The date July 29, 1981, is one of the most significant in the history of the South Melbourne/Sydney Swans Football Club.

It was the day the VFL (now AFL) announced that South would play its 11 home matches in Sydney in 1982.

Melbourne’s The Age trumpeted in its sports lead headline: “SOUTH TO PLAY IN SYDNEY”. 

The Age’s highly-respected football writer Ron Carter reported: “The VFL board of directors last night gave South Melbourne permission to play 11 matches in Sydney next year. They will be played at the SCG on Sunday afternoons and televised into Melbourne.

“The historic decision seemed to have some urgency, probably because of the growing support against the move by the Keep South At South (KSAS) campaign.”

The KSAS group had fought tooth and nail to keep the Swans in Melbourne to play at its traditional home of the Lake Oval. South had played at the Lake Oval since the club’s inception in 1874, although there was a temporary move to the Junction Oval during World War II when South’s ground was occupied by the military.

The club was split when news leaked early in 1981 that the Swan hierarchy started making plans to relocate the Club to Sydney. However, VFL president Allen Aylett said when announcing the Swans would play in Sydney in 1981: “It is the correct decision and one that will alter the course of football history.

“The primary objective of the VFL is to establish Australian football at a national level."

Aylett was proven correct as the South move to Sydney was the first stepping stone to building the VFL into the AFL competition we know today, with 18 clubs based in Victoria, NSW, SA and WA.

VFL general manager Jack Hamilton said: “A substantial majority of club directors voted for South to play in Sydney when only a simple majority was needed to approve the move.”

The KSAS group, true to its word, fought the VFL decision and forced an Extraordinary Members’ Meeting at the Caulfield Town Hall for September 22. The meeting drew a huge crowd of fans wearing red and white beanies and scarves. However, the VFL stood firm and reaffirmed its July 29 decision.

The entire matter was resolved on Christmas eve and the reshaped club was launched at the Sydney Opera House on February 24, 1982.