South Australian National Football League
The South Australian National Football League, or SANFL, is an Australian rules football league based in the Australian state of South Australia. It is also the state's governing body for the sport.
Originally formed as the South Australian Football Association on 30 April 1877, the SANFL is the oldest surviving football league of any code in the world. For most of its existence, the league was considered one of the traditional "big three" Australian rules football leagues, along with the Victorian Football League and West Australian Football League. Since the introduction of two South Australia-based clubs into the Australian Football League – the Adelaide Crows in 1991 and the Port Adelaide Power in 1997 – the popularity and standard of the league has decreased to the point where it is considered a feeder competition to the Australian Football League.
The SANFL has always been a single-division competition, and with the admission of the Adelaide Crows reserves in 2014, the season returned to a 10-team, 18-round home-and-away season from April to September. The top five teams play off in a final series culminating in the grand final for the Thomas Seymour Hill Premiership Trophy. The grand final had traditionally been held at Football Park in October, generally the week after the AFL Grand Final, though this was altered ahead of the 2014 season, resulting in Adelaide Oval hosting the grand final in the penultimate weekend of September.
The semi-professional league is considered the strongest competition after the fully professional Australian Football League. The league owned the sub-licences for South Australia's two AFL clubs—Adelaide Football Club and Port Adelaide Football Club—until March 2014, when South Australian Football Commission reached an agreement with the Adelaide and Port Adelaide clubs—endorsed by the AFL—which will see the two AFL licences transferred to the clubs in return for payments totalling more than $18 million.
The league is also responsible for the management of all levels of football in the state. This includes junior football, country football, amateur football and specific programs rolled out across schools, indigenous communities and newly arrived migrant communities.
The SANFL owned Football Park, formerly the largest stadium in South Australia. The stadium, which opened in 1974, was primarily used for Australian Football League matches up until 2013 and had a capacity of over 51,000 prior to being demolished. The stadium was the headquarters for the league from 1974 to 2013. The SANFL competition is the second highest attended Australian rules football league behind the AFL.
History
Before 1877
The first recorded game of any "football" in South Australia was that of 'Caid' played in Thebarton by people of the local Irish community in 1843 to celebrate St Patrick's Day. In 1844, there was debate amongst the South Australian Legislative Council whether it be allowed that "foot-ball" be played on Sundays, with arguments against preferring the quiet worship of God. In 1859, the Gawler Institute ran a rural fete which included a game of football being staged.The earliest recorded Australian rules football club in South Australia was Adelaide Football Club, formed in April 1860. An advertisement, sponsored by John Acraman, W.J. Fullarton and R. Cussen noted that group had already gathered 30 members.
The club initially only played internal matches between players located North and South of the River Torrens.
By the early 1870s a number of new clubs were formed. In addition to the Old Adelaide Club, Port Suburban, Port Adelaide and Young Australians both formed in 1870 and Kensington were the principal clubs that were organising interclub matches.
The early years of interclub football began to be dogged by arguments over which set of rules to adopt. A meeting of three delegates from each of the three clubs—Adelaide, Kensington and Port Adelaide— was held on 10 March 1873, with Charles Kingston from Adelaide voted as chair in an attempted to draw up a standard code of playing rules.
However, after a match between Port Adelaide and Kensington in July 1873, it was remarked that neither side understood the rules clearly. As the years progressed, there became a growing push for uniformity and structure in South Australian football.
On Wednesday 22 March 1876, a meeting of the South Adelaide Football Club, which had formed the previous year, was held at the Arab Steed Hotel. There was a good attendance, and officers and Committee for the season were elected. Dissatisfaction was expressed relative to the rules by which matches were conducted last season, and the Secretary was instructed to communicate with the various Clubs in order to arrange for regulations. It was remarked that scarcely a game was played last season without some misunderstanding arising, some playing by the Old Adelaide Club rules, and others the Kensington Club rules. After a lengthy discussion the meeting adjourned to receive a report from the Secretary and Committee.
Country clubs had also been established at Kapunda, Gawler and Willunga and the Adelaide-based clubs would sometimes be hosted by these clubs principally on Public Holidays. These 3 country clubs would also send delegates to the meetings which formed the South Australian Football Association in 1877.
