| Sandringham Football Club | ||
|---|---|---|
 | ||
| Names | ||
| Full name | Sandringham Football Club | |
| Nickname(s) | Zebras,Zebs,Sandy | |
| 2024 season | ||
| Home-and-away season | 12th | |
| Leading goalkicker | Matthew Allison | |
| Best and fairest | Tom Campbell | |
| Club details | ||
| Founded | 1929; 96 years ago (1929)[1][2][3] | |
| Colours | Black Gold Blue | |
| Competition | VFL: Senior men's VFLW: Senior women's | |
| President | Nick Johnstone | |
| Coach | VFL:Daniel Ward[4] | |
| Captain | VFL: Anthony Seaton[5] | |
| Premierships | VFA/VFL (10) | |
| Ground | Trevor Barker Beach Oval (capacity: 10,000) | |
| Uniforms | ||
| ||
| Other information | ||
| Official website | sandringhamfc.com.au | |
TheSandringham Football Club, nicknamed theZebras, is anAustralian rules football club based in theMelbourne suburb ofSandringham. It currently competes in theVictorian Football League (VFL) and theVFL Women's (VFLW).
Sandringham has competed in the VFL – originally known as theVictorian Football Association (VFA) – since1929, and was one of only two clubs to not berelegated to Division 2 when the VFA was split into two divisions.[6]
Sandringham men's side is a standalone outfit and is not affiliated with any other club. Between 2009 and 2025, the club had areserves affiliation withAustralian Football League (AFL) clubSt Kilda, and prior to that were affiliated withMelbourne. The club's women's side, which competes in the VFLW, retains an affiliation with St Kilda.[7][8]
The first steps towards establishing a semi-professional football team from theSandringham area were made in 1927, with theBlack Rock Football Club (Black Rock Amateurs), theHampton Football Club, theSandringham Amateur Football Club and theSandringham District Football Club discussing the viability of amalgamating to form a team in the VFA.[9] The proposal failed after a meeting of club representatives on 17 February 1927 despite Sandringham Amateurs "unreservedly" favouring the concept, as Black Rock was unable to field a team, Hampton opposed the merger on the grounds of losing local identity, and Sandringham District wanted at least three clubs involved.[10] All four clubs competed in theMetropolitan Amateur Football Association (MAFA) for the1927 season.[11] On 15 August 1927, four other clubs merged to form theSandringham Football Club.[12]
On 17 February 1928, Sandringham, Sandringham District and theSandringham United Football Club amalgamated to form a newSandringham Football Club.[13][14] This was, however, effectively a continuation of the Sandringham Amateurs.[15][16] The club entered two teams in theMAFA and one team in theFederal Football Association (FFA) junior competition for the 1928 season.[17][18] The second Sandringham team in the MAFA (known asSandringham B) withdrew fromC Section in August 1928 after having a record score kicked against them.[19][20]
Sandringham was told by the VFA in November 1928 that it would be admitted into the competition if it obtained permission to build a fence aroundBeach Road Oval; the lack of a fence had prevented the club from entering for the1928 VFA season.[21][22] In January 1929, theSandringham Council supported a bid from an (apparently new) senior Sandringham Football Club to enter the VFA.[23][24][25] The bid was successful, and Sandringham was accepted into the Association on 4 February 1929.[26][27][28]
Despite the admission, the club still faced a challenge prior to its first game.[29] Sandringham applied for the use of Beach Road Oval for itsreserves team (Second Eighteen) on Saturdays, but Sandringham Amateurs − returning to the MAFA for the1929 season − also applied for its use, having played at the ground for 20 years.[30][31] Sandringham Amateurs requested for use on alternate Saturdays and during the week for training purposes, while Sandringham said its VFA bid would have to be abandoned if it did not have access to the ground.[32][33] Ultimately, Sandringham Council choose to allow the Amateurs to continue using the ground.[34][35] Sandringham'sVFA reserves team instead played its home games at Tulip Street Reserve.[36][37] The club wore the colours of gold, black and blue, taken from Sandringham Amateurs, Black Rock and Hampton.[38]
