Date founded 1919 | ||
 | ||
The Darley Football Netball Club, nicknamed the Devils, is an Australian Rules Football club playing in the Ballarat Football League.
Contents
The club is based in the Victorian town of Bacchus Marsh.
History
Darley Football Club was formed in 1919 when it was known as the Magpies, playing in the Melton and Bacchus Marsh District Football League where the club was successful winning nine premierships between 1934 and 1957. The club then progressed into the newly formed Bacchus Marsh Football League, and was successful with premierships in 1959 and a golden era of four consecutive premierships from 1969–1972.
Darley moved into the Central Highlands Football League and again found success in 1984 before moving into the Riddell District Football League in 1986. Ruckman and local club legend Peter Keep won four consecutive league best and fairest awards while in the CHFL. The committee of management at the time saw this as a positive move of the club wanting to test itself and its players at a higher standard.
Upon entering the Riddell League, Darley was forced to change its club emblem from the Magpies as another club in the league (Wallan Football Club) was already known by the same name. Consequently, the club voted to change its emblem to that of a Tasmanian devil which remains to this day. During the time spent in the Riddell League, the club participated in finals football in every year except 1996, and then only missing out by percentage. Success was again attained with premierships in both 1989 and 1995, with Mick Hewat successful in winning the Bowen Medal as the league best and fairest in 1988, and Lex Miller winning the same award in 1989.
With the depth of football standard in the RDFL on the decline, together with considerable opposition from former second division clubs on the formation of one division, the club voted to make the move to the highly rated Ballarat Football League with Sunbury, Melton and Melton South clubs for the commencement of the 1997 playing season.
Darley centreman, Shayne Ward, won the BFL's Henderson Medal for league best and fairest in 1999. The club has also produced many fine players who have gone to play at higher levels. These include Collingwood Brownlow Medallist Marcus Whelan, Wayne Closter a 200-game player with Geelong Football Club, and more recently Heath Scotland who played for both Collingwood Football Club (53 games) and Carlton Football Club (215 games) before retiring in 2014.
The annual general meeting held on 24 November 2009 was an historic occasion. A motion was passed that the club name be changed to the Darley Football Netball Club Inc.
Several senior list players have also had experience at AFL reserves and VFA/VFL senior level.