of the Domestic Competitions Manager, teams may be moved to a higher or lower grade as late as Week 6.

2.2  Minor Rounds

2.2.1       Minor rounds will commence directly after the grading period. This will consist of the remainingrounds for the season, save for any major rounds.

2.2.2       Where necessary, age groups may be split into pools of relatively equal quantities, based on the outcome of the grading rounds and other contributing factors.

2.2.2.1   Pool A will be the group of teams which are the strongest in the age group, Pool B, Pool C and so on will consist of weaker teams in descending order.

2.2.3       Teams may be moved into different pools at the discretion of the Domestic Coordinator. Inrare instances, teams may move up or down age groups.

2.3  Major Round

2.3.1       All grades/pools, other than Under 8s and Under 10s, will play a two-week finals series at the endof each season.

2.3.2       Finals will be played as 1 v 2, 3 v 4, 5 v 6 and so on, unless otherwise determined by theDomestic Coordinator.

3.     Player Registrations & Regulations

3.1  Registrations & Eligibility

3.1.1       All new players must pay the Basketball SA Affiliation fee annually, on or before the intendedseason start date, in addition to the administration fee.

3.1.2       At the commencement of a new season, all players must register on or before the intended season start date. Registration will cover the player for the entirety of the season (Summer – School Term 4 & 1, Winter – School Term 2 & 3).

3.1.3       A player is ineligible to play if they do not meet the following:

3.1.3.1   Is unfinancial by not abiding by 3.1.1, 3.1.2,

3.1.3.2   Is under suspension.

3.1.4       Any team that plays an ineligible player shall incur a fine (see Section 10) and the game shall be recorded as a 20-0 win to the opposing team.

3.1.5       There will be no appeal process for a fine imposed for playing ineligible players.

3.1.6       A person under the age of 5 years is not eligible to play in the Domestic Competitionunless otherwise approved by the Domestic Coordinator.

3.2  Playing in Multiple Teams

3.2.1       A player who is registered to a team cannot play for another team in the same grade, or lower grade, unless receiving an exemption from the Domestic Coordinator.

3.2.1.1   Participants competing in the Pink Devils Competition are exempt from 3.2.

3.3  Late Arrivals

3.3.1       A player who arrives late, and is eligible, may be added to the scoresheet/scoringsystem at any time. No penalties will apply.

3.4  Major Round Qualification

3.4.1       Players who have played five or more games may qualify to play any major round matchesfor their team.

3.4.2       Teams may apply for an exemption for a player through the team manager contacting theDomestic Coordinator. 

4.     Timing & Playing Conditions

4.1  Timing Conditions

4.1.1       All games are played to a total of 40 minutes. It is the responsibility of the referees to ensure teams are organised and prepared to begin play at the designated time.

4.1.2       For all age groups, the game will consist of two 20-minute halves with a 2 minute halftime break.

4.1.3       In all games the clock will continue running.

4.1.3.1   Referees may direct the clock to be stopped in cases of exceptional circumstances, such as serious injury. Referee time-outs can be called if necessary.

4.1.3.2   As the clock does not stop, substitutions may not be called in the last minute of a period of play.

4.1.4       Each team is granted one time-out per half, although the clock will not stop.

4.1.4.1   Time outs cannot be called in the last 2 minutes of any period of play. The aim is to ensure players have as much playing time as possible, whilst ensuring coaches are competing in the spirit of the game.

4.1.5       In the final two minutes of the game, if the score margin is 10 points or less, the game clock shall stop on every dead ball. If the margin exceeds 10 points at any time, the clock shall continue to stop for the remainder of the game on dead balls[KW1] 

4.2  Scorers

4.2.1       It is the duty of each of the teams and coaches to provide a volunteer scorer for the game. This must be done prior to the commencement of the first period of play.

4.2.1.1   A team’s failure to comply with 4.2.1 will result in an 8-point penalty against them.

4.2.1.2   The scorer must be competent and above the age of 13 years old and not a player in the game. Younger scorers may be allowed under the supervision of a responsible person(s) that is not scoring on behalf of the opposing team.

4.2.1.3   The scorer must not be the head coach of the team.

4.2.1.4   If the referees or Court Supervisor believe a scorer is not performing their duties adequately, they may be asked to swap for another volunteer from the team in question or have someone watch them.

4.3  Game Balls

4.3.1       All games will be played with a ball sourced from the teams. The referees will decide on thebest to use.

4.3.2       Under 8s, Under 10s and Under 12s will use a Size 5 regulation ball.

4.3.3       Under 14s Boys will use a Size 6 regulation ball.