# 1979 NFL Championship Series (Australia)

The 1979 NFL Championship Series was the 4th edition of the NFL Night Series, an NFL-organised national club Australian rules football tournament between the leading clubs from the SANFL, the VFA and QAFL.
In June 1978 the VFL announced their plans to form a new company to oversee a night series that would be broadcast nationally and Australian Football Championships Pty. Ltd. was incorporated on July 28, 1978 to run a rival national night competition, in opposition to the NFL Night Series. By October 1978, The VFL were joined by the WAFL, TANFL, NSWAFL and ACTAFL in the joint venture and transferred from NFL Night Series to the AFC Night Series. However, the SANFL rejected the VFL's overtures, choosing to remain aligned with the NFL instead. They were joined by the VFA and QAFL in a greatly-reduced NFL Series.
But by May 1979, the NFL, the SANFL and the AFC/VFL held meetings to discuss the future of the series and agree that the SANFL would join the AFC Night Series in 1980 and that the NFL would ceased running their Night Series beyond this edition.

## Qualified Teams

| Team | Nickname | League | Qualification | Participation (bold indicates winners) |
| Norwood | Redlegs | SANFL | Winners of the 1978 South Australian National Football League | 7th (Previous: 1888, 1907, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978) |
| Sturt | Double Blues | SANFL | Runners-Up of the 1978 South Australian National Football League | 7th (Previous: 1968, 1969, 1970, 1974, 1976, 1977) |
| Port Adelaide | Magpies | SANFL | Third Place in the 1978 South Australian National Football League | 8th (Previous: 1890, 1910, 1913, 1914, 1976, 1977, 1978) |
| Glenelg | Tigers | SANFL | Fourth Place in the 1978 South Australian National Football League | 5th (Previous: 1973, 1976, 1977, 1978) |
| West Torrens | Eagles | SANFL | Fifth Place in the 1978 South Australian National Football League | 1st |
| Woodville | Woodpeckers | SANFL | Sixth Place in the 1978 South Australian National Football League | 1st |
| South Adelaide | Panthers | SANFL | Seventh Place in the 1978 South Australian National Football League | 5th (Previous: 1893, 1896, 1977, 1978) |
| Central District | Bulldogs | SANFL | Eighth Place in the 1978 South Australian National Football League | 2nd (Previous: 1977) |
| West Adelaide | Bloods | SANFL | Ninth Place in the 1978 South Australian National Football League | 6th (Previous: 1908, 1909, 1911, 1977, 1978) |
| North Adelaide | Roosters | SANFL | Tenth Place in the 1978 South Australian National Football League | 4th (Previous: 1971, 1972, 1977) |
| Prahran | Two Blues | VFA | Winners of the 1978 Victorian Football Association Premiership | 1st |
| Preston | Bullants | VFA | Runners-Up in the 1978 Victorian Football Association Premiership | 2nd (Previous: 1977) |
| Western Districts | Bulldogs | QAFL | Winners of the 1978 Queensland Australian Football League | 1st |
| Windsor-Zillmere | Eagles | QAFL | Runners-Up in the 1978 Queensland Australian Football League | 1st |
    $^1$ Includes previous appearances in the Championship of Australia.

## Venues

| Adelaide | Melbourne | Brisbane |
| Norwood Oval | Preston City Oval | Brisbane Cricket Ground |
| Capacity: 22,000 | Capacity: 15,000 | Capacity: 35,000 |