SANFL History Exhibition extended

Updated October 31, 2022

By SANFL Media

SANFL’s trail of football history happening in Adelaide has been extended due to popular demand.

The extensive exhibition at the State Library of South Australia, Our Footy, Our People, Our Stories, which showcases 145 years of great moments and achievements of the SANFL will be open to the public until November 27.

Already, more than 50,000 visitors to the State Library have experienced the exhibition since it opened in June.

This is the second time the State Library and the SANFL History Centre have joined forces to bring South Australia’s football history alive, the first being five years ago to mark the League’s 140^th anniversary. This latest exhibition, proudly partnered by Meals on Wheels SA, has been curated by Mark Gilbert from the State Library.

Among the exhibition highlights are:

• many hours of video highlights of SANFL football, including grand finals, interstate games and Magarey Medal telecasts, some never-before-seen match footage
• a sketchbook from GW Cox jewellers showcasing their Magarey Medal designs dating back to 1932
• the phenomenal contribution and evolution of women’s football
• rare items from the SANFL History Centre’s vast collection, including medals, posters, photographs, trophies and fan memorabilia.

The State Library has complemented this material by including items from the library’s collections. Highlights include two Magarey Medals donated by the families of the 1929 winner Bob Snell, and Max Pontifex who won in 1932, as well as images from the scrapbooks of goalkicking icon Ken Farmer.

Coinciding with the State Library exhibition is a unique event at the Migration Museum.

The Migration Museum exhibition, which features many past multicultural SANFL players, has attracted more than 15,000 visitors so far, and has also been extended until November 6.

This exhibition is a first for SANFL History and has been meticulously curated to capture the stories of South Australian footballers who either came to Australia as migrants or were children to parents born overseas.

The featured players highlight the diverse migration backgrounds of players and their families and the contribution they have made to the national game.

The display includes a slideshow of players in the Multicultural Team of the Century and memorabilia from former North Adelaide and Hawthorn player Bohdan Jaworskj and West Torrens’ Peter Phillipou, father of West Torrens and Footscray player Sam and grandfather of 2022 top AFL Draft Prospect Mattaes.

Both exhibitions are free entry.