The State of Origin for Bushfire Relief Match was a one-off all-star game between two representative sides organised by the Australian Football League (AFL) to raise funds for recovery efforts following the 2019–20 Australian bushfire season.
The match was played on 28 February 2020 at Marvel Stadium in Melbourne, Australia, between Victoria (the "Big V") and the "All-Stars", with a crowd of 51,052 in attendance. Victoria won the match by 46 points.
History
On 9 January, the AFL announced a one-off benefit match would be played on 28 February 2020, as a fundraiser for the relief effort for the 2019–20 Australian bushfire season. The league donated $2.5 million to disaster relief funds in association with the match. Selection for the two teams was under state of origin rules – with players of Victorian origin eligible for Victoria, and all other players eligible for the All-Stars – and it was the first interstate representative match featuring AFL-listed players since the AFL Hall of Fame Tribute Match held in 2008.
Teams On 18 February the AFL announced 27-player teams for each of the Victoria and All-Stars side. All AFL teams had at least one player selected in one of the sides. The match was played with an extended interchange bench of nine players instead of four.
Three late changes were made to the side due to injuries between the initial team announcement and the game itself, with Eddie Betts replacing Dayne Zorko in the All-Stars side and Travis Boak and Andrew Gaff replacing Robbie Gray and Ben Cunnington for Victoria.
Damien Hardwick and John Longmire were the coaches of Victoria and the All-Stars, respectively, and were also primarily responsible for selecting players for their sides.
Richmond captain Trent Cotchin and Fremantle captain Nat Fyfe were named to captain Victoria and the All-Stars, respectively.
Victoria
No. Player's Name AFL club State/Territory Nation 1 Victoria Australia 2 Victoria Australia 3 Victoria Australia 4 Victoria Australia 5 Victoria Australia 6 Victoria Australia 7 Victoria Australia 8 Victoria Australia 9 (c) Victoria Australia 10 Victoria Australia 11 Victoria Australia 12 Victoria Australia 13 Victoria Australia 14 Victoria Australia 18 Victoria Australia 19 Victoria Australia 20 Victoria Australia 21 Victoria Australia 22 Victoria Australia 23 Victoria Australia 24 Victoria Australia 30 Victoria Australia 31 Victoria Australia 35 Victoria Australia 42 Victoria Australia 44 Victoria Australia 46 Victoria Australia Source: Fox Sports
All-Stars
No. Player's Name AFL club State/Territory Nation 1 Western Australia Australia 2 Laois Ireland 3 Western Australia Australia 4 South Australia Australia 5 Western Australia Australia 6 Western Australia Australia 7 (c) Western Australia Australia 8 Tasmania Australia 9 Western Australia Australia 10 South Australia Australia 12 New South Wales Australia 13 New South Wales Australia 14 Tasmania Australia 16 New South Wales Australia 17 South Australia Australia 18 South Australia Australia 19 South Australia Australia 22 New South Wales Australia 23 Queensland Australia 26 New South Wales Australia 29 South Australia Australia 31 Queensland Australia 32 Western Australia Australia 33 South Australia Australia 38 Tasmania Australia 39 Western Australia Australia 40 Gauteng South Africa Source: Fox Sports
Best-on-ground award The best-on-ground medal was awarded to Dustin Martin, who kicked two goals and had 23 disposals for Victoria.
Scorecard
See also
2020 AFL season AFL Hall of Fame Tribute Match
References