Glenorchy Football Club

The club is nicknamed the Magpies after its black and white playing strip, and was originally known as New Town Football Club (wearing a green and white strip) when it started out as a member of the Tasmanian Football League in 1919.

New Town changed its name to Glenorchy in 1957 after absorbing the already established club Glenorchy Rovers and relocated its headquarters to KGV Oval at Glenorchy in Hobart's northern suburbs in the same year, playing its first match at the venue on 4 May 1957 against Hobart. It remains there to this day. After the death of the Tasmanian Football League in December 2000, the club was temporarily without a league to play in.

After some political maneuvering within football circles, Glenorchy were admitted to the Southern Football League, but at a high price from a traditional standpoint, with the club being forced, as a condition of entry to the League, to give up its black-and-white playing strip as well as its Magpies emblem, as it clashed with former Southern Amateur club Claremont Magpies, who were already a member of the SFL.

Glenorchy announced in early 2001 that they would adopt a new green, black & white playing uniform, and be known as the "Glenorchy Storm". This was not popular with fans, many of whom drifted away from the club, and its membership and support base decreased rapidly.

There was to be considerable rejoicing amongst its fans in 2004, after persistent pressure from the club, and the fact that Claremont were now playing in the SFL Regional League, which resulted in Glenorchy being granted the return of its black-and-white strip, and the Magpie emblem.

24,968: 1979 TFL Grand Final vs Clarence Roos at North Hobart Oval.

8,480 + approx. 2000 non-paying juniors: 2011 TSL Round 1 vs Clarence Roos at KGV Oval

TFL 34.21 (225) vs Hobart 18.14 (122) at KGV Oval Round 22, 1983.

• Backline: Roland Curley, Roy Witzerman, Allan Leitch.
• Half-back line: Trevor Sprigg, Barry Strange, Robbie Dykes.
• Centre line: Michael Styles (Capt), Neil Conlan, Ben Atkin.
• Half-forward line: John Klug, Max Griffiths, David Pearce.
• Forward line: Danny Ling, Peter Hudson, Gary Linton.
• Ruck: Jack Rough, Rex Garwood, Ron Marney.
• Interchange: John Chick, Matthew Mansfield, Kevin Morgan, Denis Lester, Kevin Baker, Adrian Fletcher, Max McMahon.

Notable players that went on the play in the VFL/AFL who started at Glenorchy:

Players who came to Glenorchy post-career:^[2]

• Tasmanian Football League
  • Premiers (19): 1935, 1948, 1949, 1951, 1953, 1955, 1956, 1958, 1965, 1975, 1983, 1985, 1986, 1999 (TSFL), 2016 (TSLW)
  • Runners up (20): 1923, 1926, 1946, 1950, 1954, 1957, 1961, 1966, 1967, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1982, 1984, 1987, 1988, 2009, 2015
• Southern Football League
  • Premiers (2): 2007, 2008
  • Runners up (2): 2001, 2006
• Tasmanian State Premiership (5): 1948, 1953, 1956, 1965, 1975

(Best and fairest player – TFL and SFL premier senior football)

• 1951 – Rex Garwood
• 1967 – Neville Johnston
• 1975 – Trevor Sprigg
• 1978 – Peter Hudson
• 1979 – Peter Hudson
• 1980 – Gary Linton
• 1988 – Adrian Fletcher
• 1999 – Ben Atkin
• 2005 – David Newitt
• 2006 – Jesse Crouch
• 2008 – Shane Piuselli

(Best and fairest player – TFL reserves football)

• 1963 – Dal Johnson
• 1968 – W. Hayes
• 1973 – P. Lynsky (tied)
• 1981 – Wayne Olding
• 1987 – Mark Horner (three-way tie)
• 1988 – Steven Hay
• 2006 – Clinton French

(Best and fairest player – TFL thirds football)

• 1950 – J.Chick
• 1956 – D. Cranfield
• 1974 – L. Berwick
• 1981 – N. Jeffrey

(Best and fairest – TFL fourths football)

• 1978 – Jamie Woolley
• 1991 – Craig Grace

(Best and fairest – Tasmanian state team)

• 1965 – M. McMahon (tied)
• 1979 – Darryl Sutton
• 1986 – David Pearce
• 2009 – Shane Piuselli (tied)
• 2019 – Aiden Grace

(Best on field in the Premier League Grand Final)

• 2007 – Brad Curran
• 2008 – Damian McIver

• 2012 – Jaye Bowden
• 2015 – Jaye Bowden
• 2016 – Jaye Bowden

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Glenorchy Football Club.

• AFL Tasmania
• Southern Football League Official Website Archived 26 March 2012 at the Wayback Machine
• Glenorchy Magpies Official Website Archived 10 April 2013 at the Wayback Machine