Australian Football

Glen Eira

Formed in 1999 as a result of a merger between Glenhuntly and St. Kilda South Caulfield, Glen Eira competed in C Section of the VAFA initially, but has since endured a topsy turvy existence. The senior side’s best season during its early years was 2001 when it reached the preliminary final in C Section. In 2008, in D2 Section, the Saints won 7 of their 18 matches to finish sixth (out of 10 teams). In 2011 the Saints reached the Division Two (as D2 section was now known) grand final but lost to St. John's Old Collegians by 28 points. This nevertheless still procured promotion to Division One, of course. The Saints were competitive in 2012, but the following year was a disaster as they lost every match and slumped to relegation. Worse was to follow, as in 2014 they dropped from Division Two to Division Three. After consolidating in 2015 the Saints marched on to premiership glory in 2016, losing only twice all season, and downing Hawthorn Amateurs by 47 points in the grand final. Division Two in 2017 was an extremely closely contested competition and despite managing seven wins from 18 matches Glen Eira still finished second from last to suffer relegation back to Division Three. Their stay in the lower tier proved to be brief, however, as in 2018 they swept all before them en route to another grand final triumph, this time achieved at the expense of Hawthorn with scores of 10.12 (72) to 8.9 (57). The 2019 season saw the Saints perform strongly to qualify for the Division Two finals and ultimately finish fourth.

Both Glenhuntly and St. Kilda South Caulfield were formed in 1991, the former as a consequence of a merger between Balaclava Amateur Football Club and Glenhuntly St. Anthony’s, and the latter via an amalgamation of St. Kilda Christian Brothers College Old Boys Amateur Football Club and Murrumbeena South Caulfield. Tracing the club’s roots back still further, we find that Balaclava had been formed in 1963 as AMP Society, under which name it had won VAFA E Section premierships in 1968 and 1979. After changing its name to Balaclava in 1982 it won another E Section flag two years later, followed by a fourth in 1986. Glenhuntly St. Anthony’s Football Club was established in 1957 and competed in the Eastern Suburban Churches Football Association (ESCFA), winning a D Grade flag in 1982.

St Kilda Christian Brothers College Old Boys was a VAFA stalwart between 1958 and 1990, winning a total of five senior premierships in various grades. Murrumbeena South Caulfield had its roots in the YCW Football League where it commenced in 1970 under the name of South Caulfield. It won C and B Grade premierships in that competition, and later added a B Grade flag in the ESCFA.

Further enriching Glen Eira’s heritage, during the 1990s St. Kilda South Caulfield contested two VAFA C Section grand finals, beating Melbourne High School Old Boys in 1994, and losing to St. Kevin’s Old Boys two years later. All told, therefore, the current Glen Eira Amateur Football Club can lay claim to a total of eleven senior premierships over the course of its immensely convoluted but noteworthy history. Moreover, belying its somewhat tortuous background, the club now appears to be on a solid footing, and with every prospect of adding still further to its record of success in the imminent future.