Ballarat Red Devils
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| Full name | Ballarat City FC |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1968 |
| Ground | Ballarat Regional Soccer Facility |
| Capacity | 6000 |
| 2016 | NPL Victoria 2, 6th |
Ballarat City FC is an Australian semi-professional association football club based in Ballarat, Victoria. For most of its history, the club's home ground was Trekardo Park, before making the move to Ballarat Regional Soccer Facility at Morshead Park Stadium, located in the Ballarat suburb of Redan in 2014. After the 2016 National Premier Leagues Victoria 2 season, the Red Devils members voted to reform the club as Ballarat City, a move sanctioned by the Football Federation Victoria as they transferred the club's NPLV licence to the new entity.
The club was established in 1968 as Ballarat SC, and played their first six seasons at Llanberris Reserve, now home to the Ballarat Athletics Club, before moving to Trekardo Park in 1973. Ballarat originally played in an all-Red kit (i.e. Liverpool F.C.), which changed to white shorts in 1992, and now play in a similar kit to the famous Manchester United, incorporating red shirts, white shorts and black socks.
In their first season playing in the Melbourne-based competition (including some clubs from Geelong), Ballarat secured its first championship, under foundation captain-coach and goalkeeper Eddie Wood, and led by Hugh Rattray, who scored 59 goals in 21 matches, still a current Australian record for number of goals in one season at a semi-professional level.
Ballarat waited 24 years until their next title came along, in 1992, in which the team remained undefeated throughout the entire 26-match Provisional League Two (FFV Div. 6) season, again a record that is unlikely to ever be matched or bettered in Victoria. Incidentally, that team went 36 matches until being beaten 2–0 by East Geelong at Trekardo Park. Furthermore, '92 Ballarat side scored in every match of that unbeaten season. The team was coached by Jim Bull, who was also a full-back in the '68 Championship.
In 1998, the club changed its name to Ballarat United SC. After back-to-back promotions in 2003 (FFV Div. 6) and 2004 (FFV Div. 5), United avoided relegation in 2004 and 2005, in the last match of each season, needing a positive result in each to stay up, which was achieved. The club changed its name in 2005 to Ballarat Red Devils.
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