SA Country Footy Champions – Part 2

In the second of a series of articles, we look at who among our community football leagues across the State have taken out 2024 premiership honours.

By PETER ARGENT

In an absolute heart stopper, Jake Spinks wrote his name into Mudlarks folklore.

After pulling down a terrific contested mark, the medium forward calmly slotted his first goal late in the game (after four behinds) for the Myponga Sellicks Mudlarks to beat the highly fancied Victor Harbor side by the smallest of margins, capturing to the 2024 Great Southern Football League flag.

Former AFL footballer Ben Kennedy was best on ground for the Larks, closely followed by sibling Sam, while playing coach Darren Shillabeer kicked three first-half goals to finish with exactly 100 goals for the season.

When the final siren sounded, the scoreboard read Myponga-Sellicks 10.8 (68) to Victor Harbor 9.13 (67).

Myponga-Sellicks need to traverse 40 years for their last A-Grade premiership, going back-to-back in 1983-84.

(Footnote: in 2003 the club Myponga changed its name to the Myponga-Sellicks Football Club to expand its catchment area)

For the Roos, Ben Heaslip, Michael Ross, Kane Cooper and Jesse McKinnon were gallant.

Victor Harbor’s Jesse McKinnon has etched his name into the GSFL history books by winning the 2024 A-grade Mail Medal, his second consecutive victory.

Ben Kennedy was three votes behind him on 24.

The legend of the Mundulla Tigers Football Club as one of the most successful country franchises in the past 50 years continues to grow, after a tough two-goal Grand Final triumph over Kybybolite in a low scoring Grand Final thriller at Bordertown.

Their clashes had been tight all season, with Mundulla inflicting Kyby’s only loss for the regular season in round two by 13 points, while the second round saw a win to Kybybolite by five points.

Kyby defeated Keith by four points in the second semi to advance straight to the dance, while Mundulla lost to the Keith Crows by over 11 goals in qualifying final, before rebounding to defeat them by 33 points on preliminary final day.

In this battle of the two species of KNT Tigers for the title, Mundulla won 6.9 (45) to Kybybolite 5.3 (33).

Mundulla Tigers ruckman Jacob Grosser was best-on-ground followed by James Hinge, Jake McGrice, Tom Gaden, Reagan Tink and Nathan Studham.

Best for the vanquished were Remi Brown, Oscar Clark, Tom Woodard and William Russell.

In Virgo Medal (and Mail Medal) count, Zac Richards from Border Districts (former Norwood) was victorious with 24 votes.

Second was former AFL player and 2022 Magarey Medallist Aaron Young from Keith (20 votes) while Glenelg premiership player Andrew Bradley, who also has a rich family history at Kybybolite (19 votes) was third.

The top two sides on the Southern Football League ladder, the Reynella Wineflies and the Flagstaff Hill Falcons, faced off in the 2024 Southern Football League decider at what has become the traditional home of the season finale, Flinders University Stadium, Noarlunga.

Getting out of the blocks well, Reynella kicked 3.4 to nil in a windy and low scoring affair, and would get home by 10 points, 6.14 (50) to 5.10 (40) leading from start to finish.

Wineflies captain Tyler Davies was best-on-ground in the win and in a game where goals were at a premium, Bailey Marshman and Jake Agnew each kicked a brace for the victors.

Reece Milsom, Blake Aldridge, Joshua Rosman and big man D’Arcy Mitchell were among the Falcons best players in this contest.

Sam Whitbread from Reynella won his second Mail Medal, both being in Wineflies premiership years, with his first in 2022. Fellow Wineflies’ Robert Irra and Marc Bornholm won in 2021 and 2023.

Coming from fourth place at the end of the minor round, West Gambier had solid first semi final and preliminary final victories, before toppling ladder leaders Millicent in the Grand Final by 32 points, winning 12.7 (79) to 7.5 (47).

Only five points separated the sides at the long interval, before West started to break the game open in the third and then kick three unanswered goals in the last.

The Mick Ryan Medal went to Roos’ forward Brandon Newton, who kicked five goals in the win.

