The Southport Sharks welcome the arrival of the 2023 VFL Fixture, which the AFL have announced today.
The AFL released the full schedule for Rounds 1-14 of the 2023 Smithy’s VFL season, along with match ups and venues for the remaining eight rounds.
Southport’s season will commence on Saturday, March 25, against Sandringham Football Club at Fankhauser Reserve at 1pm.
It will be the first of nine games the Sharks will host in 2023.
The other clubs who will be coming to Fankhauser Reserve in 2023 are: Werribee (Easter Saturday), Northern Bullants (Alex Aurrichio Medal), Gold Coast Suns (Doc Mackenzie Cup), Casey Demons (Grand Final re-match), Port Melbourne (Battle of the Ports), Coburg, Richmond and Essendon.
Southport will travel to Melbourne seven times this year to play North Melbourne, Footscray, Geelong, Box Hill, Williamstown, Frankston, and Collingwood.
The Sharks will also travel to the Brisbane Lion’s new training base at Springfield to take on the Lions in Round 4, and to Sydney to take on the Giants.
The 2023 VFL home and away season will consist of 22 rounds, with each of the 21 teams to play 18 matches and have four byes.
For the first time, the 2023 Smithy’s VFL season will feature a Wildcard Round, which will be played across the weekend of August 26-27, following the final round of the home and away season.
The Wildcard Round will feature two matches – 7 v 10 and 8 v 9. The two winners will advance to the 2023 Smithy’s VFL Finals Series, with the highest-ranked winner during the Wildcard Round to enter the finals as the seventh-place team.
The top-six teams on the Smithy’s VFL ladder will have a pre-finals bye during Wildcard Round, ahead of the commencement of the 2023 Smithy’s VFL Finals Series on the weekend of September 2-3.
The 2023 Smithy’s VFL Grand Final is scheduled to be played on Sunday, September 24, the weekend before the 2023 Toyota AFL Grand Final.
Southport Head Coach Steve Daniel said, “We are happy with the fixture and are eager to get started. We look forward to starting our campaign in Round 1 against Sandringham.”
Click here for full VFL Fixture.
Click here for Sharks VFL Fixture.