Australian Football

Virginia

The original Virginia Football Club existed between 1908 and 1959, at which point it amalgamated with Two Wells. Over the course of those five decades it played in a total of twelve grand finals in various competitions, winning eight of them.

In 1975, Virginia and Two Wells split into two separate clubs once more. Virginia initially competed, without much success, in the Central Districts Football Association, before joining the Gawler and Districts Football Association in 1981. Three years later it won the GFA’s senior grade premiership after downing local rivals, and erstwhile partners, Two Wells 14.14 (98) to 11.15 (81). When, in 1987, the GDFA merged with the Barossa and Light Football Association to form the Barossa Light and Gawler Football Association the Rams were founder members of the new competition in which they continued to compete until transferring to the Adelaide Plains Football League eight years later.

To date, Virginia has reached the APFL’s senior grade grand final seven times for two premierships. The first of these was obtained in 1998 by means of a 13.21 (99) to 11.15 (81) grand final defeat of United. More recently the Rams also went top in 2015 after downing Mallala in the grand final by 19 points, 15.13 (103) to 12.12 (84).The club has also enjoyed success in its other grades, with the reserves winning premierships in 1996, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2012, 2015 and 2016, the senior colts in 1998 and 2000, and the junior colts in 1997 and 1998.

The Rams reached the grand final in 2016 but went down by 39 points to Mallala. In 2017 they finished fourth before dropping to sixth the following year.