2024 Hostplus SANFL Volunteer of the Year Finalist – Dominic Denton

By JORDAN ROUTLEY

Dominic Denton has been a part of the fabric of Thevenard Football Club for as long as he can remember, with his connection to the club as strong as it was the first time he pulled on the black and white guernsey.

Located near Ceduna in South Australia’s far west, Thevenard is a small country town with footy at its heart and Denton as one of its greatest sons.

The versatile defender has racked up an impressive list of achievements in his playing career, winning three Mail Medals as the Western Eyre Football League’s (WEFL) best player and earning selection in the Team of the Championship at the 2024 SA Country Football Championships.

As well as dominating on the field, Denton has been a significant figure off it, serving in numerous roles at Thevenard including senior coach, committee member, president, Auskick coordinator and the club’s delegate to the WEFL.

Denton’s fierce dedication to the club is born out of a desire to help it be the best it possibly can be, noting the role sporting clubs play in the community.

“It is pretty crucial for local sporting clubs to continue operating and they need their volunteers, so if there are things that need to be done then you put your hand up,” Denton said.

Denton’s work has extended beyond the needs of his own club and has been instrumental in helping grow the league and get more people involved in local footy.

This year Denton helped establish the Junior Development Cup, a three-round junior competition designed to bolster development by placing junior players in narrower age brackets.

“It was formed because of the big margin differences we were seeing in the junior grades and we identified that it was stunting the development of those players.

“It was trialled on the Eyre Peninsula during Covid and we adopted it fully this year and it was a great success.”

Denton has also been key in helping provide greater opportunities for children from local Indigenous communities such as Yalata to get a taste of junior football in the WEFL.

“We worked closely with the teachers there to help get them down and play some junior footy with us which was obviously great for them and beneficial for us because sometimes numbers can be pretty light in junior grades,” he said.

While Denton’s playing days are nowhere near done, he already has an eye on the future and life after hanging up the boots, having served as a playing coach of the senior team for the past four seasons.

“I have kind of been doing it for a while now as a playing coach and I guess it comes back to wanting to help people be better and do better within the club,” Denton said.

“I am really passionate about coaching and it’s all about helping the young guys in the club develop their own football and themselves as people.”

Dominic is one of seven finalists for the 2024 Hostplus SANFL Volunteer of the Year Award, with the winner to be announced at the annual SANFL Community Volunteers Awards Night at Adelaide Oval on Friday, 11 October.