DOMESTIC COMPETITION

Early informal local competition was the forerunner of the Scottish Cup which was inaugurated in 1947. Kemsley Newspapers presented the fine trophy which is still the ultimate prize in Scottish Basketball. A similar trophy for Women's basketball was donated in 1948 by James Muirhead who was the founder of the Glasgow based Maryhill Club.

Local Leagues flourished in the main areas of population and an annual East V West match was established. On the 3 June 1947 The Scotsman reported that a basketball competition was to be played in Princes Street Gardens. This was a regular East of Scotland League programme which was played during the summer of that year. Basketball stands were stored in the Ross Band Stand and brought out for evening matches.

This early success prompted the ABAS to organise the Scottish Cup Final in Princes Street Gardens.  The Pleasance Boys Club played Aberdeen University at this venue and the local club were victorious.  

During the 1960's & 1970's decades, leading clubs in the local Associations sought more regular top level competition. Invitation tournaments were established and for the most commited clubs the highlights of each year were the Christmas/New Year Tournament hosted by the US Navy at Dunoon and the Spring Tournament hosted by the US Air Force at RAF Edzell. The demand for more regular top level competition was satisfied by the establishment of the "Scot/Am League". The founding participants were Hornets, Boroughmuir FP, Pierce Institute (Glasgow), St Michael's FP (Dundee) and the US teams from Dunoon and Edzell.

Gradually more teams joined the Scot/Am League. When the US Military bases at Dunoon and Edzell closed the Scottish National League took centre stage. To deal with the increase in activity the Association appointed a National League Administrator on a part time basis. The number of participating teams increased along with income from entry and registration fees. The Adminstrator's post was made full time. At the height of popularity the National Leagues had four men's divisions and two women's divisions. These were soon complemented by Junior (under 19) and Youth (under 17) leagues for boys and girls.

Meanwhile the Scottish Cups had grown from strength to strength. With more and more teams entering the National Competitions the Scottish Basketball Association catered for Senior, Junior and Youth Cups for boys and girls. They also introduced the Chairman's Cups for teams eliminated in the first rounds of the Senior Competitions.

The Scottish Cup Finals were organised on a Championship weekend bringing all the finalists together for the season finale. This was made possible in the 1970's because of the opening of the new indoor facilities built for the 1970 Commonwealth Games at Meadowbank in Edinburgh.

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