Australian Football

St. Kevin's

St. Kevin’s Old Boys Football Club was admitted to the Victorian Amateur Football Association in 1947 when its senior grade team was placed in the third of the competition’s four tiers, C Section. It did not remain long at that level, however, for after enduring a miserable debut season it was relegated to D Section, where it spent the next five years. 

The 1952 season brought a kind of ‘coming of age’ for St. Kevin’s as, captain-coached by Dick O’Neil, the senior grade side procured its first premiership, thanks to a 10 point grand final win over Caulfield Grammarians, and with it promotion back to C Section. After showing initial promise by reaching the first semi final in 1954, however, the side struggled, and narrowly escaped relegation the following year before succumbing to it in 1956. Apart from the single season excursions to B Section in 1962 and E Section in 1976 St. Kevin’s spent the ensuing forty years alternating between what were by this time the VAFA’s two intermediate grades, C and D. 

With Jack Douglas, the man who in 1970 would become the club’s first life member, as captain-coach, the side brought a sequence of undistinguished years to an emphatic end in 1960 by boarding an express train to B Section, albeit by the somewhat disappointing route of consecutive grand final losses to St. Kilda CBOC and State Savings Bank. As intimated above, however, this initial stay in B Section was only fleeting. 

Achieving promotion by means of reaching a grand final, only to lose, brings a tainted pleasure, but it is one to which St. Kevin’s supporters of long standing have grown accustomed. On no fewer than half a dozen occasions between the club’s first senior grade flag in 1952, and its second in 1996, promotion was attained in this manner. 

The 1996 season, however, finally yielded that long overdue second flag, thanks to a 12.15 (87) to 9.6 (60) C Section grand final defeat of St. Kilda South Caulfield. As often seems to happen, the club derived momentum from this achievement, and the following year saw it procure a place in A Section for the first ever time via the by now wholly familiar route of a losing grand final, this time against Old Brighton Grammarians. The Brighton boys may have had greater cause than St. Kevin’s to celebrate in 1996, but before long they were back in B Section, while their vanquished grand final opponents enjoyed a prolonged sojourn among the VAFA’s elite company, capped by a grand final encounter with Marcellin Old Collegians in 2001. Sadly for St. Kevin’s, this proved to be one of those games were virtually nothing went right, and a final score of 9.19 (73) to Marcellin’s 16.7 (103) tells its own tale. Nevertheless, second position in A Section was a thoroughly commendable achievement, and until 2017 remained the club’s highest placed finish. 

Since 2001 St Kevin’s has won its third senior grade flag, in B Section in 2004, following its relegation the previous year. This was thanks to a 16.8 (104) to 12.7 (79) grand final victory over Collegians. Unfortunately, however, on this occasion the club’s players and supporters were only granted the briefest of whiffs of the heady atmosphere of A Section, as relegation back to B Grade followed immediately. Things might indeed have been even worse, for it took a last round win over Mazenod in 2006 to secure the side’s B Section status for another year. Departing coach Dave Murray, who had endured something of an emotional roller-coaster ride during his three seasons in charge, had nevertheless, by common consent, been heavily instrumental in helping bring about much needed changes to the club’s culture. His successor as coach, Mick Duggan, was able to capitalise on this to some extent in 2007 by steering his charges to a commendable fourth place on the B Premier ladder, and this was followed by two further seasons of consolidation including a highly laudable third place finish in 2009.

In 2011 and 2012 St Kevin's again finished third in Premier B and this was followed by further finals appearances in 2013 (fourth) and 2014 (third). In 2015 the Skobs' ten season stint in Premier B came to an end in the best possible way as they earned promotion not only as premiers, but as champions to boot, after they won all 20 matches contested. Grand final opponents Old Melbournians did not give up without a fight, however. At half time they had eked out a 35 point lead, and they were still in front, albeit by just 5 points, at the final change. In the last quarter, however, St Kevin's struck a rich vein of form, adding 3.6 to 1.2 to snatch victory by 11 points, 13.18 (96) to 13.7 (85).

In 2016 the Skobs found the going in Premier section a little tougher but they still managed 8 wins to finish eighth, 3 wins clear of the relegation places. Few people could therefore have expected what transpired next for in 2017 St. Kevin's sustained only 2 losses all year and rounded things off with a 10.10 (70) to 9.13 (67) grand final defeat of Collegians giving them their first ever top tier premiership precisely seventy years since their formation. A year later the same two teams contested the Premier section grand final and a similarly tight tussle ensued with the Skobs again prevailing, this time by a margin of 5 points after leading 11.11 (77) to 6.10 (46) at the last change.