SFL team Hackham Football Club will jump ship to the Adelaide Footy League in 2021
A southern football club’s bid to join the Adelaide Footy League in 2021 has been accepted and the division it will enter can now be revealed.
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A Southern Football League club’s bid to join the amateurs in 2021 has been approved.
Hackham, which previously fielded one team in the SFL’s Sunday C grade competition, will line up in the Adelaide Footy League’s division seven next season.
In August, the Hawks put forward a formal application to join the Adelaide Footy League for next year’s campaign.
Hackham president Glenn Rowe said the club was pleased to have its application approved.
Rowe said returning to Saturday football was paramount to help the club grow and switching to the Adelaide Footy League was a way forward.
“The whole footy club is really excited,” Rowe said.
“The men’s teams will get back to playing Saturday football, so we are hoping to become a bit more of an attractive club to be part of.”
The SFL dumped Hackham from it's A and B-grade competitions in February 2017 for failing to register enough players to fill two teams.
Rowe said the club “still held hope” of re-entering the SFL’s A grade competition but because the Hawks did not have three junior teams, their application was denied.
He was confident the club would be able to fill two teams – as per the Adelaide Footy League’s requirement.
“When our application to re-join the SFL was voted down, for immediate growth, we had no choice but to look elsewhere,” Rowe said.
“Hopefully this drives a bit of excitement around the community and we can then start building our juniors.”
The Hawks join Brighton, Edwardstown, Morphettville Park, Marion and O’Sullivan Beach Lonsdale as clubs which have moved from the SFL to the amateurs since 2015.
Adelaide Footy League chief executive John Kernahan said Hackham had satisfied a range of qualities which the competition deemed crucial to a positive environment.
Those qualities were around governance, playing numbers and behaviours.
Kernahan said the club would enter with conditions which would be reviewed at the end of the season.
“We don’t apologise for being conservative in our approach,” Kernahan said.
“Nor do we apologise for generating an understanding that membership in our league whether as a club or a player is a privilege, not a right.
“We hope Hackham enjoy a similar on-field experience the Marion and O’Sullivan Beach Football Clubs have … and in turn allow them to grow in their community.”
The Hawks’ women’s team, however, will remain in the SFL.
SFL president Craig Warman said he was happy to still have the Hawks’ women’s side in the competition.
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