South Adelaide win 2025 Hostplus SANFLW League Premiership

South Adelaide stamped itself as the undisputed champion of the Hostplus SANFLW League, claiming its fourth premiership with a comfortable 23-point win against Woodville-West Torrens at Stratarama Stadium. 

Successfully defending their 2024 crown, the Panthers were rarely troubled as they continued to enhance their reputation as the dominant force in South Australia’s premier State League competition.

Now with two sets of back-to-back flags after winning in 2018 and 2019, South kicked the opening two goals of the game inside seven minutes to put the inexperienced Eagles on the back foot.

With emerging star Emma Charlton taking control in the centre square during the second term and her acting captain Tiffany King taking a series of eye-catching intercept marks, South effectively had the game in hand once it opened up a 22-point lead at half-time.

Keeping the Eagles goalless until Amie Blanden converted her free kick at the top of the goal square in the 17th minute of the third quarter, the Panthers started the party early when Layla Vizgaudis kicked a classy goal on the run just two minutes into the fourth.

”It’s all a bit surreal,” a jubilant South Adelaide coach Rick Watts said after the match.

”We probably played our best game of the year to be honest, it all came together. Unfortunately for them, they missed some opportunities and that’s the way it goes sometimes.

”We’d spoken about their impact players being 18, 19 (years old) and probably that’s where the (lack of) experience got them, in those big moments.

”I’m just so incredibly proud of this group, they just surprise me all the time.”

Desperate to play in honour of injured teammates Shae Archbold, Taya Maxwell, Carly Milsom and captain Jordan Rugless, South’s host of strong contributors allowed it to dictate the tempo of the game, racking up 20 more marks for the afternoon.

Charlton, the younger sister of Crow Teah Charlton, was a fitting winner of the best-on-ground medal with 26 disposals, nine clearances and seven tackles.

King wasn’t far behind her as she marshalled the back six nicely with great support from fellow defenders Esther Schirmer, Jaslynne Smith and first-year star Marley Tape, who showed great composure with her intercept marks.

Ruck Soriah Moon, who finished with 16 disposals and 35 hit outs, began to take control in the second half while Lauren Clifton’s attack on the ball was fierce as she tallied 15 disposals and a goal.

The minor premier Eagles, who had surged from three seventh-placings in succession under coach Narelle Smith, benefited from the presence of inclusion Christina Leuzzi (14 disposals, five clearances and eight tackles) after she signed with Adelaide’s AFLW team after Round 11.

Key back Zahlia Niemann was stoic on the last line of defence with 15 disposals and four tackles for the Eagles while veteran Leah Cutting toiled hard against Moon to finish with 13 disposals and six clearances in her 99th and final SANFLW League game.

South Adelaide  2.1  4.2  5.4  6.5  (41)

Woodville-West Torrens  0.2  0.4  1.6  2.6 (18) 

BEST – South: Charlton, King, Moon, Clifton, Couch, Schirmer, Vizgaudis, Tape

Eagles: Leuzzi, Niemann, Moore, Falkenberg

GOALS – South: Brockhurst, Clifton, Northcott, Taylor, Vizgaudis, Laquoiya Cockatoo-Motlap,

Eagles: Blanden, Lynch

UMPIRES –  Peter Orr, Joshua Abbott, Rees Williams

CROWD –  2831 at Stratarama Stadium, Glenelg