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BELCONNEN MAGPIES (Turner/Belconnen/West Canberra)
Affiliated: CANFL 1948-74; ACTAFL 1975-99; AFL Canberra 2000-present
Formed: Turner formed 1948; changed name to Belconnen in 1971; West Canberra formed 1974; Belconnen Magpies formed through merger of Belconnen and West Canberra in 1991
Colours: Black, white and teal
Emblem: Magpies
Premierships: Turner/Belconnen - nil; West Canberra - nil; Belconnen Magpies - 2002-3-4 (3 total)
Mulrooney Medallists: Turner/Belconnen - Harold Maddigan 1948; John Gleeson 1952; Keith Mitchell 1964; Robert White 1975; G.Hocking 1984 (5 total) West Canberra - Mike Demaine 1976; Greg Eaves 1978 (2 total) Belconnen Magpies - B.Smith 1991; S.Clarke 1999; S.Mahar 2001; S.Hazelman 2003; J.Ilett 2005 (5 total)
League Top Goalkickers: Turner/Belconnen - W.Quade (114) 1979; K.O'Neill (86) 1983; M.Manson (81) 1985 & (62) 1986 (4 total) West Canberra - nil Belconnen Magpies - M.Forys (92) 2004 (1 total)
| MINI-BIOGRAPHIES: | John Gleeson Harold Maddigan |
Turner and Belconnen 1948-1990
Belconnen Magpies 1991-present
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Turner's Class of '49 |
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| BACK ROW (L-R): W.K.Flanagan, J.Brockwell, L.Jury, N.S.Currie, C.W.Conron, K.Dwyer, B.M.Furler, F.Cornell, F.Bennett |
| MIDDLE ROW (L-R): R.Miller, J.Dunner, J.Williams, A.Papastastis (vice-captain), H.J.Maddigan (captain), A.Robertson, V.Foulkes, K.Gallagher, B.Dexter |
| FRONT ROW (L-R): I.Wiseman, D.Norris, N.Brown, R.B.Seal |
Turner and Belconnen 1948-1990
Boasting colours of maroon and blue, the Turner Football Club joined the CANFL in 1948, and despite earning a predictable wooden spoon in its first year did manage one noteworthy achievement when Harold Maddigan was awarded the Mulrooney Medal. A former Acton player, Maddigan had been a leading force behind the formation of the Turner club, which had been established primarily to satisfy the league's desire to redress the imbalance between clubs based north and south of the Molonglo River. The arrival of Turner meant that there were now two teams in the north, and three to the south, but the fact that the situation was still not resolved to the League's satisfaction was demonstrated in 1951 when Acton was relegated to 'B' grade for refusing an injunction to move north. (See the entry on Acton for further details.)
Not that this concerned Turner, which by 1951, after a tentative start, had managed to find its feet in League company. It finished 3rd that year, and its new found credibility and confidence were celebrated with the opening of its clubrooms in June. Turner again finished 3rd in 1952 with Western Australian rover John Gleeson procuring the club's second Mulrooney Medal (see footnote 1).
| At this point, Turner might have been expected to take the next logical step, and challenge realistically for the flag, but it was not to be. Indeed, the club not only never again finished as high while it boasted the name of Turner, it never again contested the finals. In the twelve seasons from 1953 to 1964 Turner finished last on nine occasions, second last twice, and third last once. In 1965 it acknowledged that a period of retrenchment was required and withdrew from the senior CANFL competition, fielding its A grade team in the CANFL reserves. A moderately successful season which saw the team finish runners up to Manuka encouraged the club to accept an offer from Queanbeyan to amalgamate for the 1966 season, and enter a team in the senior CANFL competition. The team played in jumpers which combined Turner's blue and white hoops (which had replaced the original maroon and blue in 1960) and a large gold 'Q' for Queanbeyan. |
The Turner-Queanbeyan combination lasted just three seasons, but enabled both clubs to emerge stronger and more financially viable. The CANFL introduced a zoning system in 1969, and this was one of the major reasons that the two clubs, which had completely different catchment areas, decided to go their separate ways.
