Southland Sharks
| Southland Sharks | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 |
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| League | National Basketball League | ||
| Founded | 2010 | ||
| History |
Southland Sharks 2010–present |
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| Arena | Stadium Southland | ||
| Location |
Invercargill, Southland, New Zealand |
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| Team colours | Orange, blue, black | ||
| Main sponsor | SIT Zero Fees | ||
| General manager | Jill Bolger | ||
| Team manager | Troy Paulin | ||
| Head coach | Judd Flavell | ||
| Championships | 2 (2013, 2015) | ||
| Website | SharksBasketball.co.nz | ||
| Uniforms | |||
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The Southland Sharks are a New Zealand basketball team based in Invercargill. The Sharks compete in the National Basketball League (NBL) and play their home games at Stadium Southland. For sponsorship reasons, they are known as the SIT Zero Fees Southland Sharks. The Southern Institute of Technology (SIT) have been a sponsor of the Sharks since their inception in 2010.
The Sharks won their first NBL championship in 2013, and went on to win their second title two years later.
The Southland Sharks team name dates back to the 1990s when the Smokefree Southland Sharks competed in the Conference Basketball League (CBL). After the Sharks won two CBL titles in 1995 and 1998, four Southland businessmen tried to launch an independent NBL franchise out of Southland in 2002, only for it to fall over after failing to get sufficient backing from the Community Trust of Southland. 2003 marked the final year that the Southland men's team was called the Sharks.
In June 2008, Southland Basketball Association revealed a new name for its men's team: the Southland Flyers. The following month, the Flyers entered the southern zone divisional tournament held in Invercargill, with the hopes of qualifying for the New Zealand divisional championships in Levin in September.
In 2009, the Southland Flyers won the national tournament with help from Tall Blacks players Brendon Pongia, Ed Book and Terrence Lewis, and former Taranaki and Canterbury power forward Ben van Oosten. Coached by Richard Dickel, the team also featured rugby star Joe Tuineau for a short while.
On 22 December 2009, Southland Basketball Association received a three-year license to enter a team, the Southland Sharks, in the National Basketball League, starting with the 2010 season. The Sharks thus became the region's third professional sports team after the Southland Stags Rugby union team and the Southern Steel netball team.
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