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SOUTH LAUNCESTON (Cornwall/City/City-South/East Launceston)
Affiliated: Cornwall/City/City-South NTFA 1879-88 & 1899-1985 East Launceston NTFA 1948-85 South Launceston TFL Statewide 1986-97; NTFL 1998-present
Home Ground: Youngtown Memorial Oval
Formed: Cornwall 1879; changed name to City 1880; changed name to City-South 1957 East Launceston (as Cornwall) 1947 South Launceston (following merger of City-South and East Launceston clubs) 1986
Colours: Royal blue, red and white (City/City-South - red and white; East Launceston - blue and red)
Emblem: Bulldogs (City-South were known as the Redlegs, while East Launceston were the Demons)
Premierships: Cornwall/City/City-South 1883-84, 1886-87, 1890-91, 1895, 1902-3, 1907-8, 1910, 1914, 1921-22, 1928, 1930, 1932, 1939, 1941, 1952-53-54, 1956, 1959, 1960, 1962, 1966, 1972, 1974 (30 total) East Launceston - 1967 (1 total) South Launceston - 1998-99 (2 total) Tasmanian State Premierships (City/City-South) - 1928, 1930, 1932, 1954, 1960, 1966, 1972 (7 total)
Hardenty Cup Winner: City - Len Keogh 1924 (1 total)
Tasman Shield Trophy Winners: City - H.Wade 1925; Laurie Nash 1931 & 1932; Jock Connell 1934 & 1939; E.A. 'Ted' Pickett 1935; S.M. 'Max' Pontifex 1938; Harry Styles 1948; Laurie Moir 1952 (7 Medallists/9 Medals) East Launceston - Eddie Thomas 1961; Darrell Pitcher 1962 (2 total)
Hec Smith Memorial Medallists: City-South - Stuart Palmer 1971; Derek Peardon 1973; Rod Thomas 1983 (3 total) East Launceston - Peter Webb 1967; John Burns 1969; Paul Reinmuth 1981 (3 total)
Darrel Baldock Medallists: Scott Harris 2000; Matthew Westfield 2006 (2 total)
All Australians: City - Geoff Long 1956 (1 total)
NTFA Top Goalkickers: City/City-South - R.Ellis (10) 1886; J.Riva (6) 1887; A.Edwards (6) 1890; C.Allison (6) 1891; A.Norman (12) 1894, (8) 1895 & (10) 1902; F.Angus (16) 1896; L.Firth (12) 1904 & (12) 1907; Scott (12) & Waller (12) 1906; Ward (13) 1908; R.Nash (71) 1932; J.Martin (78) 1946; M.Bramich (61) 1959; S.Morcom (97) 1960; G.Wilkinson (54) 1968; C.McIntyre (74) 1985 (19 total) East Launceston - R.Ringrose (50) 1957 & (55) 1958; P.Wharton (59) 1980 (3 total) South Launceston - nil
City/City South's Official 'Team of the Century' 1886 to 1986: Click here
Highest Score: Cornwall/City/City-South - 38.15 (243) vs. East Launceston in 1974 East Launceston 22.14 ((146) vs. City-South in 1958 South Launceston - 34.19 (223) vs. Penguin in 1998
Most Games: Cornwall/City/City-South - 224 by Geoff Long East Launceston - 206 by David Thomson South Launceston - 199 by Nathan Richardson
Record Finals Attendances: 1. 10.551 for 1972 state grand final at York Park - City-South 14.14 (98); Latrobe 8.14 (62); 2. 7,910 for 1980 NTFA grand final at York Park - North Launceston 15.13 (103); City-South 11.13 (79)
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The City Football Club of Launceston was a
major stalwart of the northern Tasmanian football scene for many years, and
boasted a large number of champion players, including all time greats in the
shape of Laurie
Nash and Roy
Cazaly (pictured left). Originally formed in 1879, when it was known as Cornwall, the
club changed its name to City the following year and in 1883 it broke through
for its first NTFA premiership. By the turn of the century it had added
half a dozen more.
During the pre-World War One period the NTFA was a three team competition in which, as the table below clearly confirms, success was fairly evenly distributed: |
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NTFA Premiership Positions 1900-1914 |
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| Club | Won Flag | Finished 2nd | Finished Last |
| North Launceston | 6 | 7 | 2 |
| City | 6 | 3 | 6 |
| Launceston | 3 | 5 | 7 |
| XXXX | ||
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The same three clubs continued to dominate the competition during the inter war years, even after Longford was admitted in 1926. City was a perennial grand finalist during the 1920s, winning four flags from seven attempts. In 1928 it became the first northern club to claim the official state premiership after it downed North Hobart by 32 points at York Park, Launceston (see footnote 1). City boasted many fine players during this era, including Len Lewis, Len Keogh and, as the 1930s dawned, Jock Connell plus the aforementioned Laurie Nash and Roy Cazaly. City's 1930 premiership side, coached by Cazaly, and with Nash starring at centre half back, was one of the finest in the club's history. In the grand final of that year it annihilated Launceston by 51 points, 15.19 (109) to 8.10 (58), and was even more impressive in downing Lefroy by 58 points to claim its second state flag. City won the 'double' again two years later in what proved to be Laurie Nash's last season with the club. |
Jock Connell, dual Tasman Shield Trophy winner, and recipient of City's fairest and best award on 4 occasions. |
During the 1930s Tasmanian clubs were sometimes able to offer higher wages than their mainland counterparts and this led to a number of high profile interstaters being lured to the Apple Isle. One of the most noteworthy of these was 1932 Magarey Medallist Stanley 'Max' Pontifex who joined City as captain-coach from West Torrens in 1936. He stayed three years, winning the 1938 Tasman Shield Trophy as well as a club best and fairest award.
