The Western Border Football League 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 Lower South East region of

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

, and south-western border region of

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

. It is an affiliated member of the

South Australian National Football League The South Australian National Football League, or SANFL ( or ''S-A-N-F-L''), is an Australian rules football league based in the Australian state of South Australia. It is also the state's governing body for the sport. Originally formed as t ...

. The league used to be regarded as the premier country football league in South Australia, and a leading country Victorian league, however the number of clubs and standard has declined in recent years.

Brief history

In 1964, after almost a decade of discussions, the Western District Football League in Victoria and the South-East & Border Football League in South Australia merged to form the Western Border Football League. The founding 12 clubs were Casterton, Coleraine, East Gambier, Hamilton, Hamilton Imperials, Heywood, Millicent, North Gambier, Penola, Portland, South Gambier and West Gambier.Western Border FL at the Footypedia
/ref> Hamilton and Millicent both had jumpers similar to 's, so an agreement was made that the team that finished lower on the ladder for 1964 had to change jumpers. Hamilton finished ninth, while Millicent finished 11th of 12, so Millicent was forced to change to the strip. Penola left and joined the Kowree-Naracoorte Football League in 1988; Coleraine left and joined the

South West District Football League The South West District Football League is an Australian rules football league based in South-western Victoria, with clubs located in the vicinity of Hamilton, Heywood and Portland. The league is a minor country league, with teams drawn from sma ...

in 1995. In 2011, the Heywood Football Club left the Western Border Football League due to the club struggling to compete with the larger town clubs in the league. Their first application to leave was rejected, so they were forced to go to higher levels at the VCFL to resolve issues between the League and the Heywood Football Netball Club. In 2012, the Hamilton and Hamilton Imperials club merged upon recommendation from the VCFL and competed in the

Hampden Football Netball League The Hampden Football Netball League is an Australian rules football and netball league based in South-Western Victoria, with clubs located in towns along or near the Princes Highway from Camperdown to Portland. The league is a major countr ...

from 2013. Portland also transferred to the

for 2013, leaving just 6 teams in the competition today. Casterton merged with neighbouring club Sandford (from the

) in 2014. When the VFL had zoning from 1968 to 1986 the league was allocated to . Some famous players that have played in the Western Border Football League have been

Billy Picken William Robert Picken (7 June 1956 – 23 July 2022) was an Australian rules footballer who played for the Collingwood Football Club and the Sydney Swans in the Australian Football League, Victorian Football League (VFL). Picken was still at s ...

, Matthew Clarke,

Nick Daffy Nick Daffy (born 11 May 1973) is a former Australian rules football player who played in the AFL between 1992 and 2001 for the Richmond Football Club and then played one game in 2002 for the Sydney Swans Football Club. Early life Daffy grew ...

Nathan Lovett-Murray Nathan Lovett-Murray (born 18 November 1982) is a former Australian rules footballer with the Essendon Football Club. Early life Lovett-Murray has Indigenous Australian heritage and his tribal ancestry can be traced to the Wamba-Wamba and G ...

, Mal Michael, John Mossop,

Wally Lovett Wally Lovett (born 15 December 1961) is an indigenous Australian, indigenous former Australian rules football player who played in the Australian Football League, Victorian Football League (VFL) in 1982 VFL season, 1982 for Collingwood Footbal ...

Clubs

Current

; Notes :

