SOCFC History & Records
Scotch Old Collegians’ Football Club was formed in 1929.
There have been over 180 different clubs which have participated in the South Australian Amateur Football League / Adelaide Footy League since its inception in 1911. Only Adelaide University (1911), Kenilworth (1914), Prince Alfred Old Collegians (1926) and St Peters Old Collegians (1928) have been in the League longer than Scotch OCFC.
Scotch OCFC was barely a social football club from 1929-1957, only fielding one team and only once, in 1948, playing in a (losing) Grand Final.
In 1958 a group of old collegians led by Bob Cottle, Bob Hall, Gay Mayfield and Bob Sharman all became seriously involved and the first of the club’s sixteen Premierships took place the very next year in Grade A4.
In 1961, the club fielded a B’s side for the first time. In the 60’s Scotch OCFC fluctuated between A2 and A3 with the best results being third in 1965 (A’s) and third in 1967 (B’s).
The B’s won successive Premierships in Grade A3 Reserve in 1970 and 1971. The B’s next Premiership would come in 1986.
The A’s were promoted to A2 after losing the Grand Final to Prince Alfred OC in 1972 and have played in A1/D1 or A2/D2 in all but 9 of those fifty one years (7 in D3, 2 in D4) since the 1972 loss.
It took the A’s 30 years to win it’s second Premiership, in 1989. In 1997 it finally evened up with Prince Alfred OC by beating them in the Grand Final, 25 years after the 1972 loss.
The B’s also won their 1997 Grand Final to make it a truly memorable day for the club.
The A’s 1997 win was well overdue after winning only one of the club’s 5 previous Grand Finals. After two more Grand Final losses in 2012 and 2013, the club’s 4th A’s Premiership came in 2018. This win took the A’s Grand Final record to 4 wins (‘59, ‘89, ‘97, ‘18) against 7 losses (‘48, ‘58, ‘72, ‘79, ‘86, ‘12, ‘13).
The club fielded a third side for the first time in 1978. The C’s won two Premierships in their first six years (1980 and 1983) but had to wait a further 19 years to win their next one (2002). This became the first of a unique hat trick with the C’s also winning Premierships in 2003 and 2004 and then made it four Premierships in five years in 2006.
Scotch OCFC fielded a fourth side for five years only and yet in those five years, 1989 to 1993, won successive Premierships in 1991 and 1992.
The club has played a total of 8 years in A1/D1 since its first time in 1980. In 1991 the A’s were fourth going into the last round but lost to finish fifth, the club’s best year in A1/D1 (final five not introduced into League until 2000).
Michael Weatherald, Ian Steel and Kym Cobb (all 5 years) have been the club’s longest serving A’s Coaches and Nick Hodgson (6 years) the longest B’s coach. Michael Richter coached the C’s for eleven years after previously coaching the B’s for 5 years and the A’s for one year for a remarkable total of 17 years of coaching at Scotch OCFC before retiring at the end of 2006 having coached one B’s and four C’s Premierships.
Rob Coulls won the A’s Best & Fairest five times and Todd Dunow and Adam Catford four times each. Don McArthur (1929-1933) and Ian Steel (1993-1997) are the longest serving A’s captains.
The club has produced 29 League medallists. Only two clubs, Adelaide University (68) and Broadview (29) have won more League medals than Scotch OCFC. Ian Harrison is the club’s only A1/D1 medallist. Multiple winners are Angus Irwin (3), Ian Harrison, Ash Manna, Scott Measday and Adam Williams (2).
The club’s goal kicking records are dominated by Shane Langley who topped the A’s goal kicking for an amazing ten successive years (1977-1986) including 117 in 1979. Shane is one of only 4 players to kick over 1000 goals (1319) in the history of the League. The club’s other two A’s century goal kickers have been Max Roberts (101 in 1948) and Clay Chaplin (116 in 1995). Clay also kicked 118 goals in the C’s 2002 premiership year, including a club match record of 20 against Unley.
Forty one players have played over 200 games for Scotch OCFC, six of whom have played over 300. Tom Kidman (353), Mike Vadasz (352), Matt Caudle (323), Peter Brown (322), Gerry Allen (318) and Cameron Meek (310) are the club’s triple century players.
Scotch OCFC is one of only 22 clubs in the history of the League to have kicked over 50 goals in a match. In 1992 the C’s kicked 51-27 (333) and kept Sacred Heart OC scoreless. This is the 25th highest score in the history of the League.
Thirty five Scotch OCFC players have represented S.A. in interstate matches or League Representative matches against other Leagues. Easily the club’s most decorated player has been Ross Haslam. Ross played 11 state games (the all time League record is 16), was All-Australian three times (only one player in history has four), and was Captain of SA in 1979 and 1980, Vice Captain of the All Australian side in 1979 and runner up in the Australian Amateur Carnival Medal in the same year.
Our other All Australians are Ian Harrison (also once with Flinders University), Peter Johnston, Darryl Brown and Scott Spriggs.