SFNL Div 1 2025

[TooooVeeey]

Heard from a few supporters St Paul’s showing up with half a team this week for Cranbourne with a bunch of players going on holiday

 

[bedford]

Heard from a few supporters St Paul’s showing up with half a team this week for Cranbourne with a bunch of players going on holiday

Save on brown paper bags

 

[Blood Stained Angels]

I was at the Caulfield vs Hampton Park game last week, and there’s a fair bit of hype around Hampton Park as the best side likely to come up from Division 2. But after watching that, then seeing Beena take on the Doggies this week, the difference between Division 1 and Division 2 is light years apart.

The coaching at D2 level didn’t overly impress — the Hampton Park coach looked completely out of his depth, and Dunn just seemed to rant and rave without much clarity. Then you head to Doggies vs Beena, and I had the chance to listen to Scott and Kinsella at the breaks. They were clear, composed, and direct. And more importantly, you could actually see the team go out and execute exactly what they’d spoken about. The professionalism, speed, and structure were at a completely different level.

Honestly, whichever team goes down from D1 this year — whether it’s Port, Beena, NW, or Cranbourne — they wouldn’t lose a game in Division 2. And whichever team comes up from D2 this year won’t win one. It’s not exactly breaking news, but even last year, Beena and Doveton both looked stronger than Chelsea and Mordialloc, and probably as good as Bentleigh.

Now, with Bentleigh has improved massively, Doveton dropping off a cliff, All-Stars coming up with a solid team, NW and Cranbourne coming in strong and Beena on the rise, the gap between divisions has only widened. Maybe it’s time the Southern league rethinks how it handles promotion and relegation. They could look at lifting the Division 2 salary cap to be more in line with D1 — I believe it’s currently about half — or even consider keeping premiers in Division 2 for an extra year, like the Eastern league did a few years back with Mitcham.

Because at this point, unless something changes, we’re just going to see teams go up, get belted, and come straight back down — and that doesn’t help anyone.

Great summary, i'm happy for the cap to rise as long as clubs spend wisely. The going up and going straight back down has been happening in the VAFA for decades, and they change it by 4 ??? Mindboggling stuff !!!!

 

[2s Hack]

Heard from a few supporters St Paul’s showing up with half a team this week for Cranbourne with a bunch of players going on holiday

Who cares about finals anyway, finals are for losers
I'm only interested in the relegation battle, where teams guts it out to the end.

Here's a 15 minute useless ladder predictor exercise I did
EDIT: that's not cool by St Pauls since I've already given them the win below! Will heat things up though

Narre have the toughest run home playing all of the current top 5, but will hang on to 8th only to be leap frogged by Beena. Will beat Springy at home in R18 due to Springy resting players for finals like last season

Beena play 3 teams in the top 5 - plus 6th, 7th, 9th & 10th - will win all games at home

Colts play 4 out of the top 5 teams on the run home. Really need to beat Cranny in Round 15 but I've given them an L to make things more interesting

Cranny have it all before them & need to claim a scalp or 2 (like St Pauls this week) or its down to Div 2 in 2026 to obliterate that comp next season. Have a tough last 3 weeks & unfortunately have them getting relegated after their slow start to the year

So yeah, a pointless exercise

 

[Marousses]

Great win by Beena over St. Pauls /old ormond

To paper over the cracks here Bedford and the southern clubs murrumbeena and St.Pauls currently having a monopoly over your area at the minute , to ease congestion and to stop the fights over the old McKinnon kids, Ormond and Glen Eira should merge?

 

[bedford]

To paper over the cracks here Bedford and the southern clubs murrumbeena and St.Pauls currently having a monopoly over your area at the minute , to ease congestion and to stop the fights over the old McKinnon kids, Ormond and Glen Eira should merge?

Enlighten me on the monopoly please

 

[gelder01]

Who cares about finals anyway, finals are for losers
I'm only interested in the relegation battle, where teams guts it out to the end.

Here's a 15 minute useless ladder predictor exercise I did
EDIT: that's not cool by St Pauls since I've already given them the win below! Will heat things up though

Narre have the toughest run home playing all of the current top 5, but will hang on to 8th only to be leap frogged by Beena. Will beat Springy at home in R18 due to Springy resting players for finals like last season

Beena play 3 teams in the top 5 - plus 6th, 7th, 9th & 10th - will win all games at home

Colts play 4 out of the top 5 teams on the run home. Really need to beat Cranny in Round 15 but I've given them an L to make things more interesting

Cranny have it all before them & need to claim a scalp or 2 (like St Pauls this week) or its down to Div 2 in 2026 to obliterate that comp next season. Have a tough last 3 weeks & unfortunately have them getting relegated after their slow start to the year

So yeah, a pointless exercise

View attachment 2355830

Narre won’t beat Springy, but will beat Murrumbeena at home, doubtful against E.B., everything else is pretty much standard. Undoubtedly there will be a couple of upsets along the way.

 

[2s Hack]

To paper over the cracks here Bedford and the southern clubs murrumbeena and St.Pauls currently having a monopoly over your area at the minute , to ease congestion and to stop the fights over the old McKinnon kids, Ormond and Glen Eira should merge?

