2016 William Buck VAFA Grand Final Lunch

The Victorian Amateur Football Association invites all members of the VAFA community to the 2016 William Buck Grand Final Lunch at the Sofitel Ballroom, Friday 16 September.

Similarly to the 2015 luncheon, this year’s event will be MC’d Barrie Cassidy, and feature special guests AFL Chairman Mike Fitzpatrick and comedian Vince Sorrenti.

The VAFA Grand Final Lunch will give attendees the opportunity to celebrate the achievements of the newly crowned VAFA premiers from the weekend prior, as well as a chance to preview the three Premier section grand finals taking place on the ensuing weekend.

Sorrenti is an internationally recognised stand-up comedian and a five-time winner of the Mo Award for excellence in live performance.

Since captaining Carlton FC to premiership in 1981 and ’82, Fitzpatrick has been non-stop as Director of Telstra, Australian Infrastructure Fund Limited and Pacific Hydro,
Chairman of the Australian Sports Commission, Chairman of the Victorian Funds Management Corporation and Treasury Group Ltd., Director of several of Hastings’ Managed Investments and most recently, Chairman of the AFL Commission since 2007 having sat on the commission since 2003.

Political journalist and former Insiders and Offsiders television host, Cassidy has built a highly respected reputation during his 46-year career due to his ability to observe and subsequently provide expert analysis on Australia’s political affairs.

For a full description of each special guest and to purchase tickets, click HERE

To gain an insight into the William Buck VAFA Grand Final Lunch, we have compiled comments from previous year’s attendees:

“The VAFA lunch was a big success with a room full of so many who have contributed to what is one of the best competitions in the land. Whether you have used the amateurs to launch an AFL career, played 300 games, coached or administrated at any grade, the lunch celebrates everyone coming together at a terrific time of year for football. I hope it remains on the calendar for many more” – Toby Roberts.

“The 2014 VAFA Grand Final Lunch at the Grand Hyatt was a terrific afternoon. Our guests who all had links to the Amateurs thoroughly enjoyed the Grand Final Preview along with the outstanding interview with Mark Thompson at such a topical time” – Sam Bingley.

“I was fortunate to have attend the inaugural VAFA Grand Final Lunch at the Grand Hyatt last year. This function gave representatives from clubs across all divisions an opportunity to be part of the experience and excitement in the build up to the VAFA Premier Division Grand Final weekend. It also gave those attending a great opportunity to celebrate the end of the season in true VAFA sprit. It was an outstanding success” – Peter Grant.

“In 2014, the Hawthorn Amateur Footy Club took half a table at the VAFA Grand Final lunch and invited three of our sponsors along as a thank you for their ongoing support. The lunch is in a fantastic venue, fitting of such a gala event and the entertainment provided (along with the meal) were ideal to impress our guests. Personally, I really enjoyed meeting some key people from other VAFA clubs, and it was nice that the official run-down of the day included a presentation on stage to every club that won a senior premiership the previous weekend.” – David Clancey.

“The 2014 VAFA Grand Final Lunch was the perfect way to commence celebrations at the pointy end of the football season. The level of entertainment and the insight provided by the special guests made for a memorable event which ended up stretching into the evening. Having an opportunity to enjoy the company of friends, colleagues and ex-team mates alike means I’ll definitely be back again this year” – Dean Elliot.