We’d like to extend our sincere thanks to Dean Arnel, who is stepping down as Head Coach of our Under 19.5s team following the 2026 season.
Dean took on the challenge of leading the group in Division 1 this year, showing plenty of dedication and commitment throughout the season. His hard work, encouragement and efforts to support the development of our young players have been greatly appreciated.
While Dean is finishing up in the coaching role, he won’t be leaving the Burra. He’ll still be a familiar face around the club, supporting his kids as they continue to pull on the teal and black.
We thank Dean for everything he has contributed to the team this season!
We’re proud to share that we have once again been recognised by TAC Victoria for our leadership in promoting road safety within our community. This year, we received $2,500 as part of the TAC and AFL Victoria Club Rewards Program, taking our total to $25,400 raised for our club.
Since first participating in 2021, St Mary’s has successfully secured funding every year, including a $10,000 grant in its inaugural year, the program’s highest level of recognition.
This recognition highlights our ongoing and outstanding commitment to embedding a strong culture of road safety across our club, one that extends well beyond game day and into the everyday lives of our players, volunteers, parents, and supporters. By taking part in this program, clubs like ours directly support the TAC’s mission to eliminate deaths and serious injuries on Victorian roads.
President Mark Stanley shared the importance of the TAC Club Rewards program.
“To have received more than $25,000 through this program over six consecutive years is a fantastic achievement for our club. But beyond the funding, it’s about using our platform as a community sporting club to make a positive difference.”
“Sport brings people together, and if the messages we’re sharing encourage even one person to slow down or make a safer decision behind the wheel, that’s something we can all be proud of.”
We thank TAC Victoria and AFL Victoria for their ongoing support and acknowledge everyone in our community who continues to champion safer roads.
Our 2026 Road Safety Initiatives
This year, the focus was on slowing down on the road and helping the community make safer choices behind the wheel. Our 2026 campaign included several initiatives:
Road Safety Review: Our completely original campaign this year fortnightly social media series putting road safety behaviours under review. Inspired by the familiar format of sporting performance reviews, the campaign assessed everyday driving behaviours, recognising positive habits while calling out dangerous decisions behind the wheel.
Participating in Road Safety Round: In the designated round in July, our players wore the TAC blue armbands, a visible reminder of our commitment to safer roads.
TAC Slo-Mo campaign: We featured key moments from football and netball games in slow-motion, reminding everyone that some things, like driving, are better slowed down.
Leadership video: Club leaders, coaches and supporters featured in videos explaining the significance of wearing blue armbands during Road Safety Round, helping reinforce road safety messages
Regular promotion of key messages:Continually used TAC pre-made assets to share messages about speeding, distracted driving, learners and other topics, even using photos of our club to make the messages more impactful.
Thank you to Micaela Hanlon, Communications Manager, for creating and running these initiatives.
On Saturday, we came together for our 2026 Presentation Night, recognising the achievements, hard work and dedication of our players, coaches, volunteers and supporters throughout the season.
It was a wonderful opportunity to reflect on another big year for the Burras, celebrate individual and team successes, and acknowledge the many people who contribute to making St Mary’s such a special club.
Congratulations to all our 2026 award winners! Your achievements are a reflection of the commitment, effort and passion you have shown throughout the season, both on and off the field and court.
The evening also saw us officially welcome James Ind, Lauren Ind and Paul Millet as our newest Life Members, recognising their outstanding contributions and years of dedication to St Mary’s. This is a well-deserved honour, and we thank them for everything they have done, and continue to do, for our club.
A huge thank you to everyone who joined us to celebrate, and to all those who helped make the evening such a success. A special mention to Lauren Ind and Mark Stanley for their efforts in organising and bringing the night together.
As we close out another season, we also extend our thanks to our coaches, team managers, committee members, volunteers, sponsors, families and supporters. Your ongoing dedication and generosity are what keep our club thriving.
We’re incredibly proud of what we’ve achieved together in 2026 and are already looking forward to what 2027 brings!
A special congratulations to Jo Denton, who coached her first game for St Mary’s, leading one of our 15&U junior netball teams.
Jo was part of our inaugural 15&U junior netball team and was more recently talent identified by Netball Victoria.
It’s fantastic to now see her journey come full circle as she takes on a coaching role, helping develop the next generation of young Burra players.
An accredited coach, Jo already has coaching experience outside St Mary’s and has continued to develop her skills through opportunities with the NFNL this year.
Seeing players like Jo progress through our junior program and return to give back as coaches is exactly what building a strong, sustainable junior netball program is all about.
To top it off, Jo and her team kicked off the season with a win!
Our Annual General Meeting (AGM) is scheduled for 6:30pm on Monday 9 November 2026 at Whatmough Park Club Rooms, 2 Kalparrin Avenue, Greensborough. This is an important event for all our members, and we encourage everyone to attend.
During the AGM, we’ll review our accomplishments over the past year, discuss future goals, and provide a platform for your voices and ideas. It’s a great opportunity to stay engaged with our community.
All committee positions are open. The nomination form and proxy form are available for download below.
Please return forms to Club SecretaryJessie Bickerton prior to the meeting at stmarys2009@gmail.com.
The 2026 Toyota Good for Footy Raffle has officially closed, with St Mary’s raising a fantastic $2,565 for the club.
