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Bendigo Gold Football Club

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Bendigo Gold
Names
Full nameBendigo Diggers Football Club Ltd[1]
Nickname(s)Gold
Former nickname(s)Diggers, Bombers
Club details
Founded1998
Dissolved2014
Colours  Blue   Gold
CompetitionVictorian Football League
Ground(s)Queen Elizabeth Oval (18,000)
View Street, Bendigo
Uniforms
Home
Historical

Bendigo Gold was an Australian rules football club based in Bendigo, Victoria. The club debuted in the Victorian Football League (VFL) in 1998 as the Bendigo Diggers Football Club, which remained its legal name for the duration of the club's existence despite subsequent nickname changes to the Bombers and then Gold in proceeding seasons. The club disbanded at the conclusion of the 2014 VFL season.[2]

History

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The club entered the VFL in 1998 as the Bendigo Diggers. It struggled for on-field success, winning only seven games in its first three seasons, and enduring successive winless seasons in 2001 and 2002.[3]

Starting from 2003 the club formed an affiliation with the Essendon Football Club in the Australian Football League, under which Essendon could field its reserves players in the Bendigo team. The Diggers mascot was changed to the Bendigo Bombers and the guernsey changed to black with a red sash, to match those of the Essendon AFL club. Over the following ten years of the clubs' affiliation, the club played finals five times, with its best finish and sole finals victory coming in 2005, when the club finished fourth. The club also endured another winless season during the affiliation, in 2009.[3]

After the completion of the 2011 season, Essendon announced that the 2012 season would be the last season of affiliation with Bendigo; Essendon fielded a stand-alone reserves team in the VFL from 2013, and Bendigo returned to fielding a stand-alone senior team. To reflect the impending change, the team changed its name to the Bendigo Gold, starting in 2012 (the final season of the clubs' affiliation).[4]

Without access to the professional players or financial support offered by its affiliation with Essendon, Bendigo quickly struggled to remain competitive as a stand-alone club. Bendigo was winless in both 2013 and 2014 – which, when added to the 2001 and 2002 seasons, represented four consecutive winless seasons as a stand-alone club. In June 2014, the club concluded that it was not financially viable in the long term; it consequently disbanded and left the VFL following the 2014 season.[2]

Honour board

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Year Finishing position Coach Captain/s Best and Fairest Leading Goalkicker
1998 10th Ross Smith Ross Smith Dave Lancaster
1999 11th (Last) Nathan Bower Nathan Bower David Lancaster
2000 18th (Last) Nathan Bower Darren Walsh Nick Carter
2001 16th (Last) Neville Massina Darren Walsh Damien Lock
2002 16th (Last) Damian Drum Nick Carter Nick Carter
2003 10th Peter Banfield Nick Carter Nick Carter
2004 8th Peter Banfield Nick Carter Jordan Doering
2005 4th Matthew Knights Nick Carter Jordan Doering
2006 12th Matthew Knights Nick Carter Ben Jolley
2007 8th Matthew Knights Simon Rosa Kepler Bradley
2008 10th Adrian Hickmott James Flaherty Hayden Skipworth
2009 13th (Last) Adrian Hickmott James Flaherty Paul Scanlon Darcy Daniher (14)
2010 8th Shannon Grant James Flaherty Michael Quinn
2011 7th Shannon Grant Ben Duscher / Trent Shinners Ben Duscher
2012 8th Hayden Skipworth Ben Duscher / Trent Shinners Brendan Lee Matthew Little (52)
2013 14th (Last) Austinn Jones Steven Stroobants Alik Magin Alik Magin (17)
2014 16th (Last) Austinn Jones Steven Stroobants Daniel Toman[5] Tyrone Downie (31)

References

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  1. ^ "ABN Lookup". abr.business.gov.au. 1 November 2014. Retrieved 9 June 2023.
  2. ^ a b Brent Diamond (25 June 2014). "VFL club Bendigo Gold to fold". The Age. Retrieved 26 June 2014.
  3. ^ a b Luke West (14 September 2012). "So long Dons". Bendigo Advertiser. Bendigo, VIC. Retrieved 21 April 2014.
  4. ^ Landsberger, Sam (27 March 2012). "Bendigo Gold unveiled for final year with Bombers before Dons go solo in VFL". Herald Sun. Retrieved 27 March 2012.
  5. ^ Toman wins 2014 Gold best and fairest
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