Australian Football

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KEY FACTS

Official name
Portland Football Club

Known as
Portland

Formed
1876

Colours
Black and yellow

Emblem
Tigers

Affiliation (Current)
Hampden Football Netball League (HFL) 2013–2024

Affiliations (Historical)
South-West District Football Assocation (SWDFA) 1909–1924; Glenelg Football Association (GFA) 1925–1929; Western District Football League (WDFL) 1930–1963; Western Border Football League (WBFL) 1964–2012

Senior Premierships
Pill Trophy (PT) - 1906-7 (2 total); South Western District Football League (SWDFL) - 1909 (1 total); Portland Football Association (PFA) - 1912 (1 total); South West District Football Association (SWDFA) - 1914, 1922, 1924 (3 total); Glenelg Football Association (GFA) - 1929 (1 total); Western District Football League (WDFL) - 1952, 1956 (2 total); WBFL - 1966, 1985-6, 1991, 2003, 2006-7-8 (8 total)

Postal Address
P.O. Box 42, Portland, Victoria 3305

Portland

Football was played on the North Cliff cricket ground in Portland as early as 1866, with today’s Portland Football Club able to trace its origins to a meeting at Mac’s Hotel in the town on 6th June 1876. F.L.Gill is recorded as having been the club’s first ever secretary, with J.L.Archer assuming the role of inaugural president the following year.

During the twentieth century Portland competed in a number of different leagues and associations, almost invariably with at least some success. The club was particularly strong during the 1920s, winning a total of three senior grade premierships, and finishing as runner-up twice.

Arguably the greatest player produced by Portland was Stuart Spencer, who won the WDFL’s best and fairest award in 1949 before embarking on a noteworthy career with Melbourne (VFL) and Clarence (TANFL).

In 1964, the competition to which Portland was affiliated, the Western District Football League, amalgamated with South Australia’s South East and Border Football League to form the Western Border Football League. Portland was one of twelve foundation members of the new competition, and very quickly made its mark by winning a premiership in only its third season. Successive losing grand finals followed in 1967-8, but the club’s fortunes then underwent a decline, and it was not until the mid-1980s that the Tigers again emerged as a force. Opposed by East Gambier in the 1985 grand final, Portland won emphatically, 19.13 (127) to 12.17 (89), and followed this up with a similarly comfortable win against the same opponent in 1986. Three years later, the Tigers once again contested the grand final, but went down in a thriller to North Gambier by 7 points.

The 1991 grand final was an all-Victorian affair as Portland was opposed by Casterton. It proved to be a day of celebration for the men in black and yellow as they won convincingly, 10.18 (78) to 7.10 (52). The remainder of the decade proved largely disappointing, however, although premierships to the reserves (1999) and thirds (1991 and 1995) at least did something to maintain the club’s honour.

During the first decade of the twenty-first century Portland enjoyed probably the most sustained period of success in its history, with four flags from five grand final appearances. All four flags were won impressively, by 19 points against South Gambier in 2003, by 35 points over East Gambier in 2006 (the perfect way to celebrate the club’s 130th anniversary), by a massive 115 point margin over North Gambier in 2007, and by 21 points against Imperials in 2008.

The 2013 season saw the Tigers transferring to the Hampden Football League in which they began quite promisingly before suffering a disappointing slump to last place in 2015. The 2016 season brought a measure of improvement with a 7-11 record proving good enough for seventh place on the ten team premiership ladder. In 2017, however, there was a slump in fortune as the Tigers only managed 4 wins to plummet to second from last place, a result that was repeated a year later, albeit with 2 more wins.

Source

John Devaney - Full Points Publications


 

Footnotes

* Behinds calculated from the 1965 season on.
+ Score at the end of extra time.