As triumphs and heartbreaking results encapsulated the league’s biggest day on the calendar, supporters of clubs across the Goulburn Valley embarked on Shepparton’s iconic venue to cheer their teams towards premiership success.
At the top flight, the best teams all year held firm in their hunt for silverware - minor premier Kyabram coolly kept Rochester at an arm’s length all game, while the undefeated Shepparton trounced Euroa in a statement A-grade netball grand final display.
But fans flocked to Deakin in the crisp morning air too, with grandstands filled before the first sirens sounded, watching on as the junior netballers and footballers hit their respective courts and turf for the opening matches of the day.
As the dust settled on Sunday evening, and eight football and netball teams went home with silverware and medallions, premiership glory turned out to be not the only success on the day, with the GVL taking home a monster figure in gate takings.
From a crowd of 5531, the league collected $88,374.
It’s a sizeable increase in earnings compared to 2024, which stood at $60,289 in gate takings for the day, as the league capitalised off a five dollar increase on adult tickets and six dollar increase on pension and concession prices this year.
The crowd figure had a slight decline of a few hundred patrons compared to Echuca’s three-peat winning year though, with the 2024 crowd closing in on 6000 that paid the entry fee.