It’s our best result since we began participating in the raffle, representing a 119% increase onlast year.
Importantly, 100% of the proceeds from tickets purchased through our club’s raffle page come directly back to St Mary’s, helping support our players, programs and facilities.
A huge thank you to everyone who purchased tickets, shared the raffle with family and friends, or helped us spread the word. Thank you to our top fundraisers: Lusi Exact Accountants, Cold Concepts, Little Family, Hanlon Family, Cotter Family, Stanley Family, Hamilton Family, Bickerton Family, Tanya Gordon and Brenton Kinnear.
Your support has helped us achieve our biggest fundraising result through the Toyota Good for Footy Raffle to date.
The raffle will be drawn this Thursday, with all funds raised expected to be returned to participating clubs within four weeks of the draw.
Good luck to everyone who purchased a ticket, and thank you for supporting St Mary’s!
Join us for our annual Presentation Night as we come together to celebrate the 2026 season and recognise our Best & Fairest winners across senior football and netball.
Presentation Night will be held on Saturday 17 October at Rosanna Golf Club, from 6:30pm to 11:30pm.
Tickets are $75 per person and include finger food and soft drink. Alcohol will be available to purchase from the bar throughout the evening.
Players, partners, family, friends and supporters are all welcome to join us as we celebrate another big year at the Burra.
St Mary’s had plenty to celebrate across the 2026 NFNL Presentation Nights, with Burra players featuring prominently in the league Best & Fairest and Coaches MVP counts, alongside recognition for our trainers and volunteers.
Across football and netball, the club celebrated four major wins, as well as a host of top-five finishes in another fantastic showing from our players and people.
Senior Netball
It was a particularly strong result in Division 5, with three St Mary’s players finishing inside the top five.
Clare Nicholls capped off an outstanding season by taking out the Division 5 Best & Fairest with 22 votes. She was joined at by team mates Niamh Pilatti, who finished 4th with 11 votes, and Matilda Blakey, who finished 5th with 10 votes.
In Division 6, Tahlia Ryan finished 3rd with 13 votes, while Sarah Williams secured 2nd place in Division 9 with 16 votes.
Olive Birrell also earned a top-five finish in the 17&U competition, placing 5th.
Junior Netball
Our junior netballers were also recognised following excellent seasons.
In 15&U Division 1, Gemma Spithill finishedrunner-up with 8 votes, while Remy Gangell placed 3rd in 13&U Division 2 with 7 votes.
Women’s Football – Division 1
Kiara Delia was crowned the Division 1 Coaches MVP, finishing on top with an impressive 61 votes. Teammate Emmison Zealley finished 3rd with 49 votes.
In the league Best & Fairest, Brigid McEntee finished 3rd with 11 votes, completing a strong night of recognition for the Division 1 side.
Women’s Football – Division 3
Charly Bandera finished 4th in the Coaches MVP with 53 votes, with teammate Jasmine Stone finishing 6th with 49 votes.
In the Best & Fairest, Charly again placed 4th with 16 votes, while Ashley Leeson finished 5th with 12 votes.
Charly also claimed one of the night’s major honours, being crowned the Division 3 Leading Goalkicker after booting 26 goals for the season.
Men’s Football – Division 2
Dom Akuei finished runner-up with 17 votes, while captain Tane Cotter placed 5th with 13 votes.
The Reserves also had two players inside the top four, with Mitchell Hocking finishing 3rd with 10 votes and Raygan Tate placing 4th with 9 votes.
Recognition Awards
The celebrations extended beyond the field and court, with two members of the Burra community recognised for their contribution to the competition.
Elyssa Rees was named the NFNL Trainer of the Year, a fantastic recognition of her support as head trainer while co-captaining the Senior Women to another 3 premierships over the last few seasons.
Liz Mace was also recognised as a finalist for NFNL Volunteer of the Year, acknowledging the enormous contribution she has made to the St Mary’s community since 1994.
We’ve had another update to our Toyota Good for Footy Raffle Top Fundraisers leaderboard – and with just over a week remaining, there’s still time to make a late charge for the top spot!
More importantly, this is your last chance to grab a ticket, be in the running for some incredible prizes and support St Mary’s at the same time.
The raffle closes at 12pm on Monday 21 September, unless tickets sell out prior.
Tickets are just $5 each, with some fantastic prizes up for grabs including three brand new Toyota’s!
Best of all, 100% of the proceeds from every ticket purchased through the St Mary’s page comes directly back to our club, helping us support our players, programs and facilities.
A huge thank you to everyone who has already purchased tickets, shared the raffle or helped with fundraising. Every ticket makes a difference.
Can anyone catch our current leader before the raffle closes?
A huge thank you to everyone who came down last night for our End of Season Celebration!
It was great to have so many players, partners, families, friends and supporters together to celebrate what has been a truly excellent season across the club.
A season is about so much more than what happens on game day, and nights like last night are a pretty good reminder of the people and community that make the Burra what it is.
A special thank you to Mark & Noah Stanley, Lauren & James Ind and Bernie Girolami and everyone else involved in organising the night and making it all happen.
And a huge thank you to Pete Watson and junior club for running the bar and helping out with the food throughout the night, allowing everyone from the Senior Club to relax and enjoy the celebrations.
