THE HISTORY OF REPRESENTATIVE / INTERSTATE FOOTBALL
SOUTH AUSTRALIA - UNIFORMS
THE TIMELINE
EVOLUTION OF THE JUMPER
SPONSOR PATCHES
THE TIMELINE
THE TIMELINE
(click on any image to see a full-sized version)
NOTE: the 1881 uniform is not shown above - the South Australian team wore red, white and yellow but the actual design remains unknown
EVOLUTION OF THE JUMPER
Trial and error sums up South Australia's long road to the classic double V design that we associate with them today.
Their first design to be worn consistently was a black and white striped jacket (first worn 9 months before Collingwood FC was formed and adopted a similar uniform). In 1907-08 the SAFA led a push for a uniform set of colours to be adopted by South Australian representative teams. This resulted in a number of chocolate brown and turquoise blue uniforms over the next twenty years. |
A second push by the SANFL in 1929-30 for uniform State colours was far more successful and resulted in all South Australian sporting bodies adopting red, navy blue and gold. However, the SANFL could not find the right design to make these colours work, wearing six different designs in seven seasons during the 1930s.
It wasn't until 1936 that the first double V was worn and after much searching, the South Australians had finally found a style to build from.
It wasn't until 1936 that the first double V was worn and after much searching, the South Australians had finally found a style to build from.
SPONSOR PATCHES
SOUTH AUSTRALIA - LEAGUE / STATE LOGOS
The first league logo was added to the State jumper for the 1958 National Carnival and remained unchanged until 1977 when a special patch was worn to mark the SANFL's 100th anniversary.
A short-lived SANFL logo was used in 1978-79 before the classic SANFL logo was introduced in 1980. This logo has undergone some minor tweaks over the years and remains in use today.
A short-lived SANFL logo was used in 1978-79 before the classic SANFL logo was introduced in 1980. This logo has undergone some minor tweaks over the years and remains in use today.
SOUTH AUSTRALIA - SPONSOR PATCHES
1986 was the 150th anniversary of the formation of the colony/state of South Australia and a special patch was worn to mark this occasion.
In 1990 the SANFL finally broke with tradition and wore a sponsor patch on the State jumper for the first time. West End were the first, and to date, only company to sponsor the South Australian team. The longevity of this deal is only rivalled in Australian football by Geelong FC's long-running jumper sponsorship deal with Ford which has remained in place since 1977.
SOUTH AUSTRALIAN STATE UNIFORMS HISTORY
Click on the tabs to discover the story behind each design...
Written and researched by David Eastman
Artwork by Rob Meredith |
First published 26/3/2017
Last updated 18/04/2020 |