AFL Darling Downs is an

Australian rules football Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an oval field, often a modified cricket ground. Points are scored by k ...

competition based in the

Darling Downs The Darling Downs is a farming region on the western slopes of the Great Dividing Range in southern Queensland, Australia. The Downs are to the west of South East Queensland and are one of the major regions of Queensland. The name was generall ...

region of

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

including its major city of

Toowoomba Toowoomba ( , nicknamed 'The Garden City' and 'T-Bar') is a city in the Toowoomba Region of the Darling Downs, Queensland, Australia. It is west of Queensland's capital city Brisbane by road. The urban population of Toowoomba as of the 2021 C ...

. The competition was formed as the Darling Downs Australian Football League in 1971. The senior representative team is known as the Demons and wear guernseys modelled on the Melbourne Demons guernseys.

History of Australian Football in the Darling Downs, Queensland

The Warwick Football Club was formed in 1873 in

Warwick Warwick ( ) is a market town, civil parish and the county town of Warwickshire in the Warwick District in England, adjacent to the River Avon. It is south of Coventry, and south-east of Birmingham. It is adjoined with Leamington Spa and Whi ...

to play under Australian rules, however lacking any nearby competitors for 3 years it played mostly intra-club scratch matches until Brisbane club Civil Service travelled to

to play against a newly formed Toowoomba Football Club in 1876. AFL Queensland cites the Toowoomba Football Club as forming in 1873, however few sources back this up. As the game spread further west of the Great DivideFOOTBALL MATCH AT WARWICK Warwick Examiner and Times 5 Aug 1876 Page 2 clubs were split on whether to adopt rugby or Australian rules. Nevertheless, it is noted that clubs from the region in this era were able to hold their own against those from Brisbane. A Toowoomba Football Association formed in 1876 teams were 16-a-side however the rules used were not fully documented and some suggest it could have been an early rugby association which would be contemporary with the code being introduced to Brisbane. The Light Infantry Corps formed to play against the Light Infantry Football Club. The Association disappeared a couple of years later. As Downs clubs lacked nearby opponents rugby was more suited to facilitating matches against New South Wales clubs, as a result local competition went into recess. An exception was an 1878 match between Old-Victorians and All Comers played in front of a large crowd. The

Queensland Football Association The Queensland Football Association (QFA) was the first governing body for football in the Colony of Queensland founded on 30 April 1880. Its role was primarily to facilitate club and representative matches primarily in Australian rules football ...

formed in 1880 and affiliated with the

Victorian Football Association The Victorian Football League (VFL) is an Australian rules football league in Australia serving as one of the second-tier regional semi-professional competitions which sit underneath the fully professional Australian Football League (AFL). It ...

, however clubs outside of Brisbane were becoming increasingly frustrated by the lack of representation for the whole colony. In 1881 matches were once again played in Toowoomba when the Toowoomba Grammar took up the sport. By 1882, a Toowoomba Association (affiliated with the QFA) had re-formed including both clubs and schools in the region. In 1883, a team of 12 travelled from Excelsior FC (Brisbane), noting a revival of the code in the region. The inclusion of the Allora Football Club at

Allora Allora is a rural town and locality in the Southern Downs Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Allora had a population of 1,223 people. Geography Allora is on the Darling Downs in south-eastern Queensland, Australia, by ro ...

in 1883 provided more regular interaction between the clubs. However the code suffered a major blow when, after the Brisbane private school association in 1887 voted to switch to rugby including Toowoomba Grammar. A senior Toowoomba Rugby Football Club formed in 1887and this was the last mention of the Toowoomba Football Club or any other Downs clubs playing Australian rules. After the collapse of the QFA in 1890 the Toowoomba Rugby Association and Toowoomba British Football Association were able to grow unopposed.

Modern Competition

The Darling Downs Australian Football League was first played as an official organised competition in 1971. Signals, Coolaroo and Aviation were the three foundation clubs and were joined by a fourth club, South Toowoomba in 1972. The League has had many changes to the number of clubs participating since then, with ten A Grade Senior Clubs currently competing, and now known as AFL Darling Downs. It is the largest regional League in Queensland. There are four Senior clubs based in

, and the other senior clubs come from Dalby,

Goondiwindi Goondiwindi () is a rural town and locality in the Goondiwindi Region, Queensland, Australia. It is on the border of Queensland and New South Wales. In the , Goondiwindi had a population of 6,355 people. Geography Goondiwindi is on the MacInt ...

, Highfields, and Warwick. New teams from

Kingaroy Kingaroy is a rural town and locality in the South Burnett Region, Queensland, Australia. The town is situated on the junction of the D'Aguilar and the Bunya Highways, north-west of the state capital Brisbane and south west of Gympie. As a ...

, and

Chinchilla Chinchillas are either of two species (''Chinchilla chinchilla'' and ''Chinchilla lanigera'') of crepuscular rodents of the parvorder Caviomorpha. They are slightly larger and more robust than ground squirrels, and are native to the Andes mount ...

are participating in the 2013 revamped competition. University Cougars AFC is the most successful club with 13 premierships, 4 under the banner of "Institute Eagles" and 5 under the moniker of "University Eagles". Coolaroo Roos has 9 premierships and Goondiwindi Hawks has 8. South Toowoomba Bombers (formerly Longhorns) and Toowoomba Tigers (formerly Pinkies) have 6 premiership flags each.

