Founded in 1900 after disbanding the successful but debt-burdened Fremantle Football Club (not related to the AFL Dockers entity), the club enjoyed its most successful era in the immediate decade following the end of the Second World War, winning six premierships, including a hat-trick from 1952 to 1954.
South Fremantle has a long-standing rivalry with cross-town WAFL club East Fremantle, a fixture commonly referred to as the Fremantle Derby. The club has played at its home ground, Fremantle Oval, from inception and were co-tenants with East Fremantle until 1952, when the Sharks moved to East Fremantle Oval. From the beginning, Souths adopted the club colours red and white, first adding the iconic front vee to its playing jumper in 1928.[1]
For a club with a history of over 120 years, South Fremantle does not yet boast a footballer who has played 300 or more senior League games in the red and white guernsey. The club is also recognised for its significant contribution of players who hail from Indigenous Australian, Italian and Croatian heritage.
History
The Fremantle Football Club (originally known as Unions and unrelated to either an earlier club and the current AFL club of the same name) had won ten premierships in the fourteen years that they were in the WA Football Association (now known as the West Australian Football League). By 1899, however, the club suffered from financial problems that caused the club to disband. The South Fremantle Football Club was formed to take their place following an application to the league by Griff John, who would be appointed secretary of the new club, with Tom O'Beirne the inaugural president. Most players, however, were from the defunct Fremantle club.[2][3]
The new club did well in its first year, finishing runners-up.[4] However, over the next three seasons the performance fell away badly and, in April 1904 a Fremantle newspaper confidently reported that South Fremantle would not appear again. However, the club decided to carry on and centreman Harry Hodge took over as skipper, but the season was a disaster. The club won only one game.[5]
South Fremantle in 1905
They won their first premiership in 1916 and went back-to-back in 1917, both times defeating their local rivals, East Fremantle in the final and challenge final.[6] The 1930s were not as successful, marred by the death of the 23-year-old captain-coach Ron Doig as a result of injuries sustained in a match.[7] After World War II, South experienced their greatest era, with the arrival of future Hall of Fame members Steve Marsh, Bernie Naylor, John Todd and Clive Lewington.[8] Between 1945 and 1956 they would win six premierships, be runners-up three times and make the finals in every season. Since then, however, they have won six more premierships, in 1970, 1980, 1997, 2005, 2009 and 2020.[9]
South Fremantle was the first WAFL club to have won 10 grand finals since World War II. Four of their 14 premierships were won against the club's traditional rivals, East Fremantle. The club completed a rare double in 2009, claiming both the league and reserves premierships.
This was the first time the club had taken the Premiership double since 1954.
In 2020 the club received a license to field a team in the WAFL Women's league.[10]
On the 14th of March 2023, the club was fined $25,000, deducted 8 premiership points for season 2023, received a deduction amount to their TPP of $10,525 for 2023 as well as a reduction of 10 player points for 2023.
These penalties were due to exceeding the WAFL TPP cap for the season of 2021. (very harsh indeed)
Fremantle Derby
The Fremantle Derby, is traditionally one of the biggest game of the year on the WAFL calendar. The derbies still have a great following but have decreased in importance compared to the Western Derby, the match between WA's two AFL teams.
The Foundation Day derby on the first Monday in June (a public holiday to mark the Foundation of Western Australia in 1829) is commonly the highest attended game of the home and away season. To the end of the 2006 season the two clubs had met 344 times with South Fremantle winning 156 to East Fremantle's 184 wins, 4 Draws have occurred between the two sides.
The club
Club guernsey & colours
South Fremantle's Guernsey (shown right) used for all WAFL matches is all white with a red V in the centre of the guernsey. During the 1990s they also introduced the reverse of the traditional guernsey with a white V on a red jumper. The South Fremantle colours of red & white stem from the first Fremantle based team who wore red and white in the mid-1880s.
Supporters
South Fremantle are one of the most supported clubs in the WAFL.
South hold three notable WAFL Grand Final attendance records, 1979 v East Fremantle, 52,781, the highest ever attendance at a WAFL Grand Final, 1975 v West Perth, 52,322, the second highest ever Grand Final attendance and 1989 v Claremont, 38,198, the highest ever Grand Final attendance in the post AFL period.[11]
On Foundation Day v East Fremantle at East Fremantle Oval, South played in front of the biggest crowd of the 2009 WAFL home and away season 11,300.[11]
Souths average attendance at home and away fixtures is 3000, which is amongst the highest for the WAFL.[11]
Club song
"We're the Bulldogs" is the theme song of the South Fremantle Football Club, played as the league team comes to the field at home and away games, and after a victory.
We are the mighty bulldogs
Always fighting on
With victory and flag our goal
With guts and determination
We put the rest to shame
Because our fighting spirit wins the game.
We're the bulldogs (yes we are)
And we're the greatest (yes we are)
The mighty red 'v' which stands for victory
The rough tough bulldogs (yes we are)
South Fremantle (yes we are)
The southerners for ever more
Down by the port of Fremantle
We hit them really hard
With true grit and courage we win
So come on Souths let's show them
How to play the game to win
South Fremantle for ever more
We're the bulldogs (yes we are)
And we're the greatest (yes we are)
The mighty red 'v' which stands for victory
The rough tough bulldogs (yes we are)
South Fremantle (yes we are)
The southerners for ever more.
Honours
John Dimmer (coach) and David Gault (captain) celebrate after winning the 2005 WAFL Premiership.
With the exception of Hassa Mann, each of the South Fremantle players in the Australian Football Hall of Fame is also an inductee in the West Australian Football Hall of Fame, with Marsh, Todd and Michael awarded legends status.[15]
The South Fremantle Hall of Fame was inaugurated in 2011 with an initial induction of 45 players, coaches, administrators and staff from the club's inception in 1900 to 1979.
The second induction occurred in 2015, mainly covering the years up to and including 1987 (the year West Coast entered the VFL), and eight of the existing members from the inaugural intake were elevated to legend status.[16][17]
The third intake occurred on 14 August 2021, with a further eight members inducted and two existing members elevated to Legend status.[18]
There are currently 88 members in the club Hall of Fame. The current ten club legends, in alphabetical order by surname, are:
During NAIDOC Week in 2009, South Fremantle celebrated their long and extensive link to Indigenous Australians by naming an Indigenous Team of the century from the 78 Indigenous players that had played for them since Jimmy Melbourne first played in 1902. Selected by former club captain and chief executive Brian Ciccotosto, premiership coach Mal Brown and journalist Ray Wilson.[19] Four of the players selected, Stephen Michael, Maurice Rioli, Nicky Winmar and Peter Matera, were also selected in the Australia-wide Indigenous Team of the Century.[20]
Since the expansion of the Victorian Football League to become the national elite league in the late 1980s, numerous players from South Fremantle have represented various teams, especially the two Western Australia-based teams, West Coast and Fremantle. The list below is a summary of South Fremantle players who have achieved the highest individual honours while playing for a VFL/AFL club.
^Christian, Geoff; Lee, Jack; Messenger, Bob (1985). Jordan, Ray (ed.). The Footballers: A history of football in Western Australia. St George Books. p. 15.
^"FOOTBALL". The West Australian. Perth: National Library of Australia. 28 May 1900. p. 7. Retrieved 16 March 2011. The South Fremantle club, which has risen out of the ashes of the once redoubtable, but now defunct, Fremantle Club, possesses practically the same combination of players who wore the red and white colours last year. The name is changed but that is all
^"FOOTBALL". The West Australian. Perth: National Library of Australia. 17 September 1900. p. 6. Retrieved 16 March 2011.
