Tasmania Devils play FIRST-EVER match against another club
- 6 News Australia
- 7 days ago
- 2 min read
The Tasmania Devils have faced another club for the first time ahead of their AFL debut in 2028 – and 6 News was there.
One thousand days after their launch, the Tasmania Devils have played their first official game of football.
It wasn’t for premiership points, but it did give fans the chance to see many of the players running out for Tasmania throughout the year when they’re competing in the VFL.
The Devils faced Werribee – who were 16th in the VFL last year and won the 2024 premiership – in a practice match at RMIT University Oval in Melbourne.
Interest in the AFL’s 19th club was clear, with a crowd of just about 1,000 showing up. Tassie captain Robbie Fox was absent, with Jye Menzie taking over responsibilities for the 23-man squad that flew over.
The match might have given some insight into the travel problems that could happen with Tasmania’s inclusion, as the game was pushed back from a start time of 2:10pm to 3pm because of flight delays.
For the record books, it was Harry Elmer who got Tasmania’s first disposal with a kick from the centre square, while Jed Hagan got the club’s first goal after just a few minutes of play.
Werribee had a seven-point advantage at quarter-time, but Tasmania were able to take the lead at some stages of the match, leaving it all-square at the main break.
Tasmania’s players looked strong considering it was their first time together against a rival club and played with a lot of energy, while the Tigers kept themselves in the game with their experienced squad.
Final scores:
WER: 3.3 / 5.5 / 9.7 / 14.8 (92)
TAS: 2.2 / 5.5 / 7.7 / 10.12 (72)
The result should give both sides confidence leading into the VFL season – Tasmania will play their first premiership season match on Saturday, 21 March, against Coburg at North Hobart Oval, while Werribee opens their season with a trip to the Gold Coast to face the Suns, who they lost to in the 2023 grand final.
There was also another chance for Devils players to compete before round 1 when they faced Tasmania’s under-18s Academy squad on Sunday, comfortably winning 20.12 (133) to 6.8 (44).
How well Tasmania will go is really anyone's guess – when Gold Coast made its senior debut in the VFL in 2010 before entering the AFL, they finished 10th out of 14 clubs. while GWS were third in the NEAFL Eastern Conference in 2011, prior to joining the AFL in 2012.
There are plenty of different circumstances, and the Devils will be hoping that the inclusion of experienced players keeps the side competitive throughout the 2026 season.
Watch highlights from the match here.