AFL Darling Downs Senior Clubs

There have been many different towns in the Darling Downs of Queensland fielding Australian Rules Football teams over the forty plus years of Senior Competition. Coolaroo Roos have played every season from the inaugural year, and Toowoomba Tigers have played the second most seasons. Below is a full list of Current and Former Clubs in the region.

Current Senior Clubs

;Notes

Former Senior Clubs

NOTE: Some clubs listed above played in Reserve Grade (Division 2) only for many seasons, but were not part of the A Grade competition and those years are not included in the above table.

AFL Darling Downs A Grade Premiers List

* 1971 Signals * 1972 South Toowoomba Longhorns * 1973 Aviation * 1974 Aviation * 1975 Coolaroo Roos * 1976 South Toowoomba Longhorns * 1977 Toowoomba Pinkies * 1978 Institute Eagles * 1979 Toowoomba Pinkies * 1980 Goondiwindi Hawks * 1981 South Toowoomba Longhorns * 1982 South Toowoomba Longhorns * 1983 Goondiwindi Hawks * 1984 South Toowoomba Longhorns * 1985 Lockyer Valley Magpies * 1986 Institute Eagles * 1987 Institute Eagles * 1988 Toowoomba Tigers * 1989 Institute Eagles * 1990 University Eagles * 1991 Goondiwindi Hawks * 1992 University Eagles * 1993 Lockyer Valley Magpies * 1994 University Eagles * 1995 Goondiwindi Hawks * 1996 Goondiwindi Hawks * 1997 University Eagles * 1998 University Eagles * 1999 Goondiwindi Hawks * 2000 Goondiwindi Hawks * 2001 Coolaroo Roos * 2002 Coolaroo Roos * 2003 Coolaroo Roos * 2004 Coolaroo Roos * 2005 Coolaroo Roos * 2006 University Cougars * 2007 University Cougars * 2008 South Toowoomba Bombers * 2009 Coolaroo Roos * 2010 Toowoomba Tigers * 2011 Toowoomba Tigers * 2012 Toowoomba Tigers * 2013 Coolaroo Roos * 2014 Warwick Redbacks * 2015 Coolaroo Roos * 2016 University Cougars * 2017 University Cougars * 2018 University Cougars * 2019 Goondiwindi Hawks * 2020 South Toowoomba Bombers * 2021 South Toowoomba Bombers

AFL Darling Downs A Grade Grand Final Results

Inaugural Darling Downs AFL Grand Final Results

GOALS:
Signals - B.Fletcher 2, W. Sampson, T. Osborne, M. Darby.
Coolaroo Roos - A. Jericho 2, I. Shaw, J. Oska.
BEST:
Signals - T. Osborne, D. Akesson, J. Davis, J. Walsh, K. Zeller.
Coolaroo Roos - R. Smith, J. Hagerstrom, J. Smith, A. Jericho, C. Wells.

AFL Darling Downs Premiership Tables and Finals Results

Below is a summary of AFL Darling Downs A Grade Ladders at the end of the home and away fixtures, and the Finals Results for the major rounds:

2006 Ladder

2007 Ladder

2008 Ladder

2009 Ladder

2010 Ladder

2011 Ladder

2012 Ladder

2013 Ladder

AFL Darling Downs Best and Fairest Award (Holman Medalist)

Reserve Grade

The Reserve Grade competition ran from 1975 to 1999, and 2001, before player numbers for some clubs became a problem and therefore the "Adrian Jericho Trophy" had not been contested for a full decade. In 2012, the Reserves competition returned with a three team competition involving University, Coolaroo, and Souths. It was the first time the competition has been staged since Kingaroy defeated Coolaroo in the 2001 Grand Final. South Toowoomba Longhorns are the most successful team in Reserve Grade with 10 Premierships from 14 Grand Finals. University (Institute) are the next best with 8 flags from 11 Grand Finals.

Reserve Grade (Division 2) Grand Final Results

Future of AFL Darling Downs

The Reserve Grade or a Division 2 Competition will resume as soon as the competition can gain enough interest once again. The League has the potential to expand to 12 Senior Clubs if these areas can field enough players, and with Junior competitions also expanding. In recent seasons, the League has fielded up to 11 sides in Division One already.

Divisional Football

League president Andrew Foley said splitting the 11-team competition into two divisions for 2014, including the three current reserve grade sides, would help the newer clubs to be more competitive. The senior competition grew last season with the formation of Chinchilla and South Burnett but those clubs struggled on-field . First division has Coolaroo, Goondiwidi, Highfields, Lockyer Valley, South Toowoomba, Toowoomba, University and Warwick. Second division has Chinchilla, Dalby, South Burnett as well as clubs seconds from Coolaroo, Highfields, South Toowoomba, University and Warwick.

2014 Ladder

References

External links

{{Aussie Rules in Queensland Australian rules football competitions in Queensland Darling Downs