What I've learned in the past 13 seasons

3 September 1999, and after a big day at the Royal Show, a mate and I head to Adelaide Oval for the round 23 clash between Centrals and the Eagles. The Eagles were a strong team, who would ultimately finish top 3, while Centrals season was inconsistent away and shocking at home with just the two home wins for the season.

During this game, the Eagles showed why they were a top 3 side, while Centrals looked as inconsistent as their 7th place showed for 1999 in a game where the Eagles had a dominant 49 point win. While only being a teenager at the time, I was fully aware of Centrals mediocre past, and thought that while Peter Jonas was still coach of Centrals they were as far away from that elusive first premiership as ever.

Fast forward to Sunday 7 October 2012, and I wander around the doomed AAMI Stadium for the SANFL Grand Final between Norwood and West Adelaide. If someone had said to me as I walked out of Adelaide Oval that cool Friday night in 1999 that Centrals would go on to make the next 12 Grand Finals, that Centrals and the Eagles would go on to form a great modern-day rivalry, and that the 2012 Grand Final would be the next one without Centrals, I would have personally signed them into Glenside!

It’s been an incredible 13 years for the Central District Football Club, as they transformed from the laughingstock of the SANFL to a modern-day powerhouse with success never seen for such a long period in the SANFL, and in that time, I have learnt a lot of our great competition, and children who started reception in 1999/2000 have gone through pretty much their entire education where the SANFL Grand Final would feature Centrals.

A lot has happened in the world since that incredible day in 2000 where on an overcast September afternoon (the Sydney Olympics seeing the Grand Final played several weeks earlier than usual) Centrals defeated the Eagles by 22 points to claim their first SANFL Premiership in what would become the birth of a modern day rivalry.

From that September day in 2000 to that September day in 2012 when North mercilessly knocked Centrals out of the finals race, the following events have happened:
• 4 Olympics (Sydney, Athens, Beijing, London)
• September 11 attacks,
• the demise of Ansett Australia,
• the rise of Virgin Blue/Virgin Australia from a no frills budget carrier to taking on Qantas full-on, and somewhat coming full circle with their impending stake in Tiger.
• the Bali Bombings,
• the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq
• Schapelle Corby serve a fair chunk of her 20 year sentence (or whatever it is now) for drug smuggling
• John Howard’s demise as Prime Minister
• Julia Gillard become Australia first female Prime Minister
• Barack Obama become America’s first black President
• The rise (and fall) of Mike Rann as state Premier
• Social networking become the in thing – initially with My Space, now with Facebook and Twitter. On a football front, the launch of many football forums such as Talking Footy SA.
• Football Park become AAMI Stadium, and go from one of the best AFL venues to a maligned AFL venue that is now doomed for Adelaide Oval

And in that time, Centrals went along creating records of their own:
• 12 consecutive Grand Finals – a league record
• Chris and James Gowans 9 premierships – equal league record
• 9 Grand Final wins in 12 years – a league record
• Record Grand Final winning margin – 125 points in 2004

And many more…

So, what have I learned about our great SANFL competition during Centrals 12 seasons of dominance:

• The competition isn’t as one sided as many may think it is. Yes, Centrals have had a dominant era, and early on it looked like only the Eagles would be the only side that would consistently challenge for the title (a feat they would achieve twice – in 2006 and 2011), Centrals actually faced 6 of the other 8 SANFL sides in Grand Finals during their era (Port and South the only sides not to face Centrals during the run). Furthermore, there were times when Centrals faced some genuine challenges to claim the premiership. On four occasions (2000, 2006, 2008, 2009) they did not claim the minor premiership, and in 2009 had two heart-stopping lead-in finals where they came from behind late in the game to win.
• The SANFL is a great game to bring people to. The tribal nature of supporters at SANFL level (as opposed to the sterile, somewhat insular, nature of interstate AFL sides such as Adelaide and Port Adelaide) sees the atmosphere at many SANFL matches to be far superior than an AFL match at AAMI Stadium, despite the fact you only get a couple of thousand to an SANFL match and 20-40 000 to an AFL match at AAMI Stadium.
• There’s something special about SANFL night matches. Yes, the AFL has night matches every weekend and every side plays in several each season. In the SANFL though, while they are increasing, they’re still not as common as AFL matches, and certainly not every week (shudders at the thought of night matches at Noarlunga in the middle of June). What this means is that when you play a night match in the SANFL, it’s adds to the occasion. There’s that special feeling in you as you walk to any given suburban ground at night that’s unique to night matches.
• The SANFL is a good way to get around the suburbs in a year. From Elizabeth to Noarlunga, Norwood to Alberton, and everywhere in between, if you go to the majority of your team’s matches, you can also get around most of suburban Adelaide over the course of 23 weeks, and in some cases, the same place twice!
• Each SANFL ground has it’s own unique identity. Be it the cars around the ground at Noarlunga, the famous barbeque at Richmond, the infamous brick wall at Norwood, the playground at Unley, or the odd alignment of Prospect, each SANFL ground is quite distinct. Recently, Talking Footy SA did a survey of the SANFL grounds where many of these elements were discussed.
• The SANFL still commands a relatively strong presence and respect in South Australia. Compared to other states (in particular WA and Victoria), the SANFL competition still maintains a strong print, radio and TV coverage. There are still articles about the SANFL in The Advertiser and Sunday Mail, SANFL results are mentioned in news bulletins, and there is still television and radio coverage of the SANFL.
• The SANFL is a truly fantastic competition. When Centrals started slipping back off the premiership radar in the late 90’s, and with Adelaide’s two AFL Premierships, as an immature teenager, it was easy to underestimate the SANFL competition as second rate. Now, yes it is a second tier competition, but it is by no means a second rate competition.

can't argue with that, very well written Brucetiki

Great read, BT.

Even more things have happened since Westies won their last flag, so I hope I can write about just one Blood's premiership before too long.

You've captured what it is about the SANFL that we all love.

A great read BT, no other club has ever done what your club has done for so long, we are all so envious, or at least I am.
Nobody could have predicted the domination the CDFC has had in the last 12 years but I do think things are about to change, well written.

testy wrote:
A great read BT, no other club has ever done what your club has done for so long, we are all so envious, or at least I am.
Nobody could have predicted the domination the CDFC has had in the last 12 years but I do think things are about to change, well written.

Things have already changed, Testy, the Dogs haven't won a flag in 3 years now and didn't play in a GF for the first time in 12 seasons !!!

Well written Brucetiki...