Former

Timeline

ImageSize = width:800 height:370 PlotArea = width:600 height:250 left:100 bottom:50 AlignBars = late BarData= bar:WG text: West Gambier bar:SG text:South Gambier bar:Po text:Portland bar:Pe text:Penola bar:NG text:North Gambier bar:M text:Millicent bar:HI text:Hamilton Imperials bar:He text:Heywood bar:H text:Hamilton bar:EG text:East Gambier bar:Co text:Coleraine bar:Cs text:Casterton-Sandford bar:Ca text:Casterton Colors = id:grey value:gray(0.4) id:lgrey value:gray(0.8) id:vlgrey value:gray(0.95) id:premier value:brightblue legend: Premiers id:name value:black DateFormat = yyyy Period = from:1963 till:2023 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal ScaleMajor = unit:year increment:4 start:1964 gridcolor:lgrey ScaleMinor = unit:year increment:1 start:1964 gridcolor:vlgrey PlotData= color:lgrey width:12 bar:Ca from:1964 till:2013 at:1969 mark:(line,premier) at:1990 mark:(line,premier) bar:Cs from:2013 till:end bar:Co from:1964 till:1994 at:1967 mark:(line,premier) bar:EG from:1964 till:end at:1965 mark:(line,premier) at:1972 mark:(line,premier) at:1973 mark:(line,premier) at:1972 mark:(line,premier) at:1975 mark:(line,premier) at:1976 mark:(line,premier) at:1982 mark:(line,premier) at:1983 mark:(line,premier) at:1988 mark:(line,premier) at:2017 mark:(line,premier) bar:H from:1964 till:2012 at:1968 mark:(line,premier) at:1970 mark:(line,premier) at:1981 mark:(line,premier) at:2004 mark:(line,premier) bar:HI from:1964 till:2012 at:1993 mark:(line,premier) at:1977 mark:(line,premier) at:1978 mark:(line,premier) at:1980 mark:(line,premier) at:1993 mark:(line,premier) at:1995 mark:(line,premier) at:2001 mark:(line,premier) bar:He from:1964 till:2011 bar:M from:1964 till:end at:1984 mark:(line,premier) at:2018 mark:(line,premier) at:2021 mark:(line,premier) at:2022 mark:(line,premier) bar:NG from:1964 till:end at:1964 mark:(line,premier) at:1979 mark:(line,premier) at:1987 mark:(line,premier) at:1989 mark:(line,premier) at:2012 mark:(line,premier) at:2013 mark:(line,premier) at:2014 mark:(line,premier) at:2016 mark:(line,premier) at:2019 mark:(line,premier) bar:Pe from:1964 till:1987 bar:Po from:1964 till:2012 at:1966 mark:(line,premier) at:1985 mark:(line,premier) at:1986 mark:(line,premier) at:1991 mark:(line,premier) at:2003 mark:(line,premier) at:2006 mark:(line,premier) at:2007 mark:(line,premier) at:2008 mark:(line,premier) bar:SG from:1964 till:end at:1974 mark:(line,premier) at:1992 mark:(line,premier) at:1994 mark:(line,premier) at:1996 mark:(line,premier) at:1997 mark:(line,premier) at:1998 mark:(line,premier) at:1999 mark:(line,premier) at:2000 mark:(line,premier) at:2002 mark:(line,premier) at:2005 mark:(line,premier) at:2009 mark:(line,premier) at:2015 mark:(line,premier) bar:WG from:1964 till:end at:1971 mark:(line,premier) at:2010 mark:(line,premier) at:2011 mark:(line,premier) Legend = left:50 top:20 columnwidth:90 TextData= pos:(300,350) fontsize:L text:Western Border Football League

Notable WBFL Players

John Gill John Gill may refer to: Sports *John Gill (cricketer) (1854–1888), New Zealand cricketer *John Gill (coach) (1898–1997), American football coach *John Gill (footballer, born 1903), English professional footballer *John Gill (American football) ...

Barry Gill Barry Gill (born 21 January 1945) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the Carlton Football Club in the Victorian Football League (VFL). A member of one of Carlton's famous footballing families, Gill was regarded as a dependa ...

Max Rooke Max Rooke (born Jarad Maxwell Rooke on 19 December 1981) is a former Australian rules footballer, who played for the Geelong Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). A utility player, tall and weighing , Rooke's versatility al ...

, Alan Richardson,

Russell Johnston David Russell Russell-Johnston, Baron Russell-Johnston (born David Russell Johnston; 28 July 1932 – 27 July 2008), usually known as Russell Johnston, was a leading Scottish Liberal Democrat politician and was the Leader of the Scottish Libera ...

, Don Whitten,

Laurie Nash Laurence John Nash (2 May 1910 – 24 July 1986) was a Test cricketer and Australian rules footballer. An inductee into the Australian Football Hall of Fame, Nash was a member of South Melbourne's 1933 premiership team, captained South Melbo ...

, Reg Burgess, David Robbie Casterton - Sandford * Brian Gray, Les Kaine, John Vickery, Eric Moore, Barry McKenzie, Michael Horsburgh Coleraine * Gary Lazarus,

Simon Feast Simon Feast (born 1 December 1974) is a former Australian rules footballer who played with the Sydney Swans in the Australian Football League (AFL) and for much longer with Sturt in the South Australian National Football League. Early lif ...

, Stephen Jankowicz East Gambier * Phil Walsh,

Alan Atkinson Alan Atkinson (born 20 October 1951) is a former Australian rules footballer who played in the Victorian Football League (VFL). Atkinson was recruited by Collingwood from Hamilton, and made his debut in 1970. Despite playing 134 games for t ...

, Paul Cranage,

Tony Russell Anthony "Tony" Russell (born 13 January 1961) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for Collingwood Football Club, Collingwood in the Victorian Football League (1897–1989), Victorian Football League (VFL). He is also the most pro ...

, Shannon Watt, Adam Campbell,

Marcus Picken Marcus Picken (born 9 October 1979) is a former Australian rules footballer who played with the Brisbane Lions in the Australian Football League (AFL). Picken is the son of former Collingwood star Billy Picken, older brother of former West ...

