To wrap up the school holidays, 39 Canberra FUTURES participants made the trek to Orange, NSW on 14-16 July 2023 for their End-of-Program camp & development tournament.

Under the guidance of Cal Bruton and the Bruton Basketball Foundation (BBF) and Basketball ACT, six FUTURES Program teams made the journey – 2 x Under 12 Boys, 1 x U14 Girls and 3 x Under 14 Boys – to play a mini-tournament in partnership with the Orange District Basketball Association (ODBA).

To tip-off the weekend, Cal and the BBF team held a joint skills camp with the Futures players and those from ODBA, before a trip to Mount Canobolas for an Indigenous cultural tour and regional history from Deputy Mayor, Gerald Power.


It was then time to hit the court, as twelve teams in three age/gender groups got underway for Day 1 of the mini-tournament, before all participants enjoyed the Waratah Youth League match between the Orange Eagles and Camden Valley Wildfire.

The mini-tournament concluded with the finals on Sunday, with age group winners being:
– U12 Boys – Orange Mini Magic team;
– U14 Girls – Canberra Futures;
– U14 Boys – Canberra Futures – (Team Owen);

There were many memories made, laughs had and weary travellers after a super successful weekend.

We would like to thank the following for their assistance and support:
– Dante, Ella, Owen, Ajak, & Elijah for coaching our teams;
– Thomas Allen, Erin Causer, & Kirsty Kemp for volunteering to chaperone and drive;
– Lee Taylor from Kinross Boarding School who helped massively with our accommodation;
– Jamahl & Jeremy from ODBA.
– Nadia & Cal Bruton from BBF.