The Deloraine Football Association was an Australian rules football competition based in the Meander Valley region of Tasmania, featuring clubs from small communities around the town of Deloraine.
History The competition began as the Chudleigh Football Association in 1926, with Caveside, Chudleigh and Mole Creek competing in the initial season. The early seasons of the competition featured a rotating cast of clubs, with Meander joining in 1927, Caveside folding during that season, and Red Hills, Dairy Plains and Weegena also having stints in the league. The CFA appears not to have run during the 1933 season, but it returned the following year. Kimberley joined in 1938 and won two premierships in its first two seasons in the CFA. The CFA entered recess following the 1939 season as WWII enlistments prevented clubs from being able to field a team.
The Chudleigh FA was revived in the form of the Central Junior Football Association in 1946. While this was initially the junior grade competition of the Central FA, the disbandment of that league following the 1945 season saw the junior competition continue with a mixture of junior sides and senior clubs. 8 teams competed in 1946, however Hagley and Westbury Juniors both left the league a year later which cut the number of clubs to 6. Kimberley folded after the 1949 season and were replaced by a re-formed Red Hills in 1950. This year also saw the competition adopt the Deloraine Football Association name for the first time.
Following the departure of Deloraine Juniors for the NTDFL in 1954, the competition remained stable with 5 clubs for the next 2 decades. Hagley, which had played in the Esk Football Association until entering recess in 1966, re-formed and joined the DFA in 1970. Meander briefly played in the Esk FA during the 1970s, but returned to the DFA in 1976. Despite winning back-to-back premierships in 1978 and 1979 the club would find itself with a lack of players prior to the 1982 season, forcing it to fold. Other DFA clubs were also experiencing player shortages, which prompted both it and the Esk FA to bring about a merger of the two competitions. The resulting Esk-Deloraine FA began competition in 1984.
Clubs
Final ClubColoursNicknameHome GroundFormer LeagueEst.Years in DFADFA Senior PremiershipsFateTotalYearsChudleigh(1935)(1939) (1950s) (1960s) (1970s–83)RedlegsChudleigh Showgrounds, ChudleighETFA19191926–1935, 1939, 1946–19836 1926, 1927, 1959, 1962, 1964, 1973Absorbed by Mole Creek after 1983 seasonElizabeth TownEaglesRailton Recreation Reserve, RailtonCFA19251946–198341952, 1961, 1976, 1983Formed Esk-Deloraine FA in 1983HagleyMagpiesHagley Recreation Ground, HagleyEFA19011970–198331972, 1974, 1975Formed Esk-Deloraine FA in 1983Mole CreekBulldogsMole Creek Recreation Ground, Mole Creek–19201926–1932, 1934–1939, 1946–198314 1934, 1949, 1950, 1951, 1955, 1958, 1960, 1963, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1977, 1980Formed Esk-Deloraine FA in 1983Red HillsWrens, Blues, HillsRed Hills Recreation Ground, Red HillsMFA19071928–1929, 1950–198381954, 1956, 1957, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1981, 1982Recess between 1930 and 1949. Formed Esk-Deloraine FA in 1983
Former ClubColoursNicknameHome GroundFormer LeagueEst.Years in DFADFA Senior PremiershipsFateTotalYearsCaveside–19261926–19270 -Folded during 1927 seasonDairy PlainsCFA19311931–1932, 1934–19392 1935, 1936Played in Central FA in 1933. Did not re-form after WWIIDeloraine JuniorsMagpiesDeloraine Recreation Ground, Deloraine–18941946–19530 -Joined seniors in Northern Tasmania District FL in 1954Hagley JuniorsRobinsHagley Recreation Ground, Hagley–190119460 -Departed after 1946 seasonKimberleyRobinsKimberley Recreation Ground, KimberleyCFA19021938–1939, 1946–19492 1938, 1939Folded after 1949 seasonMeanderRobinsMeander Recreation Ground, MeanderEFA19241927–1932, 1934–1939, 1946–?, 1976–198181932, 1946, 1947, 1948, 1953, 1954, 1978, 1979Played in Esk FA between unknown date and 1975. Folded after 1981 season.SunnysideCFA190519390 -Moved to Wilmot FA in 1940WeegenaWeegena Recreation Ground, WeegenaCFA19021930–19310 -Returned to Central FA in 1932.Westbury JuniorsTigersWestbury Recreation Ground, Westbury–190219460 -Departed after 1946 season
Premierships YearPremiersScoreRunners-upNotes19261927Chudleigh1928Meander1929193019311932Meander6.14 (50) - 5.10 (40)Mole Creek1933In recess1934Mole Creek7.6 (48) - 5.5 (35)Dairy Plains1935Dairy Plains1936Dairy Plains7.10 (52) - 6.11 (47)Meander19371938Kimberley1939Kimberley9.15 (69) - 8.7 (55)Chudleigh1940–1945 Competition in recess due to WWII1946Meander7.15 (57) - 7.12 (54)Mole Creek1947Meander1948Meander1949Mole Creek1950Mole Creek11.2 (68) - 5.7 (37)Chudleigh1951Mole Creek10.12 (72) - 3.13 (31)Meander1952Elizabeth Town5.8 (38) - 7.13 (55)MeanderElizabeth Town awarded premiership after Meander played an unregistered player1953Meander4.5 (29) - 3.7 (25)Elizabeth Town1954Red Hills9.14 (68) - 9.13 (67)Mole Creek1955Mole Creek11.9 (75) - 10.12 (72)Red Hills1956Red Hills5.10 (40) - 3.6 (24)Meander1957Red Hills11.11 (77) - 9.8 (62)Mole Creek1958Mole Creek7.7 (49) - 6.12 (48)Meander1959Chudleigh9.15 (69) - 7.5 (47)Mole Creek1960Mole Creek15.12 (102) - 14.9 (93)Chudleigh1961Elizabeth Town11.5 (72) - 7.7 (49)Meander1962Chudleigh15.13 (103) - 9.13 (67)Elizabeth Town1963Mole Creek10.14 (74) - 10.11 (71)Chudleigh1964Chudleigh7.13 (55) - 6.6 (42)Red Hills1965Red Hills10.15 (65) - 10.9 (69)Meander1966Red Hills10.14 (74) - 9.11 (65)Chudleigh1967Red Hills11.7 (73) - 3.11 (29)Mole Creek1968Mole Creek13.14 (92) – 9.13 (67)Red Hills1969Mole Creek17.12 (114) - 17.5 (107)Chudleigh1970Mole Creek13.16 (94) - 7.8 (50)Red Hills1971Mole Creek15.9 (99) - 7.9 (51)Hagley1972Hagley14.8 (92) - 10.9 (69)Mole Creek1973Chudleigh12.15 (87) - 8.15 (63)Mole Creek1974Hagley17.6 (108) - 11.14 (80)Elizabeth Town1975Hagley8.9 (57) - 8.8 (56)Chudleigh1976Elizabeth Town7.12 (54) - 6.10 (46)Meander1977Mole Creek13.16 (94) - 8.7 (55)Meander1978Meander18.20 (128) - 12.8 (80)Chudleigh1979Meander6.16 (52) - 7.8 (50)Chudleigh1980Mole CreekScore unknownRed HillsDrawn Grand FinalMole Creek9.8 (62) - 3.13 (31)Red HillsReplay1981Red Hills23.18 (156) - 6.11 (47)Chudleigh1982Red Hills16.17 (113) - 7.11 (53)Chudleigh1983Elizabeth Town13.20 (98) - 10.13 (73)Red Hills
References