The 1996 South Australian National Football League (SANFL) Grand Final saw the Port Adelaide Magpies defeat the Central District Bulldogs by 36 points. The match was played on Sunday 6 October 1996 at Football Park in front of a crowd of 46,120. [1]. As of the 2010 SANFL Grand Final, this is the highest attendance for an SANFL Grand Ginal since the first year of the Adelaide Crows in the AFL (1991).
This was Port Adelaide's 34rd premiership, third premiership in a row, and seventh in nine years. Port would also go on to win in 1998 and 1999.
Port had also beaten Central District in the 1995 Grand Final. Thirteen Port players from the 1995 grand final also played in the 1996 grand final. For Central District, 12 players played in both.
Central District entered the Grand Final as favourite to win as they were minor premiers (first on the ladder prior to the finals) and had beaten Port on all four occasions that the teams had met in 1996 prior to the grand final.
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| Team | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Port Adelaide | 1.4 | 4.6 | 7.10 | 11.14 | 80 |
| Central District | 2.1 | 3.4 | 5.6 | 6.8 | 44 |
| F: | W. Tredrea | S. Hodges | P. McGuinness |
| HF: | D. Borlase | D. Smith | R. Smith |
| C: | G. Anderson | M. Wilson | F. Francis |
| HB: | P. Northeast | B. Leys | S. Carter |
| B: | G. Fiacchi | R. Delaney | B. Beinke |
| R: | D. Mead | T. Ginever | D. Brown |
| Int: | S. Crothers | A. Bamford | N. Fiegert |
| F: | J. Wynd | M. Conway | P. Vardy |
| HF: | J. Cotton | A. Balkwill | C. Potter |
| C: | J. Saywell | R. Macgowan | S. Stevens |
| HB: | S. Schwerdt | B. Haraida | D. Green |
| B: | S. Lee | D. Hicks | M. Wakelin |
| R: | R. Schaefer | R. Girdham | T. Cook |
| Int: | B. Daniel | P. Green | S. Luhrs |
For Port Adelaide, David Brown (13 kicks, 9 handballs) and Fabian Francis (15 kicks, 7 handballs) had 22 disposals. Scott Hodges took 8 marks, David Brown took 7.
For Central District, Stephen Schwerdt had 27 disposals (18 kicks, 9 handballs) and 7 marks. Scott Lee (14 kicks, 8 handballs) and Roger Girdham (7 kicks, 15 handballs) had 22 disposals each.
[1] Port Adelaide: S. Hodges 7.4, W. Tredrea 2.1, D. Smith 1.1, R. Smith 1.0, M. Wilson 0.2, David Brown, S. Carter, T. Ginever, P. McGuinness 0.1, (Rushed 0.2)
Central District: P. Vardy 2.2, T. Cook 1.2, A, Balkwill, J. Cotton, R. Girdham 1.0, J. Wynd 0.2, J. Saywell, S. Schwerdt 0.1.
Hodges' tally of 7.4 came from only 11 disposals (11 kicks, 0 handballs). Hodges was the SANFL's leading goalkicker in 1996, with 117 goals.
Port Adelaide was captained by Tim Ginever and coached by Stephen Williams. Williams had taken over from John Cahill part way through the season when Cahill joined the newly formed Port Adelaide Power. Central District was captained by Roger Girdham and coached by Steve Wright.
The game was umpired by Richard Williams, Michael Avon, and Troy Burton.
The Jack Oatey Medal for best player in the Grand Final was awarded to David Brown of Port Adelaide. However, The Advertiser (Adelaide) newspaper judged Fabian Francis as the best player on the ground.[1]
1996 marked the end of an era for Port Adelaide being their last year in the SANFL, as the Port Adelaide Football Club joined the AFL in 1997.
The Power's inaugural squad included several players from the 1996 Port Adelaide Magpies squad, including Warren Tredrea, Scott Hodges, Michael Wilson, Fabian Francis, Stephen Carter, Darren Mead, David Brown, Anthony Bamford, Nigel Fiegert, Jared Poulton, and Darryl Poole. Poole missed the 1996 grand final through suspension, while Poulton played in Port's reserves team premiership.
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