In the club's first 10 years of existence, they achieved a season finish of no better than 5th place, which came in the1933 season.[38]
Sandringham recorded its inaugural premiership in the1946 season, coming from behind late in the final quarter to record a 7-point win overCamberwell in front of 30,000 spectators.[39] Though the club struggled throughout the 1950s, it has since gone on to record 10 premierships in total, being one of the most consistent teams in the VFL, their most successful period coming in the 2000s, with 4 premierships in 10 years cementing the club as one of the premier teams in the league.[40]
The Zebras' home ground is and almost always has been theBeach Oval, which was renamed theTrevor Barker Beach Oval in the 1990s after the death ofTrevor Barker, who had coached Sandringham to the 1992 and 1994 premierships. Only in 1966 did the club change home grounds, spending a year at theJunction Oval inSt Kilda before moving back to Beach Oval ahead of the 1967 season.[41] From the 2018 season, the club will play three of its home games each year atMoorabbin Oval, and will wear St Kilda's black, red and white guernsey in these games.[42]
The oval has a singlegrandstand (theNeil Bencraft Grandstand), a south end named afterNick Sautner (the Sautner Goal), and an administration centre (the John Mennie Administration Centre)[43] – asocial club and a capacity of 10,000. A record crowd of 18,000 attended the venue's first Sunday VFA premiership game, held between Sandringham andPort Melbourne Football Club in April 1964.[44] ARec Footy competition is also played at the ground.
For many years the Zebras had an alignment agreement withAustralian Football League (AFL) clubSt Kilda, an arrangement which was in effect from 2009 to 2025. Previously, Sandringham had an alignment withMelbourne.[46] Sandringham and Melbourne were the first two clubs to form an alignment. This Melbourne affiliation began in the 2000 season and produced fruitful outcomes for the club, with Sandringham winning the premiership in 2000, and a further three premierships in 2004, 2005 and 2006.[47]
The St Kilda affiliation was extended in 2013 to the conclusion of the2015 season, with a plan for both clubs would go their separate ways the following year.[48][49] This led to Sandringham establishing a partnership withVictorian Amateur Football Association (VAFA) clubHampton Rovers.[50] The affiliation was temporarily extended for the2016 VFL season,[51][52] before a new rolling affiliation deal with no fixed term was signed, to begin in2017.[42] The new deal changed the nature of the affiliation, expanding St Kilda's involvement in Sandringham's operation − including removing a stipulation from the previous agreement that no more than 14 St Kilda-listed players could play in Sandringham's senior team in any given match and Sandringham playing three games per year in St Kilda colours (beginning in2019) atMoorabbin Oval, St Kilda's former home ground.[53][54]
In October 2023, St Kilda announced that, beginning at the2025 AFL rookie draft, it would use one of itsrookie list places to draft a Sandringham player.[55] However, at the 2025 rookie draft, which was held in November 2024, this did not occur.[56]
The affiliation agreement ended following the2025 VFL season.[57] In 2026, Sandringham will field a standalone team in the VFL, but the affiliation will remain in place in the VFLW.[58]
Sandringham's affiliation with St Kilda extended to theVFL Women's (VFLW), when the club began co-managing a women's side in the competition with St Kilda in 2019. The team was called theSouthern Saints and finished in 8th position in its first season. In 2020 St Kilda transferred the license ownership of the team to Sandringham, who assumed commercial and operational management of the team.[59][60] In 2024 the club announced the Southern Saints brand would be discontinued and the team would be renamed Sandringham, aligning it with the men's side.[61] Despite the St Kilda-Sandringham affiliation ending in the VFL in 2025, the alignment between the two clubs in the VFLW remains in place.
