Sport
17 September, 2025
Skipton claims historic premiership
In what meant so much to the club and the Skipton community, the Emus claimed their first Central Highlands Premiership, defeating Daylesford by 31 points at Mars Stadium last Saturday.
It was only 2017 when Skipton lost every game by over 120 points. Fast-forward eight years, and they have tasted the ultimate success in a premiership that will be remembered for a long time.
In what is rare for a grand final, it was a shootout in the opening quarter, with ten goals kicked between both sides.
Hamish Wall had the big job on Bulldogs key forward Christopher Molivas, and Molivas was in the game early, kicking two goals, as well as missing a couple.
Mitch Walsh went to Molivas shortly after and held him well, before Nick Strangio went to him in the second half.
The game ebbed and flowed, with both teams kicking a couple of goals at a time, and it was the Emus that found themselves up by a couple of goals at three-quarter time.
At three-quarter time, coach Mitch Walsh told his troops to treat it like the score was 0-0, and not go out to defend.
They responded in the last, breaking away with a free-flowing game style, using the corridor well, and breaking through the Bulldogs press and taking the game on, to run out 15.12.102 to 10.11.71 winners.
Former AFL player Jesse Palmer was awarded best-on-ground, kicking five goals. Luke Delahey, Jacob Maddock, Josh Draffin, Mitch Walsh and Mitch Gilbert were also named among the best players.
Patrick Graham, Bailey McKimmie, Rhys Monument, and Liam Phillips also kicked multiple goals with two apiece. Ben Lusby and Jack McClure also hit the scoreboard.
Palmer’s experience stood up on the big stage. Palmer has played three state leagues, SANFL, VFL, and WAFL, as well as spending three years at the top level at Port Adelaide, playing three games.
He came to the club before the mid-season transfer deadline and was instrumental in all nine games that he played.
First-year coach, Mitch Walsh, who knew him from childhood, said he was in his ear to come and play for Skipton for a long time.
“Jesse is an exceptional player, and he wasn’t playing anywhere this year after suffering a few injuries last year, and I talked him around,” Walsh said.
“He has never played country football before, and despite playing well in bigger leagues, you never know how you will adapt, and he adapted well and got better and better in each game that he played.
“He is a big game player. Even when we were kids, the bigger the game, the better he played, and he loves a challenge, and ever since he came here, he has cared about the club.”
Midfielder Mitch Gilbert was also one of the best players on the day. He missed most of the season with injury, only coming into the side at round 15, which was against Daylesford, and Walsh credited how quickly he got up to match fitness.
“Mitch was probably our best player over the finals,” Walsh said.
“It was an incredible effort to get his body right in a short time, and he broke the game open, taking off in the corridor, using his left foot well, treating our forwards with deep respect.
“The way he kicks the ball is amazing, and he made a real difference and was one of the reasons we got across the line.”
Walsh also highlighted Luke Delahey, who was outstanding off half back.
“Luke was sensational, more so in the first half, and he continued to look into the corridor, which is our game plan,” Walsh said.
“He has a history of playing well in the big games, and he always seizes the moment.”
Walsh highlighted how important this win was to not only the football club but the community.
“It’s amazing, and we know a lot of people at Skipton have put in a lot of hard work over recent years,” Walsh said.
“Behind the scenes, a lot of people wear different hats, as is the case with most clubs, and more so in this small community.
“There were a few tears on the old faces in the rooms, which was a special moment for us as players.”
“As I said after the game, a lot of past coaches and players and supporters put in a lot of hard work to put us in the position before I took the job this year.”
Skipton president, Kiernan Molloy, highlighted how the football side of the club has evolved since 2017.
“We hit a phase where we didn’t have many connections with people, and lost a few locals,” Molloy said.
“I played in our last premiership in 2010, and we had a lot of people in that era helping at the club over the years.
“We didn’t have the base of local players, but we pieced it through, and the community was strong, and over the last couple of years, we started to build and got the ultimate result."
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