About Football
History of Eastlake Football Club
The Eastlake Football Club is the oldest football club in ACT operating under its original name and in terms of regional football is the second oldest to Queanbeyan. The Federal Territory Australian Rules Football League was just two years old when the Eastlake Football Club first emerged on the scene in 1926.
Comprised chiefly of local tradesmen, many of whom had moved to Canberra from the southern states, the side did not take long in finding its feet, unsuccessfully contesting its first grand final in 1927. Bolstered by some off-season recruits, Eastlake achieved premiership success for the first time in 1928 with a comprehensive 9.16 (70) to 4.6 (30) grand final defeat of Ainslie.Eastlake proved to be Canberra's most successful club during the 1930s, walking away with four premierships.
The Eastlake Football Club dominated the 1960s, the club’s red and white strip associated with great successes, including an undefeated season in 1960. Between 1962 and 1966 Eastlake dominated the Canberra football scene, winning 5 consecutive grand finals. In 1991 the Eastlake Football Club merged with long-time rival and geographical neighbour Manuka, forming the Southern District Demons.
Manuka Football Club, formed in 1928, had been a fierce rival and like Eastlake, had enjoyed numerous premiership successes in its 60-year history. Many of these victories were recorded over Eastlake - between 1933 and 1977 the clubs had met in no fewer than 17 senior grand finals. As Southern District, the club played in a blue and white strip that had no association with either of the merge partners. Despite the loss of many key players to other clubs, the new entity enjoyed immediate success by winning the club championship in its first year and narrowly losing the first grade Grand Final to Queanbeyan.
After six seasons as the Southern District Demons it was decided that the club should provide greater acknowledgement of its roots and the foundations of the club that had been established through the history of the Eastlake and Manuka Football Clubs. The first round of the 1997 season, played under lights at Football Park, saw the re-emergence of the Eastlake Football Club into Canberra football – the club re-named Eastlake, wearing the traditional red and black of Manuka, and adopting the Demon moniker from the brief stint as Southern District.
The “new” Eastlake Football Club broke through for its first senior premiership in 2001, beating Belconnen by 3-points at Manuka Oval.
For more information about the Eastlake Football Club click here
Manuka Oval
The historic Manuka Oval, located in the picturesque suburb of Griffith is the home of Demons football and the home of AFL in Canberra. The 13,550 capacity heritage listed ground has a rich history dating back to the early 1920’s. Originally known as Manuka Circle Park, the then open field was used for informal games of Australian Rules and Rugby League.
In 1929, after much lobbying to the Government of the time, work began on Manuka Oval. The now famous Couch grass was sown in addition to other improvements such as the fencing and other facilities. Although both rugby league and union were played for many years at Manuka Oval, the majority of events held today are Cricket in summer and Australian Rules in winter.
Since 1998 Manuka Oval has seen the Kangaroos, Melbourne Demons and the Western Bulldogs all hosting regular season AFL matches in addition to numerous pre-season cup matches. On the home front, Manuka Oval has been the home the Eastlake Demons since their current incarnation back in 1991 with the finals of the AFL Canberra Competition being played each year at the venue.
Manuka Oval is a world class venue with one of the finest surfaces on offer for Australian Rules football anywhere in the country. The Eastlake Demons are proud to have Manuka Oval as their home, a home that has seen some of the clubs proudest moments take place.
Kingston Oval
Kingston Oval takes pride of place as the Demons training facility just a few hundred meters from the Eastlake Football Club. The Kingston Oval has been a part of the Canberra community since before 1951 and today is one of the busiest public ovals in the Canberra region.
Reaping the benefits of its newly installed bore, Kingston Oval possesses one of the best quality surfaces in Canberra providing the Demons with the perfect surrounding upon which to mount its premiership campaigns.
Canberra, Kingston and Surrounds
With a population of 347,000 people, Canberra is one of the world’s few planned cities. Set as a city in a park, Canberra mixes a lively, vibrant lifestyle in a laid back bushland setting.
The surrounding region offers more than 30 wineries, historic townships, quiet coastlines, the superb southern highlands and the alpine roof of Australia.
Kingston and Manuka offer some of the best dinning in Canberra along with interesting shops, trendy boutiques and cutting edge hair and beauty salons. The urban villages of Manuka and Kingston possess any number of quality cafes, restaurants, and gourmet delicatessens to rival those anywhere along Lygon St in Melbourne or on the North Shore of Sydney.
If you feel like a tipple, Kingston and Manuka all have some of the best cocktail bars in Canberra with a continual array of new and fresh recipes being produced to suit the time of year.
Many of Australia’s national museums and attractions are just a stone’s throw away from Kingston, giving you the opportunity explore the treasures of our nation and experience Australia through books and exhibitions, sound and film. Kingston is located centrally within Canberra, only a short car trip from busy centers in Civic and Woden with Belconnen, Tuggeranong and the airport only 15 minutes away.