Prior to 1889 the Minor Premier was declared Premier with no finals played (Also applied 1890-93, 1895-97)
In 1889 Norwood & Port tied for top spot and played one final to decide the premier. (Norwood won.)
Finals were permanently introduced in 1898 and prior to 1931 if the minor premier was defeated in a final they had the right to play the Grand Final winner in a Challenge Final to decide the premiership.
In 1931 the Page System was introduced with a final four structure that whilst giving the minor premier a double chance, did not guarantee them a berth in the premiership deciding game. This final four was extended to a final five in 1973 which bar one year back to a final four in 2003, still remains in force today.
All premiership deciding finals have been played at either Adelaide Oval or AAMI Stadium with the exception of the 1904 Challenge Final which was played at Jubilee Oval (location now Barr Smith Library at Adelaide University)
Overall Grand Final Results
TEAM
P
W
L
D
%
LAST WON
LAST LOST
Port
60
33
27
-
55
1999
1997
Norwood
36
19
16
1
54
2012
2010
Sturt
24
13
10
1
54
2002
2009
North
29
13
15
1
45
1991
2007
West
17
8
9
-
50
1983
2012
Central
14
9
5
-
64
2010
2011
South
13
5
7
1
42
1964
1979
Glenelg
17
4
13
-
24
1986
2008
Eagles
8
3
5
-
37
2011
2005
Torrens
8
4
4
-
50
1953
1949
GRAND FINAL RECORDS
Highest Attendance:
66,897 Sturt v Port (1976)
Highest Score:
24.15 (159) Sturt v Glenelg (1969)
Lowest Score:
1.8 (14) North def by Port (1989) *
Largest Winning Margin:
125 points Central 23.15 (153) d Eagles 4.4 (28) (2004)
Smallest Winning Margin:
1 point Norwood d Sturt (1978)
Highest Losing Score:
19.16 (130) Glenelg d North (1973)
Lowest Winning Score:
8.10 (58) Port d West (1962)
Biggest Match Aggregate:
267 points Glenelg d North (1973)
Smallest Match Aggregate:
95 points Port d South (1979)
* Offical SANFL Records date back to 1907
Recent Grand Final Results (All played at AAMI Stadium)
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Grand Final History