Australian Football

AustralianFootball.com Celebrating the history of the great Australian game

 

KEY FACTS

Official name
Royal Park Football Netball Club

Known as
Royal Park

Formed
1934

Disbanded
2023; merged with Maryborough Rovers

Colours
Black and yellow

Emblem
Tigers

Associated clubs
Maryborough Rovers; Maryborough Giants

Affiliation (Current)
Maryborough Castlemaine District Football Netball League (MCDFNL) 1934–2023

Senior Premierships
Maryborough (Castlemaine) District Football League (M(C)DFL) - 1967-8, 1972-3-4, 1977, 1981-2 (8 total)

Royal Park

The Tigers’ record of having won eight senior grade Maryborough Castlemaine District Football League (and precursor) premierships places them fourth on the all time list. They reached their first grand final in 1951 but lost heavily to Primrose. They had to wait until 1967 before breaking through for a flag which they did by means of a 6.18 (54) to 6.7 (43) grand final defeat of their 1951 nemesis, Primrose. A second premiership followed twelve months later courtesy of a highly impressive 79 point grand final thrashing of Newstead.

The 1970s proved to be Royal Park’s halcyon decade, spawning grand final appearances in 1970, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1976 and 1977. Four of these grand finals resulted in victories, including a league record-equalling three in a row from 1972 to 1974.

The Tigers again played off for the premiership six times in the 1980s, but only against Primrose in 1981 and Maldon the following year did they achieve success. Royal Park’s last senior grade grand final appearance to date came in 1993 against Newstead. It was a distinctly unmemorable day for the Tigers who succumbed to defeat by 15 goals.

The 2016 season proved to be one of the Tigers' best of the current century. After topping the ladder ahead of the finals with a 15-1 record they made it as far as a preliminary final clash with eventual premiers Navarre before going down fighting by 52 points. A year later they again made the preliminary final only to lose on this occasion to eventual premiers Carisbrook following which they dropped to seventh place in 2018.

Source

John Devaney - Full Points Publications


 

Footnotes

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