The Yeronga South Brisbane Football Club, often known simply as Yeronga and nicknamed the Devils, 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 ...

club that plays in Division 2 of the Queensland Football Association (QFA) men's leagues and in the

AFL Queensland Women's League There are five senior women's AFL leagues in Queensland governed by AFL Queensland. The Queensland Australian Football League Women's (QAFLW) is the highest league in the State and provides elite women footballers the opportunity to play ...

(QAFLW). The club has previously competed in the Queensland Australian National Football League (QANFL).

History

South Brisbane Football Club

An early mention of a club in formation known as the "South Brisbane Football Club" to play under Australian Rules appears in The Brisbane Courier on 25 September 1886. Colours and name were chosen and a foundation meeting took place at the Palace Hotel. Mr. L. H. Nathan occupied tho chair and John Hardgrave was president. The club trained at Musgrave Park in West End. The last mention of this club being active was in 1889, after which in 1894 rugby and soccers club were formed under the same name. Given the 20-year gap it is unlikely that there is continuity between this club and the current day club. There is mention of the Australian Rules club in retrospect in 1897 however. South_Brisbane_Australian_Football_Team_1914

South_Brisbane_Australian_Football_Team_1914

It is more likely that the

South Brisbane Football Club South Brisbane Football Club was an Australian rules club which competed in the Queensland Football League. They joined the league in 1910 and played in it until 1940 with the exception of the 1925 season which they sat out. Notable players inclu ...

that is part of today's Yeronga club has its origins in 1910. On 21 May 1910, there is a mention of the South Brisbane Football club from A. S. Gerrand club president and treasurer of the Queensland Football League calling for Victorian teams to stage an exhibition match ruing the lack of interest from Victoria in promoting the game where the clubs efforts to re-establish the code where three British football codes were now more popular. A photo of a 1910 South Brisbane premiership side wearing the colours of Essendon.

Yeronga Football Club

Yeronga Football Club was formed in 1928 and originally wore blue jumpers with a white vee. The club made two QANFL grand finals in the 1930s, losing to Windsor on both occasions.

Yeronga-South Brisbane Merger

A merger between the Yeronga and South Brisbane clubs appears to have taken place sometime after World War II. The new Yeronga South Brisbane club competed in various competitions, including the state league in 1945 and 1946, from 1949 to 1952, and in 1957 and 1960. The team wore jerseys from army disposals, playing in Footscray and Essendon colours at different times. There was an additional merger with Coorparoo Football Club for the 1953 and 1954 seasons with the team competing under the name Coorparoo-Yeronga before separating. The club was relegated from the QAFL's top division in 1960 and many senior players were lost to other clubs. The club fielded only junior teams for several years before returning to senior football in 1967. In 1972, Yeronga moved its headquarters to Leyshon Park. The foundations of the clubhouse had just been laid when they were washed away in the

1974 Brisbane flood In January 1974 a flood occurred in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia after three weeks of continual rain. The Brisbane River, which runs through the heart of the city, broke its banks and flooded the surrounding areas. The cyclone that produ ...

. Cansdale Street, which leads to the ground, was named to honour the family of John Cansdale, who played for Yeronga from 1945 to 1969. The club was unable to use Leyshon Park during its centenary in 2010 because the ground was being transformed into the new centre of excellence for AFL Queensland. Since the redevelopment, the ground has hosted many Grand Finals and matches involving the Brisbane Lions and

Gold Coast Suns The Gold Coast Suns is a professional Australian rules football club that competes in the Australian Football League (AFL). The club is based on Queensland's Gold Coast in the suburb of Carrara. The club has been playing in the AFL since th ...

Academy teams. Yeronga won its first senior flag in 2006 when coach Tom Corless led it to victory in the Division 1 Grand Final of the Queensland Football Association. The team successfully defended its premiership the following year defeating University of Queensland 11.11 (77) to 6.7 (43) in the Grand Final. Yeronga South Brisbane entered the

in 2011. The team was immediately successful and won premierships in its first two years. From the Preliminary Final in 2011 to the Second Semi Final in 2013, Yeronga won 27 matches in a row before losing the 2013 Grand Final to Coorparoo. In addition to winning two more grand finals, ten players (as of the

2020 AFL Women's draft The 2020 AFL Women's draft consists of the various periods when the 14 clubs in the AFL Women's competition can recruit players prior to the competition's 2021 season. Signing and trading period A significantly delayed trade period was anno ...

