Yarraville Football Club
| Yarraville Seddon Eagles | |
|---|---|
| Names | |
| Full name | Yarraville Seddon Eagles Football Club |
| Nickname(s) | The Villains, The Eagles, |
| Club details | |
| Founded | 1903 |
| Colours |
Navy blue, White and red (1903–1976) |
| Competition | VJFA, VFA, FDFL, WRFL |
| Premierships | 1905, 1920, 1925, 1926, 1935, 1961, 1997, 2000, 2012 |
| Ground(s) | Yarraville Oval |
| Other information | |
| Official website | http://www.yseagles.com.au/ |
Yarraville Football Club was an Australian rules football club founded in 1903 and played in the VJFA until 1927. In 1928, the club joined the VFA where it played until 1984 when the club went into recess. In 1996, the Kingsville Football Club in the FDFL who by this time had taken over the Yarraville ground changed their name to Yarraville. In 2007 the Yarraville Football Club merged with the Seddon Football Club to become the Yarraville Seddon Eagles.
History
The VJFA years (1903–1927)
Yarraville Football Club was formed on April 1, 1903. It then joined the Victorian Junior Football Association and won seven Premierships, the first in 1905. Margaret Berlowitz was President of Yarraville from 1914 to 1922. Bill Munday started playing for Yarraville in 1916 and played in three premierships, 1920, 1925 and 1926.
The VFA years (1928–1984)
Yarraville joined the VFA senior competition in 1928. Prior to the season, the club merged with the neighbouring VJFA rival, the Kingsville Football Club.[1] In 1935 the club won its first VFA grand final. Its next VFA grand final win was in 1961 the same year the VFA added a division 2. By the mid 70s the club had been relegated to the 2nd division and in 1976 finished last on the ladder. The club struggled for support in Division 2, and in the mid-1970s when Association-wide crowds were averaging more than 4,500, Yarraville still seldom drew more than 1,000 fans to games.[2]
The club's on-field position improved in 1977 thanks to a big sponsorship deal, and Yarraville finished on top of the ladder, but was unable to win the grand final. Yarraville remained a top side in 2nd division until 1980, but its form deteriorated dramatically thereafter. The club moved from Yarraville Oval to Western Oval in 1983, but won only one game across all three grades in the season. Seeing no prospects for lasting viability, the VFA withdrew Yarraville's playing licence in January 1984.[3]
The WRFL years (1996–2006)
In 1996 The Kingsville Football Club changed its name to Yarraville. Kingsville had started playing at the Yarraville Oval several years earlier. The first game under the Yarraville name saw Yarraville lose to Parkside. However, after that Yarraville would win 15 out of 18 games in 1996 and take 1st place on the ladder. They made it to the Grand Final but would lose to Parkside. In 1997 Yarraville again took top spot and again took on Parkside in the Grand Final but this time were able to win the Flag. Yarraville's reserves team also won the grand final beating Parkside as well.
In 1998 Yarraville suffered after losing many of the players who had helped win the flags the previous year and would finish midway through the ladder. In 1999 Yarraville struggled and would only manage 4 wins for the season. They finished last and were relegated to the second division of the WRFL.
In 2000 Yarraville were able to rebuild and had probably the best team since the '97 grand final winning team. The club was determined to get back to division 1 where they felt they rightfully belonged. They won all but one game for the season and often won by margins of 20-30 goals. On 15 July Yarraville kicked 55 goals and 33 behinds against the struggling Brooklyn. Yarraville defeated Glenorden in the Grand final. The win put Yarraville back into 1st division for the following season.
From 2001 to 2006 Yarraville maintained its spot in 1st division and just missed out on playing finals several times. During the 2006 season Yarraville began talks about a possible merger with the Seddon Football Club. Seddon had dropped out of the senior competition after 10 games due to poor performance. The merger was eventually agreed upon. The Yarraville football club played its final game at the end of the 2006 season when they defeated St Albans.
Although this marked the end of the Yarraville Football Club. 2007 marked the beginning of the Yarraville / Seddon Eagles Football Club. A combination of the Yarraville Football Club, Seddon Football Club and Yarraville Juniors.