Kyle Giddings, Harvey Croker, the ultra-consistent Lawrence Bradley-Brown and Braiden Ousey were also pivotal in the win.

Millicent small man Harry Tunkin and Emerson Marks from South Gambier shared the LCFNL Mail Medal in 24 votes. Toby de Wit from North Gambier was next on the voting list with 20 while Grand Final hero Newton was third with 14 votes.

Undefeated all season with a percentage upwards of 70, the Coorong Cats continued their control over the competition during the major round with hefty wins in both the second semi-final and the Grand Final.

Playing the Mypolonga Tigers in both finals, the Cats had a 15-goal triumph in the decider and were 64-point winners in the second semi.

In the 19.9 (123) to 5.3 (33) win, Alexander Stidiford was best-on-ground for the Cats, while former Carlton and Crows listed forward Daniel Menzel, the premiership playing coach, finished with a haul of six majors.

Rory Lehmann, Hamish Dow, Clinton Walker and Lachlan Mill got their lick as well.

Corey Jones, Samuel Martin, Reid Kuller and Henry Payne were gallant for the weary Tigers.

Following in father’s Mervyn’s footsteps, Ramblers’ First Nations talent Malakai Kartinyeri was awarded the Mail Medal as the RMFL best and fairest player, and its rising star award.

He took the lead halfway through the vote count and finished with 22 votes, ahead of Coorong’s James Hargreaves on 18.

The dominant team with 15 wins during the minor round Hatherleigh went into the Mid South East Grand Final against Robe, at Kongorong, as heavy favourite.

After a slow start the Hatherleigh Eagles were three goals down, before six unanswered majors in the third quarter set up the four-goal win, 10.15 (75) to 7.9 (51).

Eagles half-back Mitch Pulmer won the Stan Jones Memorial Medal, just ahead of one-time GWS Giant Thomas Hutchesson.

Bradley Mitchell, Michael Telford, Darcy Bateman and Louis Brown were also influential in the victory.

Henry Lawrie, George Dutton, former South Clare Demon Ben Dinning and Zac Deane were the best for the Roosters.

Lawrie, the captain of Robe also won the MSEFL Mail Medal by four votes, recorded a tally of 23 ahead of the equal second pairing of Tye McManus from Kalangadoo and Dylan Ridley from Mount Burr. Michael Telford from the Hatherleigh Eagles was a further vote behind them on 18.

Holding on by just five points in difficult conditions to complete an undefeated season, Hahndorf were victors in a low scoring, but interesting affair on Hills Division One Grand Final day.

Hahndorf defeated the 2023 premiers Nairne-Bremer 3.14 (32) to 3.9 (27), after the scoreboard at the Mt Barker ground read the Magpies 1.6 (12) leading Rams 1.5 (11) at half-time.

Dylan Hopgood led the way for the Hahndorf Magpies on the biggest day, followed by James Tripodi, Jesse Landers, Ben Salt and Zabien Parker-Boers.

For the Rams, who were close to going back-to-back, Will Brooks, Adam Eckermann and Joshua Dodd stood up.

Australian underage and former SA Redbacks cricketing all-rounder, Corey Kelly, was also in the Rams side.

Tyson Hone, a state country representative from the Mount Lofty Football Club won the Division One A grade Mail Medal award,

The Gumeracha Magpies were triumphant again in the Country Division of the Hills competition.

This famous club collected a three-peat this year; in the 2024 decider they had a 20-point win over the Kangarilla side at Macclesfield Oval.

Winning 9.11 (65) to 6.9 (45), the Magpies were seven goals up at three quarter and got home, despite not scoring in the final quarter.

Sam Hanna added to an already outstanding year with a second Best-on-Ground “Peter Page Medal”, after winning a first in the 2022 premiership year.

Former Central District player Dylan Weaver wasn’t far behind him, while Charlie Graeber, Jack Parker, Jayden Alderson and Ezra Lane all deserved mentions.

Charles Trotman, Tyler Virgo and Thomas Driscoll were the Blues’ better players.

Weaver also won the Hills Country Division Mail Medal, after his team mate Sam Hanna has secured the previous three.