THE PULSE — April 24, 2026

The Spirit of the ANZACs endures

Each year on ANZAC Day, Australian communities pause to honour our service men and women for their service, sacrifice, and the enduring values they forged in times of conflict. Within the VAFA, this day carries a particularly deep resonance. It is not only a moment of remembrance, but also a living expression of history, woven through clubs, rivalries, and traditions that continue to shape the game and our community today.

At Melbourne University Football Club, the link between football and sacrifice is starkly evident in its wartime losses. The death of Rupert Balfe at Gallipoli is one of many examples of 19 players from the club’s VFL side who were killed, a number far exceeding the average across the league at the time. When expanded to include those from its Metropolitan Football Association side, the total rose to 28. These figures are confronting, underscoring the scale of loss experienced by a single football community.

What makes ANZAC Day at Melbourne University especially significant is the way it brings people together. Players from the University Blacks and University Blues (and more recently the Women’s) come together not as opponents, but as a unified group in an act of symbolism, one that transcends rivalry and reinforces a shared identity rooted in respect and remembrance.

The relationship between Collegians Football Club and Old Scotch Football Club was shaped by the experiences of their student players who came from Wesley College and Scotch College during World War II. When Wesley’s St Kilda Road campus was requisitioned by the military between 1942 and 1946, its students were displaced, sharing classrooms with Scotch College. A sense of unity was born as young men, whose schooling had been interrupted by global conflict, found common ground in shared spaces and experiences.

That connection endured long after the war. On the football field, the Club’s traditional ANZAC Day clashes became more than just fixtures — they evolved into symbolic contests grounded in mutual respect and shared history. Even today, the remnants of wartime linger physically on Scotch’s Punt Road grounds, where old military trenches can still be seen beneath the turf in dry conditions. These quiet traces serve as a reminder that football grounds, like the people who play on them, carry the imprint of history.

At Beaumaris Football Club, the ANZAC connection is equally profound, with the club founded by returned servicemen, such as Ted King, Peter Eldred, and Bill Carmody, who sought to build something lasting for their community after the war. Their leadership, along with that of others like Ron White and Major Frank Reade, ensured the club’s foundations were steeped in service, resilience, and mateship.

Frank Reade’s story, in particular, captures the essence of the ANZAC spirit. A prisoner of war who endured the horrors of Changi and the Thai-Burma Railway, Reade returned to lead, coach, and guide generations of players. His legacy is not merely one of football success, but of character of perseverance, humility, and quiet strength. Today, that legacy is honoured through the “Spirit of Mateship” medallions awarded to players who embody those same values. It will also be represented through the commemorative ANZAC guernseys sponsored by the local RSL, that will be worn by all Beaumaris players.

The commemoration of ANZAC Day is not confined to some of our oldest Clubs though. Therry Penola FC have instigated a new ANZAC Guernsey for their players to wear this weekend, and many other VAFA Clubs will be undertaking their own connection via attendance at the ANZAC march, wreath laying at a local cenotaph, or the recitation of the Ode of Remembrance on match day.

Across the VAFA, these actions collectively highlight the enduring relationship between football and the ANZAC spirit. They remind us that clubs are more than just teams; they are custodians of history, values, and community. The traditions observed on ANZAC Day whether through matches, ceremonies, or quiet moments of reflection ensure that the sacrifices of the past are neither forgotten nor taken for granted.

Importantly, these connections also provide a sense of continuity. The young players who take the field today may be generations removed from the events of Gallipoli or World War II, but through these traditions inherit a legacy. They learn that football is not just about competition, but about character, courage, endurance, sacrifice, and mateship.

ANZAC Day within the VAFA teaches players and communities alike that the values forged in times of conflict remain relevant in everyday life. And as long as these stories continue to be told on fields, in clubrooms and within communities, the spirit of the ANZACs will endure.

Lest We Forget.

Jason Reddick
VAFA – CEO