PLAYERS and coaches from Edenhope Football Netball Club premiership teams congregated to the Edenhope Football Ground for a reunion on Saturday.
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The Bombers, as they were known, had a strong contingent of families playing for the side and won the premierships in the Kowree-Naracoorte-Tatiara Football Netball League in 1987, 1988 and 1989.
Edenhope-Apsley Football Netball Club also celebrated juniors premierships and netball premierships.
The veterans of the club weren’t treated to a win from the current senior side, which lost against Laharum.
Chris Ryan played in all three premierships as a young footballer.
He said this was the first time all the players and coaches had caught up in 10 years.
“We had a 10-year and a 20-year reunion,” he said.
“It’s pretty good for the club to celebrate these because we haven’t won one since.”
Nick Ryan who played in the 1988 premiership questioned how the side was so successful in those three years.
Mick Ryan was just 18 when he won the 1988 premiership with Edenhope and went on to do great things in country football.
He played for South Gambier and played in 10 more premierships.
Nick said every side needed strong footballers.
“There wouldn’t be too many players that have played in 11 premierships,” he said.
“Most people are lucky to play 11 years.”
Shane Cassidy who played in the 1987 premiership said he thought there would only be a handful of people to play that many.
Chris said the success came from all of the players growing up together, playing junior football and then graduating to the senior ranks.
“We would win premierships in almost every junior grade,” he said.
“There were heaps of kids in those days, we had a lot to pick from.
“We were always challenging for a premiership in junior footy and we all came up together in senior footy and we all gelled.”
Chris said Edenhope was not as big as it once was.
“We have to recruit in, especially for our senior side,” he said.
“We have to bring in 10 to 12 senior players that come from elsewhere each Saturday.
“Then they don’t get to train together as often like we did.”
Mick said country football as a whole had not changed all that much from when they played.
“I still think country footy is country footy,” he said.
Chris said they don’t train any harder.
“They try to handball it more but that’s as much difference as there is,” he said.
Chris said when he was young there was a street in Edenhope called Margret Street and in that street alone there was more than 50 children.
Shane said there were four main families in the area in the Whiteheads, Ryans, Cassidys and Thurgoods.
“People moving on for work is probably the biggest reason people leave,” he said.
Mick said a premiership winning side needed players who wanted to play together.
“You’ll need to get players who are willing to sacrifice things,” he said.