Liam Picken Liam Picken (born 1 August 1986) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for the Western Bulldogs in the Australian Football League (AFL) from 2009 to 2017. In 2016 he played in the Bulldogs' premiership team (the club's first since ...

Hamilton *

Ian Ridley Ian Jeffrey Ridley (15 February 1934 – 13 November 2008) was an Australian rules footballer who played for Melbourne in the VFL. Playing career Ridley was a rover who was handy around goals and a 5-time premiership player with Melbourne. He ...

, John McMillan, Mark Orval,

Josh Thurgood Josh Thurgood (born 5 June 1985) is a former Australian rules footballer in the Australian Football League. Drafted onto the Hawthorn Football Club's Rookie List for the 2004 season, Thurgood suffered a serious knee injury in Round 2 of the ...

, Hamilton Imperials * Denis Zeunert,

Justin Perkins Justin Perkins (March 5, 1805 – December 31, 1869) was an American Presbyterian missionary and linguist. He was the first citizen of the United States to reside in Iran (formally Qajar Iran). He became known for his work among the people there ...

, Mal Michael, Courtney Johns,

Heywood *

Bob Clifford Robert "Bob" Frederick Clifford AO, (born in Tasmania, Australia), and now living in Surrey, England, is an Australian shipbuilder, entrepreneur, and businessman, best known for his success in building his Incat catamaran building company into ...

, Brian Roberts, Neil Sutherland,

Mason Redman Mason Redman (born 26 August 1997) is a professional Australian rules footballer playing for the Essendon Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). He is also known by many nicknames; such as red dog and horse. Redman grew up in ...

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...

Andrew Nitschke, Triple League medalist — Millicent *

, Dwaine Kretschmer, Glen Keast, Lucas Herbert North Gambier * John Mossop, Michael Graham,

Colin Graham Colin Graham OBE (22 September 1931 in Hove, England – 6 April 2007 in St. Louis, Missouri) was a stage director of opera, theatre, and television. Graham was educated at Northaw School (Hertfordshire), Stowe School and RADA. Early in his ...

, Penola * Stuart Spencer,

Clyde Laidlaw Clyde Robert Laidlaw (born 27 November 1933) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for Melbourne in the Victorian Football League (VFL). Football Clyde Laidlaw was a midfielder in his four winning Grand Finals Primarily in ...

Peter Hogan Peter Hogan is an English writer and comics writer, best known for ''Resident Alien'', which he co-created with artist Steve Parkhouse. Hogan began his comics career as editor of cult British comic ''Revolver'' in 1990–1991, before workin ...

, Leo King,

Wayne Blackwell Wayne Anthony Blackwell (born 30 August 1960) is a former Australian rules footballer who played for Claremont in the Western Australian National Football League (WANFL) and Carlton in the Victorian Football League (VFL) from 1978 to 1990. ...

Ian Hampshire Ian James "Bluey" Hampshire (9 May 1948 – 2 September 2018) was an Australian rules footballer who played for Geelong and Footscray. He played as a ruckman. Recruited from Portland to Geelong, Hampshire made his VFL debut in 1968 and p ...

, Winis Imbi,

Brodie Atkinson Brodie Atkinson (born 31 July 1972) is a former Australian rules footballer who played in the Australian Football League (AFL) and the South Australian National Football League (SANFL). Atkinson joined the North Adelaide Football Club in 1990 ...

, Portland * Max James, Doug Long, Robin McKinnon,

Nathan Stark This is a list of Character (arts), characters from the Syfy original series ''Eureka (American TV series), Eureka''. Overview Main characters Supporting characters Guest stars * Ming-Na Wen as U.S. Senator Michaela Wen (7 episodes, 2011-2 ...

- South Gambier *

John Yeates John Yeates (born 30 August 1938) is a former Australian rules footballer who played with Geelong in the Victorian Football League (VFL). Family His son Mark played at Geelong in the 1980s and became famous for his part in the 1989 VFL Grand ...

Mark Yeates Mark Stephen Anthony Yeates (born 11 January 1985) is an Irish professional footballer who plays as a winger for Bamber Bridge. Yeates began his career with Tottenham Hotspur but failed to make the transition to the first team, spending time ...

, Jason Walscgott, Tim O'Brien, Matthew Clarke, Robin White West Gambier

Bibliography

* ''Encyclopedia of South Australian country football clubs'' compiled by Peter Lines. * ''South Australian country football digest'' by Peter Lines

References

External links

*
Fixtures and results
on PlayHQ {{Aussie Rules in Victoria Australian rules football competitions in South Australia Australian rules football competitions in Victoria (Australia)