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Geoff Long, City's only All Australian player. Long earned his blazer at the 1956 Perth Carnival. |
The NTFA became a six club competition in 1948 with the admission of Scottsdale and Cornwall (later to become City's eventual merger partner, East Launceston). City enjoyed a concerted run of success in the 1950s with seven straight grand final appearances between 1950 and 1956 yielding four premierships. A 9.16 (70) to 6.10 (46) defeat of Hobart clinched the 1954 state flag. Reg Kenyon, 'Bill' Linger, Geoff Long, 'Bill' Spearman, Brian Hegarty, Verdun Howell and Ted Mackey were some of the many talented players to front up for the Redlegs during this period. After changing its name to City-South in 1957 the club next enjoyed premiership success in 1959 after a 13.10 (88) to 9.13 (67) grand final defeat of Longford. A 5 point win over North Launceston the following season clinched what in later years would come to be termed 'back to back' honours, and City-South then went on to annex a fifth state title thanks to a 3 goal victory over Burnie. The remainder of the 1960s brought three further grand final appearances, two of which were successful. In 1966 the club claimed the 'double' again after it overcame Hobart by 8 points in a bruising state grand final. |
East Launceston meanwhile had been spluttering along without giving any indications of being on the verge of success, but in 1967 the club suddenly burst into life and claimed its debut flag after a hard fought grand final win against North Launceston. In 1969 it reached another grand final, losing a high standard match by 44 points to Launceston, but thereafter, sadly, there would be no further dalliances with success until after the marriage of convenience with City-South.
| In 1972 City-South experienced one of the
most memorable season's in the club's history. The NTFA grand final at
York Park, watched by 6,894 spectators, pitted the Redlegs against Launceston
and, after a closely fought opening term, City-South overwhelmed their opponents
with 9 goals to 1 over the remaining 3 quarters of the match to win easily by 47
points. The following week, once again at York Park, the state grand final
took place between the Redlegs and NWFU premiers Latrobe, captain-coached by Darrel
Baldock. In the previous week's state preliminary final Latrobe had
convincingly accounted for TFL premier Sandy Bay,
12.14 (86) to 4.8 (32), and for much of the grand final they appeared to hold
the upper hand. At three quarter time Latrobe led by 5 points, 8.12 (60)
to 8.7 (55), only for City-South, with most of the crowd of 10,551 roaring them
on, to unleash a dazzling final quarter display which yielded 6.7 to 0.2 and a
resounding 6 goal win.
Following this triumph City-South had the honour of being Tasmania's first ever representatives in the end of season club championship of Australia series which was held in Adelaide. Despite losing both their games, to eventual champions North Adelaide, and East Perth, the Redlegs performed creditably. Two years later, however, it was a vastly different story, as City-South, having overcome Scottsdale in a low scoring NTFA grand final, provided a third of the players who went to the championships in Adelaide as part of a composite Tasmanian squad (the other two thirds of the squad coming from TFL premiers North Hobart, and NWFU premiers Burnie). On this occasion the Tasmanian entrants were blown away in humiliating fashion by eventual champions Richmond, and East Fremantle, results which helped sound the death knell of the club championship concept. |
Trevor McDonald, one of City-South's best in the '72 state grand final. |
Sadly, the 1974 premiership would prove to be City-South's last, with the club contesting just one further grand final (a 24 point loss to North Launceston in 1980) prior to the merger with East Launceston in 1986. The purpose of the merger was to enable Launceston to have two clubs competing in the newly formed TFL statewide competition, but the fledgling South Launceston combination found the going difficult from the start, and indeed its entire involvement in statewide football can perhaps most kindly be described as inglorious. In twelve seasons of competition the Bulldogs never once contested the finals, with their highest placed finish being 6th in 1992, and their total of three wooden spoons being matched in statewide history only by New Norfolk, who participated for a longer period.
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ABOVE: South Launceston in action during the early statewide years. The player pictured on the right, Ian Paton, won a Lefroy Medal in 1987, the only South Launceston player so far to achieve this feat. |
In 1998 South Launceston pre-empted the impending implosion of the statewide concept by affiliating with the NTFL, where conditions proved to be much more to their liking. The club won premierships in 1998 and 1999, and has been consistently competitive since, with players like Scott Harris, Nathan Richardson, Brian Finch and Nigel Page at last instilling a measure of credibility and self-respect into the jumper. The days of Nash, Cazaly, Pontifex, Connell, Howell and Long may be distant memories, but the evolution of a rich and distinctive club tradition continues.
Where now?
or
Footnotes
1. City had been unofficial state premiers in 1905, 1906, 1907 and 1908. The contests became officially sanctioned in 1909. Return to Main Text