14
Sep
2026-27 Season
Eight Aussie stars miss Townsville for same, good reason
Isobel Borlase and Jade Melbourne pose together after the Seattle Storm's game against the Atlanta Dream at Climate Pledge Arena on June 27, 2026. The Australian Opals teammates will reunite as teammates for the Bendigo Spirit in the 2026-27 WNBL season. Photo: Liv Lyons/NBAE via Getty Images.
All nine WNBL clubs land in Townsville from Thursday, and all the Australians on WNBA duty.
- Every WNBL27 roster, squad list and projected depth chart
- WNBL27 Free Agency: Every club's confirmed squad
- All 99 games of the WNBL27 season in one list
The Townsville Tip Off returns to Townsville Stadium from Thursday, September 17, 2026, and the WNBL's pre-season showcase opens on the fixture everyone wanted: the Townsville Fire against the Perth Lynx, in a rematch of the WNBL26 grand final, on the champions' own floor.
It also opens on the same day the WNBA comes back.
The WNBA paused its regular season on August 31 for the FIBA Women's World Cup and resumes on September 17, running through to the last day of its regular season on September 24. The Townsville Tip Off runs September 17 to 20. The two overlap completely.
How to watch
All nine games are live and free on 9Now, and live and on demand on ESPN on Disney+.
Australian who are missing and why
Eight Australians players on WNBL27 rosters are contracted to WNBA clubs whose season restarts the day Townsville begins.
- Steph Talbot (Adelaide Lightning) - Las Vegas Aces
- Isobel Borlase (Bendigo Spirit) - Atlanta Dream
- Jade Melbourne (Bendigo Spirit) - Seattle Storm
- Georgia Amoore (Perth Lynx) - Washington Mystics
- Anneli Maley (Perth Lynx) - New York Liberty
- Miela Sowah (Townsville Fire) - Golden State Valkyries
- Nyadiew Puoch (UC Capitals) - Portland Fire
- Sami Whitcomb (Perth Lynx) - Phoenix Mercury (Out for the season).
Borlase is the one Australian fans will most want to see. She scored 30 points against Italy in Berlin, off the bench, with three of Australia's WNBA starters unavailable, and dragged the Opals into the quarter-finals by two points.
Perth arrive thinnest of all
The grand final rematch is the headline game, and it is also the one the absences hit hardest. Perth's WNBL27 squad lists ten players. Amoore, Maley and Key are on WNBA rosters, Whitcomb is out for the season, and on Sunday the club and Nya Lok confirmed they had mutually parted ways ahead of WNBL27.
That is five of ten unavailable for a side that went to a deciding grand final game five months ago, against the team that beat them, in Townsville.
A first look at the Tasmania Jewels
The tournament is also the competitive debut of the league's tenth licence, the Tasmania Jewels, who play twice: against the Adelaide Lightning on Friday and the Sydney Flames on Saturday. The Jewels confirmed Opal Steph Reid back in June.
Kids go free
Every child is admitted free across all four days, and the tournament lands on the opening weekend of the Queensland school holidays. Tickets are on sale.
WNBL Chief Strategy and Basketball Partnerships Officer Lauren Jackson said the league wanted a bigger event than the inaugural edition.
"We are incredibly excited to be coming back to Townsville. The fans in Townsville are some of the very best and we can't wait to bring all nine teams back to this wonderful city and put on a great show," Jackson said.
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