| Premierships | |||
| Competition | Level | Wins | Years won |
|---|---|---|---|
| Victorian Football League | Seniors | 10 | 1946,1962,1985,1992,1994,1997,2000,2004,2005,2006 |
| VFA/VFL Reserves | Division 1 | 9 | 1960, 1961, 1969, 1977, 1979, 1982, 1993, 1994, 2000 |
| VFA/VFL Thirds | Division 1 | 10 | 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1973, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1994 |
| Other titles and honours | |||
| Lightning Premiership | Seniors | 1 | 1979 |
| Finishing positions | |||
| Victorian Football League | Minor premiership | 6 | 1960, 1985, 1992, 1994, 2000, 2007 |
| Grand Finalists | 5 | 1947, 1960, 1963, 1977, 1995 | |
| Wooden spoons | 5 | 1929, 1930, 1940, 1941, 1954 | |
JJ Liston Trophy Winners (8)
1929 – Edward Bourke
1947 – Stan Tomlins
1962 – Keith Burns
1985 – Neil McLeod
1992 – Joe Rugolo
1997 – Justin Crough
2003 – David Robbins
2005 – Paul Johnson
| Season | Win–loss | Finishing position | Finals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 7-11 | 10th | DNQ |
| 2010 | 7-11 | 9th | DNQ |
| 2011 | 6-12 | 10th | DNQ |
| 2012 | 10-8 | 6th | Elimination Final |
| 2013 | 6-11-1 | 11th | DNQ |
| 2014 | 9-8-1 | 8th | Semi Final |
| 2015 | 14-4 | 2nd | Preliminary Final |
| 2016 | 10-8 | 7th | Semi Final |
| 2017 | 8-10 | 11th | DNQ |
| 2018 | 5-12-1 | 13th | DNQ |
| 2019 | 6-12 | 12th | DNQ |
| 2022 | 8-9-1 | 12th | DNQ |
| 2023 | 5-12-1 | 16th | DNQ |
| 2024 | 8-9-1 | 12th | DNQ |
| Year | Opponent | Score | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1946 | Camberwell | 14.15 (99) - 13.14 (92) | Junction Oval |
| 1947 | Port Melbourne | 11.8 (74) - 15.13 (103) | Junction Oval |
| 1960 | Oakleigh | 8.14 (62) - 18.14 (122) | Junction Oval |
| 1962 | Moorabbin | 14.10 (94) - 13.15 (93) | Junction Oval |
| 1963 | Moorabbin | 9.12 (66) - 19.16 (130) | North Port Oval |
| 1977 | Port Melbourne | 7.15 (57) - 23.19 (157) | Junction Oval |
| 1985 | Williamstown | 14.16 (100) - 13.16 (94) | Junction Oval |
| 1992 | Williamstown | 19.16 (130) - 13.8 (86) | Princes Park |
| 1994 | Box Hill | 11.12 (78) - 10.9 (69) | Victoria Park |
| 1995 | Springvale | 6.15 (51) - 14.10 (94) | Victoria Park |
| 1997 | Frankston | 10.13 (73) - 5.14 (44) | North Port Oval |
| 2000 | North Ballarat | 15.18 (108) - 11.11 (77) | Waverley Park |
| 2004 | Port Melbourne | 9.13 (67) - 9.9 (63) | Princes Park |
| 2005 | Werribee | 11.17 (83) - 11.8 (74) | Princes Park |
| 2006 | Geelong | 13.13 (91) - 11.7 (73) | Princes Park |
| Highest Score | 44.20 (284) v Dandenong, Round 5, 1984, Beach Road Oval |
| Lowest Score | 0.9 (9) v Williamstown, Round 11, 2018, Williamstown Cricket Ground |
| Greatest Winning Margin | 206 points v Camberwell, Round 18, 1990, Beach Road Oval |
| Greatest Losing Margin | 236 points v Port Melbourne, Round 19, 1941, North Port Oval |
| Lowest Winning Score | 5.9 (39) v Frankston 5.8 (38), Round 20, 2003, Frankston Park |
| Highest Losing Score | 26.12 (168) v Preston 28.7 (175), Preliminary Final, 1981, Junction Oval |
