Australian Football

Sacred Heart OC

Sacred Heart High School was established in 1897 and changed its name to Sacred Heart College when it relocated from Port Adelaide to Semaphore in 1902. It later relocated twice more, initially to Largs Bay, and finally to Brighton Road in 1914.

The Sacred Heart Old Scholars Football club was formed in 1968 and immediately affiliated with the SAAFL. Progress through the ranks was gradual but steady, and in 1984 the Hearts earned promotion to A1 Grade. They went on to enjoy a memorable first season at the elite level, getting as far as the preliminary final. Had they managed to qualify for the grand final they would have become only the third old scholars team to do so, after St. Peter's Old Collegians and Prince Alfred Old Collegians. 

The club retained its place in the SAAFL's highest tier until 1989. In 1993 they won their first senior grade flag, in A2 Grade, thereby returning to the top section. Most of the Hearts' time over the past couple of decades has been spent in A2 Grade or Division Two as it is nowadays known. However, they have also enjoyed brief sojourns in Division One and in 2010 got as far as the Division One grand final, which was lost to Henley by 25 points. The 2011 season brought a second straight grand final appearance but Gaza edged home by 4 points. A year later the Hearts suffered a dispiriting slump in form and fortunes as they dropped to last place after managing just a solitary win for the year. 

After a mediocre 2013 season Sacred Heart qualified for the following year's Division Two finals in fifth place and went on to battle their way through to a grand final encounter with Payneham NU which was narrowly lost. Promotion to Division One therefore ensued but the Hearts' stay was fleeting as they succumbed to relegation in 2015 after winning just 3 games for the year. The 2016 season saw the side producing some good football to qualify for the Division Two finals and they eventually finished third. A year later they again made for the finals but could not get past PHOS Camden in the first semi final and so ended up in fourth place. The 2018 season brought a slight slump in fortune as the Hearts finished one place adrift of finals qualification.