Australian Football

Maryborough Rovers

The Magpies commenced in the Maryborough District Football League during the early 1960s, initially competing in B Grade, where they achieved considerable success, winning half a dozen premierships in succession between 1962 and 1967. After the seniors commenced it took them the better part of a decade to establish themselves as a force. They contested their first grand final in 1975, but lost by 11 points to Chewton. Three years later they claimed their first flag thanks to a 19.21 (135) to 11.20 (86) grand final defeat of Carisbrook.

The 1980s produced just a solitary grand final appearance with the Magpies going down by 45 points to Chewton in 1986. The club enjoyed its greatest ever decade in the 1990s, contesting three senior grade grand finals, the first two of which, in 1990 against Talbot and 1991 against Royal Park, resulted in victories.

The Magpies’ most recent senior grade grand final appearance in 2005 was eminently forgettable as they totalled a meagre 4.6 (30) in losing by 64 points to Carisbrook. Their best season since came in 2010 when they reached the preliminary final only to lose by 60 points to eventual premier Maldon. By contrast the 2013 season was a nightmare producing just a solitary win and with it the wooden spoon. The next three seasons saw the Magpies performing creditably without quite managing to break into the top eight, a feat they finally accomplished in 2017 when they ended the home and away rounds in eighth place before losing their elimination final clash with Royal Park by 62 points. A year later they dropped down the fourteen ladder to eleventh.