In 1971 Turner decided to relocate to Belconnen whereupon they adopted the name of the district, and changed their colours to all navy blue. Success continued to prove elusive at first, but towards the end of the 1970s the club made a sudden, if fleeting, emergence from the doldrums, finishing 3rd in 1978, and moving straight into the grand final the following year with a 2nd semi final defeat of Ainslie. Unfortunately, in the pressure cooker atmosphere of the grand final re-match between the sides, the Tricolours' cooler, more experienced heads prevailed, with Ainslie recording a comfortable 46 point win, 17.18 (120) to 11.8 (74).
Training night at Belconnen during the 1970s.
Normality was restored in 1980 as the side plummeted to second last, and thereafter there was very little for Belconnen supporters to celebrate prior to the merger with West Canberra in 1991 (see footnote 2).
West Canberra 1974-1990
West Canberra (vertically striped jumper) in action against Queanbeyan during the 1976 season.
Known as the Magpies, and wearing the same black and white playing jumpers as VFL side Collingwood, West Canberra joined the CANFL in 1974. The side's twelve season involvement in the competition as an autonomous organisation was predominantly inauspicious, although it did manage consecutive 3rd place finishes in 1980 and 1981. In 1987, West Canberra merged with Belconnen, but at season's end the partnership was dissolved, and the Magpies found a new temporary home in the Monaro Australian Football League. After three seasons in that competition, however, West Canberra and Belconnen again joined forces to form the Belconnen Magpies, an arrangement which has not only ensured the preservation of the respective club's traditions, but has also had the effect of strengthening football in the Canberra region via the introduction of a significant rival to perennial heavyweights like Ainslie, Eastlake Demons and Queanbeyan, not to mention 'new kids on the block', Sydney Swans.
Belconnen Magpies 1991-present
After finding the going difficult initially, the Belconnen Magpies have recently emerged as one of the ACTAFL's strongest and most consistent sides. However, they found the task of actually breaking through for a premiership enormously difficult, losing three grand finals (in 1998, 1999 and 2001) before finally forcing their way to the top of the tree in 2002. In what was expected to be a tough, closely fought grand final, the Magpies got the jump on their opponents Queanbeyan early, and thereafter, apart from a brief period during the 2nd term, never looked to be in any danger. After leading by 22 points at the long break, they played all over the Tigers in the second half to win running away by more than 12 goals. Final scores were Belconnen Magpies 24.19 (163); Queanbeyan 14.6 (90).
One premiership does not make a champion team, of course, and the challenge was therefore on for Belconnen to transform the long sought after winning experience into a regular habit. In 2003, the side took a major step towards doing precisely that by retaining the flag after a hard fought 6 point grand final defeat of Queanbeyan. Then, in 2004, fans of the club could start talking in terms of a premiership dynasty, after Queanbeyan was again despatched on grand final day, this time to the somewhat more conclusive tune of 47 points, 14.20 (104) to 8.9 (57).
The 2005 season brought a fifth successive grand final appearance, but on this occasion, despite enjoying more of the play, the Magpies ultimately succumbed by 17 points to a fitter, faster Sydney Swans reserves side. It was a similar story when the same two sides met in the 2006 grand final, albeit that, after the opening term when scores were level, the Swans were probably a little more comfortable than in 2005, ultimately winning by 33 points, 10.16 (76) to 6.7 (43). If these losses were disappointing, they certainly did nothing to suggest that Belconnen's days as a force in Canberra football are over, although the 2007 season brought a marginal decline as the side was ousted from premiership contention by Queanbeyan at the preliminary final stage.
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Footnotes
1. Strictly speaking, the 1952 Mulrooney award was not a medal at all, but a silver water jug. Return to Main Text
2. Belconnen and West Canberra actually first underwent a tentative merger in 1987, but this was dissolved after just a year. Return to Main Text