Old Adelaide Football Club

Old Adelaide
Names
Full nameOld Adelaide Football Club
Club details
Founded26 April 1860
Dissolved9 March 1894; 130 years ago (9 March 1894)
Colours  black,   red
1875 Blue
CompetitionInterclub competition 1872, 1875-1876
SAFA 1877-1881, 1885-1893
PremiershipsInterclub competition (2): 1871-1872
SAFA (1): 1886
Ground(s)North Park Lands (1860-1881)
(now University Oval, Adelaide)
Uniforms
Home

The Adelaide Football Club, often referred to as the Old Adelaide Football Club, was an Australian rules football club based in Adelaide. Founded on 26 April 1860, it was the first football club formed in South Australia.

The club played interclub football in South Australia until 1872, when it had disputes with Kensington and Port Adelaide over the rules, but club resumed interclub matches in 1875 under its former rules. The club was the premier team in interclub competition in 1871–72.

In 1876, the Adelaide Club rules were adopted by all the South Australian clubs at a meeting organised by Charles Kingston from the South Adelaide Football Club, and in 1877, the Adelaide club captain Richard Twopeny called an initial meeting which led to the formation of the South Australian Football Association (SAFA)[1] and participated in the competition from 1877 to 1881. The Club merged with Kensington for the 1881 season but withdrew after only 4 games and disbanded.

In 1884, the North Adelaide Junior Club from the Adelaide and Suburban Association renamed themselves Adelaide. They were runner up in the competition and at the end of the season and proposed a merger with the premiers North Parks. The two clubs agreed on a merger and submitted an application for a senior side to the join the SAFA as Adelaide and to wear the old Adelaide colours of Black and Red. The merged club was proudly formed from South Australian born players. They retained a junior team called North Park in the Adelaide and Suburban Association. The following year this team would be renamed Adelaide Juniors. In their first year in the SAFA they would collect the wooden spoon but the following year won the 1886 SAFA premiership. Following a lost of key players after their initial success they collected the wooden spoon in 1891, 1892 and 1893 winning just one game in the 3 seasons. The club withdrew in writing from the SAFA in March 1894 before the commencement of the season and disbanded permanently.

The Old Adelaide Football Club and Adelaide Football Club (SAFA) has no relation to the current Adelaide Football Club currently playing in the Australian Football League (AFL) and the Adelaide Reserves in the South Australian National Football League (SANFL).

  1. ^ "Football". South Australian Register. May 1877.