Scotch College

Developing together as ONE CLUB

With a committed, developing, home-grown playing list, the Old Scotch Football Club looks to the future with confidence

Words: Mr Nich Hildebrandt ('04) - Old Scotch Football Club Senior Player

The Old Scotch Football Club 1st XVIII. Inset: Club President James Macmillan (‘81)

The second half of season 2011 did not unfold as expected for the Old Scotch Football Club. Having secured four and a half wins in the first nine games of the season, and coming off a courageous come from behind win against eventual minor premier St Bede’s/Mentone, the club sat only one game out of finals contention.

At the time, a string of games against lower ranked opposition should have seen the team manage a couple of wins and stay in the finals race.

As it unfolded, OSFC lost seven consecutive games to sit only two points out of relegation territory. To ensure a berth in the Victorian Amateur Football Association’s Premier A section next year, the club knew it had to rally and unite to guarantee victories in the final rounds. A stirring two-point victory (after being five goals down at half-time) against finals bound University Blues in Round 17 and then a dynamic win in the last round against finals aspirants De La Salle ensured our place in the top tier for 2012.

The Seniors have been served strongly all year by the resolute defence of Sam Thompson (’98), Scott Sherwen (’06) and Captain Richard Eva (’04), while James Bowden (’07) has evolved into a dashing midfielder who worries opposition coaches. Young stars Tom McKinley (’09), Max van den Broek (’09), James Long (’08) and Nick Jamieson (’10) have shown signs that they will feature as the nucleus of future OSFC teams.

The team remained competitive in most matches, but fluctuations of intensity and concentration cost us important games. Senior coach Peter Banfield has decided not to reapply next season, his departure handled with grace and good blood despite the testing season.

The Reserves have had a mixed year under Tim Shearer. They finished in seventh position, also fielding a young side, but ultimately struggled to find consistency under constantly changing line-ups. The Thirds under new coach Hamish Taylor (’04) also finished mid-table, enduring a cavalcade of byes and teams forfeiting against them in the second half of the season.

The Under 19s’ finals hopes were extinguished with two rounds remaining, but coach Matt Parisi (’04) maintained the vibrancy among the group, and they continued to fight despite being undermanned through injury as the season wore on. The shining light has been the Superules side, which qualified for finals after several lean seasons but were trumped by Werribee in the first semi-final.

Off field, the annual Dinner Dance Auction Night at Leonda was a triumphant social and financial success, and the That’s Good For Footy panel show at K2 Stadium (Camberwell Sportsground) earlier in the season provided plenty of laughs from Doug Hawkins, Tony Shaw, Dale ‘Flea’ Weightman and comedian Andrew Startin.

Despite the middling ladder position, vast improvements were made to our playing stocks this season, and we are fortunate to have a committed, developing, home-grown playing list. A focus on current player retention and list-specific recruitment will be continued into the future. We remain committed to our vision of a united ONE CLUB philosophy, and look forward to the group flourishing as it develops over the next few seasons. GS