Football

The fact that 17 out of the 22 in this team are OWs is terrific and 15 of the 22 are aged 24 or under, which bodes well for the future. We are hoping for a sustained period of very strong competition, continuing to challenge for premierships in the years to come.

Our Under 19s team made the preliminary final and both our women’s teams played in finals, so the club is in a very good place going forward. Our women were promoted to the Premier Section this year and to make finals in our first year with both Reserves and Seniors was a fantastic achievement. We were only one of two teams to have both Seniors and Reserves in the finals in the Premier Section.

I implore all Wesley footballers, male and female, to come and be part of Collegians Football Club, as it is a terrific place to play very good football and a very social place to enjoy competitive sport while having a great time both on field and off field.

Our senior men have only lost five of their last 30 games, finishing the home and away season two games clear on top of the ladder with a percentage of over 180%. This means they are ruthless and had some very big winning margins during the year; the Grand Final was no exception. Once we got on top, the boys just kept playing ‘their way’ and the scoring shots told the story: 35 to 15. The 85-point margin was the second biggest in Premier Section history and the largest since the 1930s. This competition has traditionally been very hard fought and has produced a lot of close games; to be by far the best side of the year was very pleasing for all at the Club.

Jared Rivers has resigned as senior coach due to family reasons and we have been extremely lucky to be able to appoint one of our senior assistants, Jordie McKenzie, in his place. Jordie came to us with Jared three years ago and is very passionate and excited about taking over as coach. All other coaches at the club will be reappointed for season 2024. It is great for our players to have this level of continuity in their coaching.

Now to back it up next year! This winning feeling is something you can get very used to, so let’s strive to make this a special time at Collegians Football Club. It has been an honour and a privilege to be President of this great club, but I will be stepping down at the end of the year and Andrew Kenneally (OW1989) will be taking the club forward for the next exciting part of the journey. Go Lions!

To stay up to date with Collegians, visit www.collegians.com.au where you can also subscribe to our newsletters and purchase your season memberships. You can also follow Collegians on Instagram @collegiansfc

For further information, contact Rod Nancarrow (OW1982) on 0412 687 430.