Winnaleah footy club's Mark Kerr speaks of importance of reunion

Past players and supporters are being encouraged to get to the Winnaleah football ground on Saturday to reflect on the now defunct club's more than 100-year history.

The Magpies played in the North East Football Union which folded in 2017.

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They were left as the only team in the league when Scottsdale Crows called time and then their bid to join the NTFA was rejected for the 2018 season.

Former senior coach Mark Kerr, who grew up in the town and played all his footy for the Pies, is helping organise the day.

He said the organisers were pleasantly surprise with last year's turnout.

"We thought we'll be lucky to get 50 people but then 300 to 400 turned up and the weather was good and we just had a bit of a casual game," he said.

Kids will also get the chance to have a run around on the oval this year.

"There were a lot of kids there last year running around and that gave me the idea to have two games this year," he said.

The kids game starts at 12pm and will be followed by a social match for adults.

There'll be a free barbecue, the bar open will be open and the community is invited to dinner at the Winnaleah Hotel.

Why is having the catch up so important?

"What I've found living in a rural area was a day at the footy got you off the farm and you'd run into a few people and you'd have a chat," Kerr said.

"When the footy fell over, I found you weren't seeing old mate from the other side of the town as often, unless you ran into one another at the post office.

"You didn't get to catch up as often and so I thought let's do this reunion once a year.

"You do miss your footy club because that's where you'd go to training on Thursday night and then you'd go to the game on Saturday. And the women would go and the kids would go.

"And our area has missed that. Even though the reunion is only once a year, I think people come along and go 'this is what it used to be like'."

Kerr said last year there were families at the reunion with three generations of history at the club.

"And then and there were kids who came back who are playing at Scottsdale or in Launceston now who never got to have a game on the Winnaleah ground," he said.

Kerr explained it was a thrill for young players to pull on the Pies jumper to play at the same ground as their father or grandfather.

Winnaleah won numerous flags including in 1965, 1985, 2005, 2011 and 2012.

The Magpies defeated Bridport in the 2012 decider.

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