1876: Adoption of standard rules by clubs
A meeting of those interested in football was held at the Prince Alfred Hotel on Thursday evening, July 20, 1876, to consider the question of a uniform code of rules to be adopted by the various Clubs. There were 56 persons present, including representatives from the Old Adelaide, South Adelaide, Woodville, and Victorian Clubs. Mr. T. Lotchford presided. Mr. C. C. Kingston, in explaining the object of the meeting, mentioned that a circular had been issued about six weeks previously by the Kensington Football Club, calling upon the Clubs in and around Adelaide to appoint delegates to consider the question of adopting a uniform code of rules. Nothing, however, had followed the issuing of the circular, and the meeting that evening was called in consequence. He was extremely pleased to see so large an attendance, as it augured well for a revival of the manly game, which, owing to what he considered a foolish modification of what were known as the old Adelaide rules, had sadly degenerated. The regulations generally known as the Kensington roles had during the last two seasons in which they had been adopted only provoked continual disputes when matches were engaged in. He was sure they all desired to see the game prosper in the colony, and that by a suitable code of rules encouragement should be given to the exhibition of skill, strength, and pluck, while all matches might be played under a spirit of friendly rivalry, thus making the game enjoyable and interesting not only to players, but to spectators. He then moved that the rules played in Victoria should be considered. They differed but slightly from the old Adelaide rules. If such rules were adopted he felt sure that football would be carried on farmore successfully than had been the case lately, and there would be a greater probability of intercolonial matches being arranged, as he hoped would be the case at no distant date. Mr. A. Crooks having seconded the motion, the Melbourne Football Rules were considered seriatim and adopted In their entirety, with the exception of Rules 6, 7, and 8. which were amended in a manner to assimilate somewhat to the old Adelaide rules. An addition to
Rule 6 provided that no player having claimed his mark should run with the ball. Rule 7 was struck out, and the following substituted:—
" The ball may be taken in hand at any time, but the player shall be liable to be held or thrown until he drops it." An addition to Rule 8 provided that pushing from behind should only be allowable when the player was running. The chief alterations in the game as hitherto played in Adelaide are the dispensing with the cross bar and top rope in favour of two upright posts of unlimited height, and the substitution of an oval football for the round one. Messrs.
C. C. Kingston, A. Crooks, J. A. Osborne, T.Letchford, and C. D. Perkins were appointed a Committee to confer with the Secretaries of other Clubs with a view to securing their concurrence in the action taken by the meeting. They were also empowered to consider the question of offering a Challenge Cup for next season. The meeting then closed.
1877–1887: SAFA establishment and the early years
In 1877, following an initial meeting called by Richard Twopeny on Thursday 19 April 1877 at Prince Alfred Hotel delegates from 13 of South Australia's football clubs met to develop a uniform set of rules and establish a governing body. The South Australian Football Association was formed at a meeting called at the Prince Alfred Hotel in King William Street, Adelaide on 30 April 1877, and adopted rules similar to those used in Victoria upon the urging of Charles Cameron Kingston. The use of an oval ball, bouncing the ball, and pushing from behind forbidden amongst the rules agreed at the meeting.The clubs that sent 2 delegates each to the meeting were: South Park, Willunga, Port Adelaide, Adelaide, North Adelaide, Prince Alfred College, Gawler, Kapunda, Bankers, Woodville, South Adelaide, Kensington, and Victorian.
The inaugural 1877 SAFA season was contested by 8 clubs. A total of 4 games were also played by Adelaide and Woodville when they were hosted twice each by the country clubs Gawler and Kapunda on public holidays but these weren't counted in the premiership table at the end of the season. South Adelaide and Victorian were declared joint Club Champions.
In 1878, a brand new club Norwood was formed following the entire collapse of Woodville by a number of former players and it joined the Association for the season.
An end of season match on 31 August between a combined Adelaide Team from the Association against a combined team from the 3 country clubs – Gawler, Kapunda and Willunga was played on the Adelaide Ground. With the Adelaide team winning 5 goals to 1.
In 1880 it was proposed to create a Junior Football Association, similar to the Cricket Association, from Clubs such as the North Parks, St. Peter's College, Prince Alfred College, Royal Parks, West Torrens, Woodville, South Suburban, Hotham, and Middlesex.
In 1881 - Adelaide and Kensington merged at a meeting held on 11 April it was decided that the colour of the merged club be black-and scarlet guernsey, hose, and cap, and navy blue knickerbockers. The SAFA was notified in writing of the amalgamation which was read at a meeting held on 27 April 1881. The merged club played 4 games before resigning on 1 June.
In 1882 - The first general meeting of the committee of the Junior Football Association was held at the Prince Alfred Hotel on Monday evening, March 27. All the clubs - North Parks, North Adelaide Juniors, Kensington, Kent Town, Albion, Triton, and West Torrens were represented. Later some of these clubs would be admitted to the Senior Association - North Parks would merge with North Adelaide Juniors and join as Adelaide in 1885 and West Torrens as West Adelaide in 1887.
In May 1884 - A proposal to merge the senior Association with the Junior Association was started with 5 delegates from each Association to confer as what steps can be taken but was in the end rejected by the SAFA.
Of the original senior clubs – Bankers, Woodville, Adelaide and Kensington, South Park, Victorian - i.e. 6 of the original 8 had all left the competition by the start of the 1885 Season. Only Port Adelaide and South Adelaide hadn't folded or resigned and together with Norwood which had joined in 1878 these 3 senior clubs dominated the competition.
In 1885, a new Adelaide Club joined the senior competition and won the Premiership the following season. The club was formed from a merger of North Adelaide Juniors and North Parks. Upon merger and admission the Club took up the Old Adelaide colours of Black and Red.
In 1887 another three Clubs were admitted Hotham and West Adelaide and the only country team ever admitted Gawler Albion but all only lasted for a few seasons.
West Adelaide folded after just one season, their resignation was accepted at the Annual General Meeting held on 5 April 1888, as they were unable to get a team together. At the same meeting permission was given for Hotham to change their name to North Adelaide and for Gawler to remove the word Albion from their name.