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The Michael Jordan-Chicago Bulls series 'The Last Dance', currently enthralling millions around the world, has been described as the best sports documentary ever made. 

That's a big call, given the quality of the field.

Here's 15 sports docos currently available for streaming in Australia that I reckon more than hold their own against Jordan, Pippen, Rodman and co – and might even outpoint them.

Winner of Best Documentary at the 2012 Academy Awards, Undefeated on Stan is an intimate chronicle of three underprivileged student-athletes from inner-city Memphis

1. Undefeated (Stan)

The Manassas Tigers high school football team of Memphis, Tennessee hasn't had a winning season for as long as anyone can remember but new coach Bill Courtney teaches the boys that life is about more than what's on the scoreboard. How good is it? It won the 2012 Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature.

2. Basketball or Nothing (Netflix)

Make sure you have plenty of tissues close by for this six-episode series. It's the heartwarming, inspirational and totally absorbing story of the Chinle Wildcats, a Native American high school basketball team from Arizona's Navajo nation. Small in stature but gigantic in commitment to their families and team-mates, these exceptional young men strive to succeed on the court and in the classroom as they chase the holy grail – a college scholarship. Not so that they can escape life on the reservation, but in order to return with the necessary qualifications and skills to help their community.

Basketball or Nothing (pictured) is also a Netflix-made documentary series, with six episodes available

The Test, which is available on Amazon Prime, follows the Australian cricket team for 18 months

3. The Test (Amazon Prime)

With the success of 'The Last Dance' the call has gone up for more documentaries to be made about Australian sport and its behind-the-scenes issues. This one will take a lot of beating. Following the Australian cricket team for 18 months from its lowest ebb – the Sandpapergate scandal – to one of its highest – retaining the Ashes in England in 2019 – it is a must-watch for cricket die-hards and nuff-nuffs alike. I could give a glowing review but this should suffice: a note from my coronavirus isolated daughter who had just binge-watched all eight episodes. 'Hey Dad, have you watched The Test? Even I loved it and I hate cricket'. Praise indeed.

Hoop Dreams, which became a sensation when it was released in 1995, follows the high school careers of a bunch of young basketball hopefuls

4. Hoop Dreams (Stan)

The one that started it all, this doco following the high school careers of under-privileged black youths Arthur Agee and William Gates created a sensation when it was released in 1995. Seen as a commentary on the inequalities of US society as much as a sports film, it set the standard for all that followed. Respected movie critic Roger Ebert rated it the best film of the 1990s.

5. Q Ball (Netflix)

Produced by NBA superstar Kevin Durant, this documentary takes viewers inside the walls of San Quentin maximum security prison as it follows the inmates' basketball team, the San Quentin Warriors, through one full season. In equal parts confronting (it's not often you get to see and hear a basketball coach explain in graphic detail how he watched the life ebb from the eyes of a stranger he had just stabbed in the heart) and uplifting - as an example of the rehabilitative powers of sport - this is an emotional 96-minute ride that will stay with you a long time. 

Q Ball is also on Netflix, and follows an inmates' basketball team inside San Quentin maximum security prison

Sydney Swans star Adam Goodes' career ended in controversy after a booing campaign by the crowd (above)

6. The Final Quarter (Stan)

Another Aussie production, it follows the final stage of Adam Goodes' career and the racial controversy it inflamed. While it is more a conventional documentary using file footage and taped commentary than the 'fly-on-the-wall' style currently in vogue, the stand taken by the Sydney Swans AFL star over the abuse he copped on and off the field make for absorbing and often painful viewing. 

7. Formula 1: Drive To Survive (Netflix)

Strap yourself in for this one. The future of this year's F1 season might be very much under a cloud but sitting through the white-knuckle excitement of this incredible fly-on-the-wall series is the next best thing. Maybe better. Personality clashes, feuds, frustrations, astonishingly brilliant driving and even more astonishingly dumb mistakes plus behind the scenes blow-ups and political intrigue – it's all there warts and all in two hypnotic series covering the 2018 and 2019 seasons. And a warning: some of the language is pretty rough, especially from our own Daniel Ricciardo who throws the odd top-of-the-range expletive into conversation just to mess with the producers' heads. 'Don't worry,' he laughs. 'They'll cut that out.' Guess what Daniel? They didn't.

Lewis Hamilton (pictured) features frequently on Formula 1: Drive to Survive, which is available on Netflix

Formula 1: Drive to Survive is on Netflix covers both the 2018 and 2019 racing seasons

8. Love The Beast (Stan)

Another one for the petrol heads, produced, directed and starring the biggest petrol head of them all, Eric Bana. The Australian comedian turned Hollywood leading man has made the ultimate love story, dedicated to his greatest passion – his 1973 Ford XB Falcon Hardtop, AKA The Beast. Bana pulls in big names Jay Leno, Jeremy Clarkson and Dr Phil to give the film international cred but it's really a quintessential suburban Aussie story about a bunch of mates and a car. And it's great.