) have been drafted directly from Yeronga into the AFLW competition.

Auslan Team Song

On 9 August 2020, a video of the women's Development League team singing the club song while signing it in Auslan for the benefit of player Jamie Howell, who is deaf, was uploaded to Instagram. The video went viral and was shared on social media by celebrities including Adam Hills and Dylan Alcott. Journalist Peter FitzSimons, writing in the

Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper i ...

, stated that "sports stories don't get a whole lot better than this". In 2021, Howell was named as the AFLW Premiership Cup Ambassador.

Notable players

Men

Matt Eagles Matthew Eagles (born 9 February 1990) is a former professional Australian rules footballer who last played for the Brisbane Lions in the Australian Football League (AFL). Eagles is originally from South Australia and grew up supporting Port Ad ...

Harry Pegg Harry R. E. Pegg (19 March 1916 – 17 October 2010) was an Australian sportsman who represented Queensland in both Australian rules football and first-class cricket. An interstate football representative, Pegg was one of the leading play ...

*Al Sanders * Darryl Sanders *

Leyland Sanders Leyland Arthur "Ley" Sanders (17 October 1927 – 3 January 2005) was an Australian sportsman who represented Queensland in both Australian rules football and Sheffield Shield cricket. Sanders had a quick rise in Queensland football, becoming a ...

* Cyril Smith

Women

* Lauren Arnell *

Emily Bates Emily Bates (born 18 October 1995) is an Australian rules footballer with the Hawthorn Football Club in the AFL Women's (AFLW). She previously played for the Brisbane Lions from 2017 to season seven. Bates was selected by the in the inaugural ...

* Katie Brennan *

Sabrina Frederick Sabrina Frederick (formerly Frederick-Traub; born 23 November 1996) is an English-born Australian rules footballer who plays for the Collingwood Football Club in the AFL Women's competition. She was one of Brisbane's two marquee players for the ...

* Dee Heslop *

Jessy Keeffe Jessy Keeffe (born 17 July 1996) is a retired Australian rules footballer who played for Brisbane in the AFL Women's competition (AFLW). She was playing for Yeronga South Brisbane in the AFL Queensland Women's League (QWAFL) when she was draft ...

* Delissa Kimmince * Kate Lutkins * Kate McCarthy * Jade Pregelj *

Sam Virgo Samantha Virgo (born 20 February 1987) is a former Australian rules footballer playing for and co-captaining Gold Coast in the AFL Women's until 2021. She previously played 15 games over three seasons with Brisbane. Early life Virgo was born i ...

* Jacqui Yorston *

Jordan Zanchetta Jordan Zanchetta (born 18 March 1995) is an Australian rules footballer who played for the Brisbane Lions and Essendon in the AFL Women's. Junior football Zanchetta began playing junior football with the Jindalee Jaguars, winning the best a ...

Honours

Team

Men

QANFL The Queensland Australian Football League (QAFL) is an Australian rules football competition organised by the AFL Queensland, contested by clubs from South East Queensland. Previously known as the Queensland Football League (QFL), Queenslan ...

** ''Runners-up (2)'': 1932, 1937 * AFLQSA ** Division One (2): 2006, 2007 ** Division Five (1): 2018

Women

* QAFLW ** Winners (4): 2011, 2012, 2017, 2020 ** ''Runners-up (2)'': 2013, 2016 ;Notes

Individual

Men

Grogan Medalists (2) * Fred Willets (1947 - tied) * Bill Shorten (1951) Top Goalkicker (3) * Al Sanders (1948, 1949) * Darryl Sanders (1954) (for Coorparoo-Yeronga)

Women

QAFLW Best and Fairest (6) * Kate Lutkins (2013) *

(2015 - tied, 2020 - tied) *

(2016 - tied) * Kate McCarthy (2017) *

(2019) Leading Goalkicker (5) * Caitlin Collins (2012) * Hayley Newberry (2015) * Jade Ransfield (2016 - tied, 2017 - tied) * Lexi Edwards (2020 - tied) Grand Final Best on Ground (5) * Kate Lutkins (2011) *

(2012, 2017) *

(2013, 2020)

References

External links

Official site
{{AFL Queensland State League Clubs Queensland State Football League clubs Australian rules football clubs in Brisbane 1928 establishments in Australia Australian rules football clubs established in 1928