# Old Scotch Football Club

The Old Scotch Football Club, nicknamed the Cardinals, is an Australian rules football club based in the Melbourne suburb of Camberwell. It affiliated with the Old Scotch Collegians Association and maintains a close relationship with Scotch College.
Old Scotch has competed in the top division of the Victorian Amateur Football Association (VAFA) for 72 out of a possible 88 years, the most of any club. The club has never competed lower than the Premier B division, and also held a 35-year continuous playing record in A Section/Premier Division until 2015.
As of 2025, the club's men's and women's teams both compete in the Premier Division of the VAFA and the VAFA Women's (VAFAW) respectively.

## History

In 1894, the Scotch Collegians Football Club entered the Metropolitan Junior Football Association (MJFA). The club finished sixth in its inaugural season, and competed again in 1895, but disbanded prior to the start of the 1896 season.
The present-day club was formed in 1921 as the Old Scotch Collegians Football Club, entering the MJFA (now known as the Metropolitan Amateur Football Association) the same year. The club won back-to-back premierships in 1923 and 1924, were runners-up in 1925, then again went back-to-back in 1926 and 1927.
Old Scotch went back-to-back with a B Section premiership in 1977 and an A Section premiership in 1978. They moved their home ground from Yarra Park to Camberwell Sports Ground in 1992. The club were runners-up to Old Xaverians in 1997 and 1998.
The club changed its name from Old Scotch Collegians to "Old Scotch Football Club" in 2003.
At the end of the 2015 season, Old Scotch was relegated after finishing ninth and entered B Section/Premier B for the first time since 1980. They lost to Beaumaris in the 2016 preliminary final, but made the 2017 grand final and were promoted back to Premier Division in 2018. The club also introduced its first women's team, the Old Scotch Stars, for the 2018 VAFA Women's season.
In 2024, Old Scotch broke its 46-year men's senior premiership drought with an 18-point victory over Old Brighton in the Premier Division grand final. It was the second senior premiership won in 2024, with the club also claiming its first Premier Division premiership in the VAFAW.

## Honours
### Premierships

| Competition | Division | Level | Wins | Years won |
| Victorian Amateur Football Association | Premier | Seniors | 10 | 1923, 1924, 1926, 1927, 1931, 1932, 1933, 1934, 1978, 2024 |
| Victorian Amateur Football Association | Premier B | Seniors | 3 | 1965, 1970, 1977 |
| VAFA Women's | Premier | Seniors | 1 | 2024 |
| VAFA Women's | Division 1 | Seniors | 1 | 2019 |

### Minor premierships

| Competition | Division | Level | Wins | Years won |
| Victorian Amateur Football Association | Premier | Seniors | | 1925, 1926, 1927, 1928 |

## Club song

The club song is sung to the tune of "Jingle Bells".
    Old Scotch, Old Scotch winners all the way
    We always play good football, on any sort of day...hey!
    Be it fine, be it wet, mud is everywhere
    Whenever there’s a game to win
    the Scotchies will be there!

## Seasons

| Premiers | Grand Finalist | Minor premiers | Finals appearance | Wooden spoon | Division leading goalkicker | Division best and fairest |

### Men's
#### Seniors

| Year | League | Division | Finish | W | L | D | Coach | Captain | Best and fairest | Leading goalkicker | Ref |
| 1921 | MAFA | | 7th | | | | | | | | |
| 1922 | MAFA | A Section | 3rd | | | | | | | | |
| 1923 | MAFA | A Section | 2nd | | | | | | | | |
| 1924 | MAFA | A Section | 3rd | 10 | 4 | 0 | | | | | |
| 1925 | MAFA | A Section | 1st | | | | | | | | |
| 1926 | MAFA | A Section | 1st | 16 | 2 | 0 | | | | | |
| 1927 | MAFA | A Section | 1st | 16 | 2 | 0 | | | | | |
| 1928 | MAFA | A Section | 3rd | 16 | 1 | 1 | | | | | |
| 1929 | MAFA | A Section | 1st | | | | | | | | |
| 2024 | VAFA | Premier | 3rd | 12 | 6 | 0 | Mark Gnatt | Andy Jelbart | Charlie Cormack | Ryan Valentine | 38 |