AFL Drought Support Match raises much needed funds for farmers

In the wake of last month’s AFL Drought Support Match, $115,000 has been raised for the Rural Business Support Relief Fund, which will go directly toward assisting drought-impacted farmers across South Australia.

More than 3,000 farmers and their families were among the stands at Adelaide Oval on the afternoon of July 20 to watch the Adelaide Crows take on the Gold Coast Suns as part of the initiative - spearheaded by Grain Producers Australia (GPSA).

In the wake of the match, GPSA Chair John Gladigau thanked the State Government, Adelaide Crows and Foodland for their contributions and for bringing GPSA’s vision to life.

Speaking with Mr Gladigau ahead of the match on FlowFM's Country Viewpoint program last month, he said that the match wasn't just about the financial support, but giving farmers and their families an opportunity to take a breather from the demands of the farm and help others understand the reality of what they’re facing.

"On one hand (we know it's not going to make the drought) go away and it doesn't solve the problems on the ground, but it's really good just give farmers that chance to take that bit of time away from the farm,"  he said.

"On the other, it's going to raise real awareness of the drought and creates a chance for the wider community to acknowledge and thank and value farmers and for what they actually do for the state and also recognise what is actually going on currently in the drought conditions and be able to speak about that freely."

Mr Gladigau praised the Adelaide Football Club for hosting regional families with such genuine care and generosity.

“The Crows players and staff, and everyone at the footy club, went above and beyond to make the day special and their passion for regional South Australia and helping farmers in drought is clear.”

Speaking with Dan Crouch from the Flow Breaky Show, Crows forward Darcy Fogarty, originally from Lucindale in regional SA, said that the match had given a lot of players "another purpose" to play for during the week.

"It definitely gives you another purpose," he said. "It shows that football isn't the be all and end all. There's definitely people with bigger problems out there."

"We're definitely playing for the the farmers and the people in regional communities that are struggling and I think it's really important that we understand and have some perspective on life that people are doing it really tough." 

"(Living in the city) you can definitely get caught up in the city bubble of 'it's 25 degrees, what nice weather, it's perfect every day,' but if you go out to those broader communities where they do rely on rain, it's really important to have that perspective."

GPSA was proud to lead the initiative, working alongside Primary Producers SA, Livestock SA, and the SA Dairyfarmers’ Association, who united in standing up for South Australian agriculture.

Mr Gladigau also paid tribute to Premier Peter Malinauskas and Minister for Primary Industries Clare Scriven for backing the initiative and bringing GPSA’s concept to fruition.

“While the match may be over, our advocacy continues. We’ll keep pushing for practical, immediate support for farming families — including finance access, concessional loans and on-farm relief measures,” Mr Gladigau said.