9. Maradona in Mexico (Netflix)

It's hard to imagine what is more unlikely, that Diego Maradona would coach a second division football team in one of the world's most notorious cocaine centres, or that a film crew would follow his every move and put together a warm, cohesive, totally watchable documentary series from the footage. But that is exactly what happened. Nobody was certain that fallen superstar Maradona would ever arrive in Culiacan – home of the Sinaloa drug cartel made infamous by 'El Chapo' Guzman – and once he got there no-one was sure that he would be in any fit state to coach the struggling Dorados de Sinaloa team. That he gave the job his all, turned the side around and became a much-loved figurehead to the players and supporters makes for a great show.

A Netflix documentary about Diego Maradona (pictured) has also received rave reviews

10. Sunderland 'Til I Die (Netflix)

Anyone who has ever given their heart and soul to a sporting club and then had to ride an emotional roller coaster of hope, disappointment and despair as it careens through a season of failure will recognize themselves in this series tracing Sunderland FC through the 2018 and 2019 seasons following relegation from the English Premier League. If it was envisaged that the cameras would document a triumphal return to the top league it soon becomes evident that the move from the second tier is actually more likely to be in the other direction. It's a painful journey made all the more excruciating because the producers do such a good job of exploring the emotions of the key characters, from players to staff to lifelong supporters, and making the viewer care about them. 

Sunderland 'Til I Die is an original Netflix documentary and an emotional roller coaster of hope, disappointment and despair

11. Last Chance U (Netflix)

The first two seasons of this engrossing four-series reality program became such a cult favourite that a scripted version starring Courtney Cox as East Mississippi Community College academic advisor Brittany Wagner has gone into production. As the title suggests, the EMCC football program offers a last chance to student-players who for one reason or another have dropped out of the mainstream college system. In the third and fourth seasons the producers move to a community college in Kansas but the premise is the same: troubled kids, larger than life foul-mouthed coaches and dedicated teachers trying to keep the whole circus from imploding.

Netflix's Last Chance U is a four series reality programme following the lives of the EMCC football program

12. Class of '92: Out of Their League (Netflix)

It reads like the plot of a big-budget movie: group of retired superstar players buy a broken down footie club and pour their cash and expertise into dragging it up from the bottom. Except in this case it's all true. The players in question are Manchester United legends Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Gary Neville, Phil Neville, Nicky Butt and David Beckham, and the club is Salford United. It's totally engaging, informative and often hilariously funny and the best part is that although the ex-players figure prominently it is the real club characters such as supporters, canteen operators and board members who steal the show. 

13. Warriors of Liberty City (Stan)

I know what you are thinking: yet another series about a US inner city football program which gives poor black kids the chance to make something of their lives and avoid falling into the clutches of drugs, crime and jail. And you'd be right. That is exactly what this is – and you can't drag your eyes away from the screen. The Liberty City football program, headed by hip-hop artist Luther Campbell in one of the most dangerous neighborhoods in Miami, has produced more NFL players than any other in the country. And it has also spawned one heck of a TV show. 

Warriors of Liberty City (pictured) follows an inner-city team in Miama, Florida as part of the Liberty City football program

Stan's Warriors of Liberty City follows the Liberty City football program in inner-city Miami

14. QB1 – Beyond The Lights (Netflix)

Traces the final high school season of three of the best quarterbacks in the country as they are recruited by the top colleges. Three series have been produced, with two shown so far in Australia. In ten episodes viewers get to know the talents, character, and dreams of the young men, and the hopes and motivation of their families. Provides a first-hand insight into a world of teenage adulation, opportunity and the prospect of untold riches. Some of the players showcased, like Georgia's Jake Fromm who was just picked by the Buffalo Bills in the fifth round of the NFL draft, you just can't help wanting the best for. A couple of the others, not so much. If they're such insufferable, big-headed twats in high school, what are they going to be like when they've just signed a $20 million NFL contract? 

QB1 – Beyond The Lights on the Netflix follows the final high school season of three of the best quarterbacks in America

15. Williams (Netflix)

The life story of F1 legend Frank Williams makes for pretty amazing viewing. From his early days as an obsessed driver to an even more obsessed team owner; his near-fatal accident that left him confined to a wheelchair and his strange, distant relationship with his wife and children, this documentary is far deeper and more impactful than expected. The footage of Williams' daughter Clare finally reading part of his late wife Ginny's biography to him after years of him refusing to hear it will bring a tear to the eye.

Mike Colman is one of Australia's most respected sports commentators. In a career spanning more than 30 years, he has covered seven Olympics and major sporting events around the world.