The Cairns Marlins are an Australian basketball team based in Cairns, Queensland. The Marlins compete in the men's NBL1 North and play their home games at Early Settler Stadium. The team is affiliated with Cairns Basketball Inc. (CBI), the major administrative basketball organisation in the region. CBI's women's team is the Cairns Dolphins.
Team history
Entry into the QBL After operating a successful basketball program in Cairns, Queensland, Cairns Basketball joined the Queensland State Basketball League in its second season in 1987. They fielded two teams, the Cairns Marlins in the men's competition and the Cairns Dolphins in the women's competition.
Expansion to the NBL Between 1993 and 1998 the Marlins won four championships, prompting calls for Cairns to join the Australian National Basketball League. The Cairns Taipans joined the NBL for the 1999–2000 season, with Marlin's head coach Rod Popp coaching the team.
Since the Taipans' entry into the NBL the two teams have remained very close, often sharing development and training players over the NBL off-season and the QBL season.
Championship dynasty The Marlins are the most successful team in the QBL, holding nine championships since the team joined the league. They also make regular appearances in the playoffs, making 19 appearances over 26 seasons since 1993.
Transfer to NBL1 After a successful first season in 2019, in 2020 the NBL1 expanded into Queensland and replaced the QBL. After this change, the Marlins transferred to the NBL1 North.
In the 2026 NBL1 North season, the Marlins finished the regular season with a 16–0 record, becoming the first NBL1 Men's side to go undefeated in a regular season. They went on to lose to the Ipswich Force in the semi-final.
Season by season SeasonLeagueRegular SeasonPost-SeasonHead coachCaptainClub MVP Position Played Wins Losses Win % Cairns Marlins1987QSBL1988QSBL1989QSBL1990QSBLDavid Ingram1991QSBLPeter Pendle1992QSBL422Brian Vincent1993QSBL168Champions in Final against Burdekin WildcatsRod PoppAlan Christie1994CBA1st274Lost in Final to Ballarat MinersBen Johnson1995CBA1591996CBA168 Billy Ross1997CBA242Lost in Final to Suncoast Clippers1998ABA342Champions in Final against Townsville HeatLucas Agrums1999ABALost in Final to Southern Districts2000ABA6th18711.388Mark Beecroft2001ABAChampions in Final against Brisbane Capitals2002ABA2nd20146Lost in Final to Brisbane Capitals2003ABA1st20155.750Lost in Final to South West Metro Pirates2004ABAChampions in Final against Townsville Heat, 103–942005ABA1st18153.833Lost in Final to Southern Districts Spartans, 90–852006QABLAaron Fearne2007QABLChampions in Final against Gold Coast Goannas, 135–942008QABL2009QBLChampions in Final against Rockhampton Rockets, 113–812010QBL4th18126Did not qualify2011QBL7th181082012QBL4th16115Lost in Elimination Finals to Mackay Meteors, 106–752013QBL2nd16142Lost in Elimination-finals to Townsville Heat, 86–99Jamie Pearlman2014QBL3rd16133Lost in Elimination-finals to Mackay Meteors, 83–632015QBL7th17107Did not qualifyJames Mitchell2016QBL5th17116Champions in Final against Brisbane Capitals, 2–0Damon Heuir2017QBL4th17116Lost in Semi-finals to Townsville Heat, 79–772018QBL6th18108Lost in Final to Townsville Heat, 2–0Jamie O'LoughlinAnthony Fisher2019QBL4th18135Lost in Elimination-finals to Rockhampton Rockets, 79-90Anthony Fisher 2020NBL1 NorthSeason cancelled2021NBL1 North5th1376Lost in Grand Final to Mackay Meteors, 2–0Kerry WilliamsAnthony Fisher
Current squad
References
External links Cairns Basketball's official website Official NBL1 club website