Greater Western Victoria Rebels are celebrating the 1997 premiership team with a special player and staff reunion.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The club is inviting anyone who has played, worked or volunteered with the Rebels TAC Cup program throughout its 24-year history.
The celebrations will be held at North Ballarat Sports Club on Sunday, August 20, from midday, offering a chance for teammates and old friends to come together.
Following formalities, guests have the chance to catch the present day TAC Cup Rebels in action as part of a country triple header.
The Rebels take on Dandenong Stingrays at Mars Stadium – fittingly the same team the Rebels defeated in the 1997 grand final.
The Rebels’ premiership team, led by coach Garry Fletcher, included players of the calibre of Adam Goodes, Shane O'Bree, James Walker, Jeremy Clayton and Marcus Picken, who all went on and had successful AFL careers.
The team defeated a highly-favoured Stingrays outfit by 35 points in a game that put retired AFL star Adam Goodes in the spotlight.
The opposition included the likes of St Kilda’s Stephen Milne, Carlton and Brisbane forward Brendan Fevola, Hawthorn’s Trent Croad, Essendon premiership player Adam Ramanauskas, and Melbourne and Brisbane’s Travis Johnstone.
The grand final marked the first time the Rebels donned the North Ballarat black and white jumper after previously wearing green and gold.
It will be a big weekend of football for the greater western region, with the reunion and TAC Cup triple header the day after Ballarat hosts its first AFL game.