The tongue in cheek is not lost on me here but:

Murrumbeena will appoint Shane Joyce as coach next season is my tip, given that I read somewhere that Mick Kinsella is not coaching again next season? [citation required here]

Therefore Shane will then draw from St Peter JFC into U/19s as there is already a link with merged St Peters & Beena will older age groups.

FWIW St Pauls kids went to Hampton & Ormond already

 

[bedford]

The tongue in cheek is not lost on me here but:

Murrumbeena will appoint Shane Joyce as coach next season is my tip, given that I read somewhere that Mick Kinsella is not coaching again next season? [citation required here]

Therefore Shane will then draw from St Peter JFC into U/19s as there is already a link with merged St Peters & Beena will older age groups.

FWIW St Pauls kids went to Hampton & Ormond already

Shane will be coach

 

[Greg Tivendale]

Heard from a few supporters St Paul’s showing up with half a team this week for Cranbourne with a bunch of players going on holiday

I believe it's only 2 players

 

[bedford]

I believe it's only 2 players

You know how many

 

[Footyman765]

Officer and Pakenham to be playing metro footy in southern next year. Top up the fuel cards

 

[2s Hack]

Officer and Pakenham to be playing metro footy in southern next year. Top up the fuel cards

Juicy goss!

Let the "which division will they play in / how many teams will get relegated from each division" debate begin

 

[gummybear]

Officer and Pakenham to be playing metro footy in southern next year. Top up the fuel cards

4th Division surely?

 

[gelder01]

Both want to go to West Gippy. AFLVIC would need to step in to get them there! Are they better to go to Southern or stay an extra year i O.E.?

 

[bedford]

Both want to go to West Gippy. AFLVIC would need to step in to get them there! Are they better to go to Southern or stay an extra year i O.E.?

I played against Pakenham and they were in the WGFL , where have they been ? and surely it's taking the piss to think they could be in Southern

 

[Footyman765]

I played against Pakenham and they were in the WGFL , where have they been ? and surely it's taking the piss to think they could be in Southern

Have been in outer east. The road trips to yea and alexandra beginning to get too much

 

[MortlockWatcher]

Both want to go to West Gippy. AFLVIC would need to step in to get them there! Are they better to go to Southern or stay an extra year i O.E.?

Pakenham have longed for a berth in the WGFNC but the clubs there want no part of "an outer suburban club".
They will never get the votes to be admitted.

By association, Officer won't get in either as Pakenham will argue that they are actually closer to the West Gippy clubs than Officer are and that would open up Pandora's box for the likes of Beaconsfield, Berwick and Narre Warren to join as well down the track.

The SEFL/Casey Cardinia competition was the best option all along and still is.

 

[bedford]

Pakenham have longed for a berth in the WGFNC but the clubs there want no part of "an outer suburban club".
They will never get the votes to be admitted.

By association, Officer won't get in either as Pakenham will argue that they are actually closer to the West Gippy clubs than Officer are and that would open up Pandora's box for the likes of Beaconsfield, Berwick and Narre Warren to join as well down the track.

The SEFL/Casey Cardinia competition was the best option all along and still is.

They were in WG

 

[MortlockWatcher]

They left the WGFL for the MPNFL in 2002, which became Casey Cardinia and then the SEFL before lobbing in the Outer East where they are now about a decade ago.

Hindsight says they should have stayed in the WGFL all along.

 

[2s Hack]

I played against Pakenham and they were in the WGFL , where have they been ? and surely it's taking the piss to think they could be in Southern

The counter argument is Berwick Springs already in SFNL Div 3 is only 10 mins drive from Officer & 15 mins from Pakenham.

 

[bedford]

The counter argument is Berwick Springs already in SFNL Div 3 is only 10 mins drive from Officer & 15 mins from Pakenham.

These clubs don't need to be in SFL , getting like VAFA travel

 

[2s Hack]

These clubs don't need to be in SFL , getting like VAFA travel

I agree but country folk have been travelling some distance for decades which is also increasing with the amount of mergers & clubs folding. Metro footy also now not immune

Leagues like MPNFL being sticks in the mud & guarded of who they let in (or back in) not helping either.

 

[Marousses]

These clubs don't need to be in SFL , getting like VAFA travel

Not as bad as the VAFA Bedford. The VAFA below the top end of C grade (and I am being generous to those top end C grade clubs) is rubbish.

But it would complete the Cardinia migration to SFNL and I believe it is the only fit for these 2 clubs. Also opens the door for southern to maybe snap Berwick up into division 1 and slightly ajar for Noble Park down the track. Oakleigh Districts wasting their time in division 3 Eastern aswell.

If Ormond committee had half an idea , they would cut ties with the VAFA and come to southern aswell. Might help your top echelon players from being poached.

 

[2s Hack]

Not as bad as the VAFA Bedford. The VAFA below the top end of C grade (and I am being generous to those top end C grade clubs) is rubbish.

But it would complete the Cardinia migration to SFNL and I believe it is the only fit for these 2 clubs. Also opens the door for southern to maybe snap Berwick up into division 1 and slightly ajar for Noble Park down the track. Oakleigh Districts wasting their time in division 3 Eastern aswell.

If Ormond committee had half an idea , they would cut ties with the VAFA and come to southern aswell. Might help your top echelon players from being poached.

Hahaha remember them? lol

Actually its EFNL's Div 4. What a decision to leave & its probably signed their death warrant!
Should've stuck at it in SFNL will never get juniors up into senior footy