Sturt and Norwood set for first SANFL Grand Final clash since 1978 controversy

Sturt and Norwood will meet in the 2026 SANFL Grand Final at Adelaide Oval on Sunday, September 20.

It is the first time the two clubs have met in the decider since 1978. That game still stings. The bounce is at 2:30pm ACST in the match branded as the Hostplus SANFL League Grand Final, according to the SANFL SANFL.

Norwood won that 1978 grand final by one point ABC News. Sturt went in as the raging favourite. Coached by Jack Oatey, the Blues had lost only one game all season.

The start matched the script. Norwood actually kicked the first two goals inside the first two minutes, then Sturt took over to lead 5.9 (39) to 1.5 (11) at quarter-time. Norwood clawed back from there.

The third quarter boiled over when Norwood's John Wynne overran the ball on the boundary and tumbled into Sturt's camp. Players and officials became tangled in the scuffle that followed.

Then came the call that has been argued over for 48 years. The issue was simple: mark or free kick. A mark, a clean catch of a kick over 15 metres, earns the catcher a free kick. Late in the last quarter, with about three minutes left, Phil Gallagher was paid a mark in attack and kicked the go-ahead goal for Norwood.

Field umpire Des Foster later admitted he got it wrong, saying his field of vision was obscured. Gallagher's kick came in front of more than 50,000 fans at Football Park, the home of South Australian football from 1974 to 2013, plus a live television audience.

Sturt had its say on the story too. Former Blue Colin Casey later claimed the free kick in that passage should have gone to him, not to Gallagher for a mark. Brian Adamson also kicked a famous 60-metre screw punt from a disputed free kick earlier in the game. Sturt had chances in the dying minutes but could not convert.

What makes this stand out is how little the memory has faded. For Sturt supporters it is the one that got away. For Norwood fans it is proof of never giving in.

This time the form guide is clearer. Norwood beat Sturt 8.10 (58) to 5.9 (39) in the semi-final at Adelaide Oval SANFL. In Australian rules scoring, six points for a goal and one for a behind, so that was a 19-point margin.

Sturt will be led by captain Tom Lewis. Norwood will be led by captain Jacob Kennerley. A new chapter starts on Sunday afternoon.