HEATHCOTE
Current Affiliation: Heathcote District Football League (HDFL) since 1967
Formed: 1967, through the merger of Heathcote North and Heathcote Rovers Football Clubs
Colours: Black, red and white
Emblem: Saints
Senior Premierships: 1970, 1972, 1982, 1989, 1992 (5 total)
Cheatly Medallists: Warren Elsbury 1967; Tony Audley 1976; Peter Safstrom 1980; Wayne Bell 1989; Damian Willox 1998 (5 total)
A Heathcote Football Club was in existence as early as 1905, when it was a founder member of the Heathcote District Football Association. In 1922 the club split to form Heathcote North and Heathcote South.
The present day Heathcote Football Club came into existence in 1967 when Heathcote North and Heathcote Rovers merged. Combining the red and white colours of the former club with the black and white of the latter, Heathcote not surprisingly adopted the Saints emblem.
Both North and Rovers had achieved considerable success prior to the merger. North's tally of eight senior HDFL premierships included a competition record five in succession between 1955 and 1959, while Rovers, with nine senior flags, had done even better overall. Given this impeccable pedigree there seemed little doubt that the Heathcote Football Club would make its mark on the competition sooner rather than later, and so it proved. In 1967 the seniors reached the grand final, where they lost to Mount Pleasant. A measure of consolation came in the form of Warren Elsbury's Cheatly Medal win.
The club's first premiership was claimed in 1970 via a grand final defeat of Elmore. Another grand final loss to Mount Pleasant then followed before the Saints again went top in 1972, this time at the expense of Colbinabbin.
The Saints' most successful phase to date came from the late 1980s through into the '90s when they contested half a dozen consecutive grand finals, winning flags in 1989 and 1992. The 1989 grand final triumph was especially noteworthy in that Heathcote trounced Stanhope by almost 100 points, 24.15 (159) to 9.7 (61).
In addition to their five grand final wins at senior level the Saints have claimed a reserves flag in 1978 and a total of nine under age premierships.
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