SA Footy

2016 marks the 101st commemoration of Anzac Day.

Anzac Day goes beyond the anniversary of the landing on Gallipoli in 1915. It is the day on which we remember all Australians who served and died in war and on operational service. The spirit of Anzac, with its qualities of courage, mateship, and sacrifice, continues to have meaning and relevance for our sense of national identity.

Listed here are local services in the Adelaide Hills/Fleurieu/KI areas. Please feel free to add your local services to this thread.

Monday April 25th, 2016

Aldgate RSL - 6.30am
American River Reserve - 6.15am
Cherry Gardens Soldiers Memorial - 8.30am
Clarendon War Memorial- 9.30am
Coromandel Valley Memorial Gardens - 9.00am
Echunga Monument - 6.30am
Goolwa RSL - 6.00am
Gumeracha Hall - 6.30am
Hahndorf Memorial Gardens - 6.30am
Houghton Village Square - 6.15am
Kangarilla War Memorial - 6.30am
Kingscote Bernie Davies Memorial Park - 6.15am
Littlehampton Miels Park - 6.30am
Lobethal Cross of Remembrance - 6.15am
McLaren Vale Memorial Park - 6.00am
Meadows War Memorial - 6.30am
Milang Institute - 10.00am
Mount Barker Soldiers Memorial - 6.00am
Mount Pleasant Hall - 6.15am
Mylor War Memorial - 6.30am
Nairne - 6.15am
Norton Summit War Memorial - 6.30am
Parndarna Hall - 8.30am
Penneshaw War Memorial - 8.30am
Port Elliot War Memorial - 6.00am
Stirling Liberty Lawns - 6.30am
Strathalbyn Soldiers Memorial - 6.00am
Tooperang War Memorial - 6.00am
Victor Harbor Memorial Gardens - 5.45am
Willunga War Memorial - 6.15am
Yankalilla Memorial Park - 6.45am

Encourage anyone who can attend, to do so. Then raise a glass to our diggers!

Eric Sutton Reserve - Rosewater Football Club, Newcastle St, Rosewater.

The Oval was renamed "Eric Sutton Reserve" in 1954 as a tribute to Alderman Eric Sutton who died as a prisoner of war in Thailand in 1943. He served on the Port Adelaide Council from 1930-1942.

I've attended the service for 6 years now since moving into the area. Numbers vary from 40 to 80 odd and I feel a duty to continue to attend this service and support the small group who make the effort to organise this ceremony. With pride my two kids join me, many of the young people in the street don a beanie and rub their eyes to be in attendance.

I encourage everyone to get to a service, big or small.

Littlehampton is actually my local service.

It's held in Miels Park. I am not 100% certain of the war link, though the Miels family, but I know there is one.

Ours has been going for about 10 or so years now. Numbers have grown from around 100, to last year I'd estimate close on 400.

The community association put on a gunfire breakfast. I like a tot of rum in my coffee!

Here's hoping my local service organise it a bit better this year. The numbers horribly exceeded expectations at Hilton (behind the West Torrens council chambers) last year over half of those attending probably barely heard a word spoken and then have to deal with incoming aircraft.

heater31 wrote:Here's hoping my local service organise it a bit better this year. The numbers horribly exceeded expectations at Hilton (behind the West Torrens council chambers) last year over half of those attending probably barely heard a word spoken and then have to deal with incoming aircraft.

The irony.

Booney wrote:

heater31 wrote:Here's hoping my local service organise it a bit better this year. The numbers horribly exceeded expectations at Hilton (behind the West Torrens council chambers) last year over half of those attending probably barely heard a word spoken and then have to deal with incoming aircraft.

The irony.

Yeah one year they timed during the silence of the ode bastards!

Such a bittersweet day, full of patriotic pride, thanks and sadness for the horrors experienced by so many. It's almost the only day of the year when people put aside differences, as they should, to pay respect to so many brave and selfless people. Lest We Forget.

Hoping to get down to Semaphore again for the morning service.

Living 5 min away from the Tea Tree Gully Memorial service, I might get along this year.

Corona Man wrote:Anzac Day goes beyond the anniversary of the landing on Gallipoli in 1915. It is the day on which we remember all Australians who served and died in war and on operational service.

Incorrect, it should read "remember some Australians" not "all". The tens of thousands killed in the Frontier Wars still are not acknowledged by the RSL, Anzac Day or the War Memorial.

