CEO UPDATE | 2021 SEASON WRAP

To all our valued members, partners and stakeholders,

I thought it appropriate to write to Members for one last time in 2021, to outline some key results, being a Club that proudly celebrates success and acknowledges the contributions of our people.

I dearly thank our Members and Fans. Without you, there is no Club. We have seen some further considerable growth in membership, retail consumption and attendances, and this is because of your support.

We continue to be recognised as a ‘leader Club’ in almost every measurable metric, and this is a great honour for us, and certainly nice recognition for concerted effort.

Underpinning our activities and objectives at South Fremantle, are three fundamentals, what I call the three ‘P’s - People, Premierships and Profitability. We pursue growth and high-performance in these areas, at all times.

Following the financial success of 2020, your Club leadership recognised that responding in 2021 in a positive financial manner was a clear imperative, and as such we are very pleased to provide a substantive net return to our members, further consolidating and growing our cash reserves for the future, especially with a landmark Redevelopment project looming.

Your Board & Management has worked tirelessly to deliver sustainable financial results, and we are pleased that in the past two years combined, we have consolidated our Club’s cash position by $694,000 – funds essential to finance our redevelopment requirements, ensuring critical future state-of-the-art infrastructure for our fans, staff and players.

Financial members are welcome to contact the Club for a copy of our 2021 Audited statements – please request via email at admin@sffc.com.au citing your Member credentials.

Our “rainy day” fund has returned, considerably improving our financial position, which is a tremendously important outcome.

We have commenced our new membership year with significant momentum, and we are very grateful for this magnificent show of support from Souths fans. Our membership target this year is x5000 members.

I encourage current non-members to please “Join the Family Club” and get on board. We have great value member options here - https://membership.sffc.com.au/

For our current members, I thank-you for your ongoing support and your trust in our vision for this Club, and belief in the motto: South Fremantle. Yes We Are.

I could, and would like, to write volumes on the quality of our people at this Club, be it our Members, Staff, Volunteers, Players or Coaches. It is the ‘collective many’ that makes South Fremantle the Club that we are.

I will highlight a player example, to illuminate the football lifecycle, beginnings and endings.

Brock Higgins, a true warrior for our Club, recently retired. A brave, hard-working and incredibly reliable contributor, he gave everything he had on field for us, which made him a instant and enduring fan favourite. Brock ends his storied WAFL career, with the respect and admiration of our whole Club.

As Brock departs, our own Jesse Motlop very much arrives, onto an AFL list.

Jesse was drafted at pick 27 last night, to the Carlton Football Club. From a famous footballing family, Jesse is a wonderful young man and has been an excitement package for South Fremantle in his junior career. We wish him well, and we know he will commit himself fully to the demands of the AFL system.

We anticipate further success on and off the field in 2022, and we are certainly engineering our strategies, recruiting, and budgeting to deliver this.

As thoughts turn to Christmas, I encourage a visit to our ‘Online Team Store’, which has a range of terrific gift ideas for that Bulldog loved one - https://shop.sffc.com.au/

One of our largest growth areas has been in merchandise and memorabilia sales, largely due to the loyalty and support of our fans, and the quality and diversity of our product range.

We recently launched our latest history book, Bulldogs Unleashed, which spans 1960-2020 and is an outstanding and comprehensive documentation of club heritage. A must for every Souths fan and the perfect Christmas gift, so be sure to purchase your copy.

On behalf of the South Fremantle Football Club, may I wish all within our “Family” a happy and safe festive season, and a successful New Year.

Go Bulldogs

Cameron Britt
Chief Executive Officer