Northern Areas
Northern zone, 1909 to today
Formation
Officially formed in 1909, the Northern Areas Football Association is one of the longest running country football associations in rural South Australia. The founding members were Jamestown, Crystal Brook, Gladstone, Georgetown and Laura. Officials elected for the 1909 season were, Patron – Mr C Goode, President – Mr T Builder, Secretary – Mr Mark Weston and Assistant Secretary – Mr Thos Cook.
Prior to the formation of the association, Jamestown, Crystal Brook, Gladstone, Georgetown and Laura often united under the Northern Areas banner. They had a win over the Port Pirie Junior association in 1907, which seems to be the first match they played as a combine. The five Northern Areas clubs also combined to play together in 1908 when they challenged the Wednesday association from Port Pirie and were successful by a solitary point. Later in the season they had an easy win over the Port Pirie association.
Controversy had reigned in 1908 when Jamestown in lieu of a victory over Petersburg declared that they were the undisputed champions of the North. Petersburg said they were not aware the match was a championship as the game was officiated by a Jamestown umpire on Jamestown’s home ground. Petersburg were struggling to get a team together and only agreed to play the game when they were told it was to raise funds for an injured Jamestown player. Petersburg maintained that with a neutral umpire on a neutral ground and with a full team to choose from they would be rightfully crowned ‘Champions of the North’. Laura had also laid claim to the title with a solid win over Crystal Brook although Crystal Brook countered that they only had 16 players.
Indeed there had been plenty of unofficial talks over forming a Northern association leading up to 1909. Teams such as Burra, Terowie, Petersburg, Jamestown, Pekina and Gladstone had been mentioned in dispatches as possible future Northern Areas association members.
Following the 1994 NAFA season the league delegates decided to expel the Warnertown team from the association due to several on field indiscretions. The fact they could not field the full quota of junior teams was a further reason which saw them removed from the association.
Club Timeline
Clubs (23)
- Booleroo Centre
- BMW Lions
- Broughton Mundoora
- Caltowie
- Crystal Brook
- Georgetown
- Georgetown Caltowie
- Gladstone
- Gladstone Combine
- Jamestown Appila
- Jamestown Peterborough
- Jamestown
- Laura Wirrabara
- Laura
- Orroroo
- Peterborough
- Port Broughton
- Rocky River
- Southern Flinders
- Warnertown
- Wilmington United
- Wilmington Melrose
- Wirrabara
Mileage
| Town A | Town B | Town C | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Town A | * | 25 | 40 |
| Town B | 25 | * | 18 |
| Town C | 40 | 18 | * |
Records
| Player | Club | Value | Year / Period |
|---|---|---|---|
| J. Smith | Example FC | 312 | 1985-2005 |
| R. Jones | Another FC | 298 | 1990-2010 |
Grand Finals
A Grade
AII Grade
| Year | Premier | Score | Runner-Up | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1947 | Jamestown B | 6-6 | Wirrabara B | 2-9 |
| 1948 | Georgetown B | 11-10 | Jamestown B | 10-8 |
| 1949 | Crystal Brook B | 5-11 | Georgetown B | 5-4 |
| 1950 | Crystal Brook B | 6-5 | Laura B | 4-14 |
| 1951 | Crystal Brook B | 8-11 | Caltowie | 8-9 |
| 1952 | Caltowie | 9-6 | Crystal Brook B | 8-10 |
| 1953 | Laura B | 9-10 | Caltowie | 2-6 |
| 1954 | Crystal Brook B | 10-13 | Laura B | 6-3 |
| 1955 | Crystal Brook B | 11-14 | Caltowie | 7-13 |
| 1956 | Crystal Brook B | 10-10 | Gladstone B | 3-7 |
| 1957 | Crystal Brook B | 10-9 | Gladstone B | 2-4 |
| 1958 | Jamestown B | 5-6 | Crystal Brook B | 2-9 |
| 1959 | Crystal Brook B | 7-7 | Jamestown B | 4-5 |
| 1960 | Caltowie | 8-10 | Jamestown B | 1-4 |
| 1961 | Jamestown B | 5-7 | Crystal Brook B | 4-8 |
| 1962 | Peterborough B | 10-12 | Terowie | 9-10 |
| 1963 | Warnertown | 9-7 | Peterborough B | 5-8 |
| 1964 | Wirrabara | 10-10 | Warnertown | 5-4 |
| 1965 | Warnertown | 11-5 | Peterborough B | 11-3 |
| 1966 | Gladstone | 12-5 | Peterborough B | 9-8 |
| 1967 | Peterborough B | 14-8 | Wirrabara | 6-5 |
| 1968 | Peterborough B | Crystal Brook B by 30 pts. | ||
| 1969 | Port Germein | 7-8 | Jamestown B | 6-8 |
| 1970 | Warnertown | Port Germein by 29 points | ||
| 1971 | Laura | 11-9 | Jamestown B | 9-7 |
Medallists
| Year | Player | Club |
|---|---|---|
| 1960 | B. Thompson | Example FC |
| 1961 | K. Williams | Another FC |
Leading Goalkickers
| Year | Player | Club | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | D. Hill | Example FC | 87 |
| 1991 | M. Johnson | Another FC | 72 |
Photos