This has been a disaster. But, thankfully, it's now going ahead:

http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/sout ... bdd8acf363

Wedgie wrote:

Corona Man wrote:Anzac Day goes beyond the anniversary of the landing on Gallipoli in 1915. It is the day on which we remember all Australians who served and died in war and on operational service.

Incorrect, it should read "remember some Australians" not "all". The tens of thousands killed in the Frontier Wars still are not acknowledged by the RSL, Anzac Day or the War Memorial.

My apologies...

Get to a service tomorrow... Where ever you can... Just do it. Lest we forget.

On the 23rd of July, my lads,
In the year 1916;
We charged for Poziers town, my lads,
Through hell on Earth we'd been,
We took the trench, we took the wood,
At last we took the town,
The Germans could not throw us back,
Although they mowed us down,
The Germans could not throw us back,
Although they mowed us down.

- Stanza 5 of song composed by Lance-Corporal Ben Champion, A Company, 1st Battalion, AIF

Lest we forget

In the taking and holding of the small village of Pozieres in July and August 1916 over 22,000 Australian soldiers were lost.

Pozières and Passchendaele

A hot sun hung in a brazen sky,
And the fields we trampled were brown and bare,
And our throats, you remember, were parched and dry
When you got your issue at Pozières

But earth and sky were a sodden mess.
And the mud was churned 'neath a leaden hail;
And we lay in a muddle of filthiness
When I collected at Passchendaele.

Summer and Winter, the seasons pass.
Spring and Autumn, they come and go.
Skies of lead turn to skies of brass,
And where are the Diggers we used to know?

Faster and faster with each swift year
The Diggers go on their last lone trial,
Since you got your issue at Pozières,
And I collected at Passchendaele.

And it may be near, or it may be far,
And it may be a season of sun, or rain,
When we say farewell to the things that are,
With a hope that it has not been all in vain.

And it may be that everything will be clear
When we meet the Diggers beyond the veil.
And we'll find the reason for Pozières
And we'll know the purpose of Passchendaele.
------------------------------------

Lest we forget

Battle of Fromelles
Fromelles was the first major battle fought by Australian troops on the Western Front. Directed against a strong German position known as the Sugar Loaf salient, the attack was intended primarily as a feint to draw German troops away from the Somme offensive then being pursued further to the south. A seven-hour preparatory bombardment deprived the attack of any hope of surprise, and ultimately proved ineffective in subduing the well-entrenched defenders. When the troops of the 5th Australian and 61st British Divisions attacked at 6 pm on 19 July 1916, they suffered heavily at the hands of German machine-gunners. Small parts of the German trenches were captured by the 8th and 14th Australian Brigades, but, devoid of flanking support and subjected to fierce counter-attacks, they were forced to withdraw. By 8am on 20 July 1916, the battle was over. The 5th Australian Division suffered 5,533 casualties, rendering it incapable of offensive action for many months; the 61st British Division suffered 1,547. The German casualties were little more than 1,000. The attack was a complete failure as the Germans realised within a few hours it was merely a feint. It therefore had no impact whatsoever upon the progress of the Somme offensive.

We went to our first dawn service today.

We went to the TTG service, and there seemed to be a very big crowd there...

heater31 wrote:Here's hoping my local service organise it a bit better this year. The numbers horribly exceeded expectations at Hilton (behind the West Torrens council chambers) last year over half of those attending probably barely heard a word spoken and then have to deal with incoming aircraft.

Right on cue during the silence, a plane approaching landing passes overhead.......


Improvement on the PA system this year but the MC was all over the shop. Crowd slightly down on last year but still a good turn out.

I went to the Semaphore dawn service and it was done very well. Although it was a shame that some idiot couldn't shut their kid up during the moments silence, that sort of thing just really annoys me. It was packed, had a very large turnout which was great.

The Dark Knight wrote: Although it was a shame that some idiot couldn't shut their kid up during the moments silence,

This happened at the TTG v Districts game on Saturday. Kid had a full on tanti during the last post and minutes silence. Parents walked away and let him scream.


Control your frigging children people

Nice turn out this morning at our service in Littlehampton. Unusually mild as well. Some good speakers including local John Illingworth. Gunfire breakfast hit the spot. Lest we forget.