Hobart Zebras FC
Founded as Juventus Soccer Club in 1956, after being inspired by the Italian club, Juventus, the team was based in Hobart, Tasmania. Their jerseys were black and stripes, just like their Italian counterparts and they played their games at KGV Park. The clubs badge also donned two zebras’ either side of a football.
The club competed in the Tasmanian Soccer Championship and won the league title on 9 occasions, with the first coming in the 1969 season when they beat another club who had emulated Juventus as well. Launceston Juventus was founded at around the same time as Juventus Soccer Club and continue to play in the Tasmanian football league. (As of time of writing). It was the side from Hobart that won this two-legged tie, winning their first Tasmanian Soccer Championship.
Their second win came two years later, and it was against the same opposition. The first leg was lost, 6-1 and it looked like Launceston Juventus would get revenge for their defeat two years previously, but amazingly, Hobart Juventus, as they were more commonly known as, clawed their way back into the tie and won the game, 6-1, meaning they won the final, 8-7 on aggregate.
In what was now becoming a big rivalry in Tasmanian football, the two sides met the following year in the final once again in 1972. Once again, Hobart Juventus, came out of the two-legged tie victorious and lifted their third Tasmanian title. A treble of wins followed in the 1973 season, when they once again lifted the championship trophy, beating a different opposition this time in the form of Riverside Olympic.
But it wouldn’t be until 1983 when the ‘Zebras’ would win their fifth title, playing in a one-off game against Devonport City. They won the game 2-1. As was the norm with Hobart Zebra’s, they would win consecutive titles, when beating Georgetown in 1984 and then again, beating the same opposition in the 1985 final.
Once again it would be a few years before they won their 8th title, when in 1993, they beat Devonport City, 2-1 in the final. It was the last time the club would win a league title under the name ‘Hobart Juventus’, when, in 1997, the Australian Soccer Federation made the rule that clubs could no longer be named via an ethnic affiliation, with Juventus being seen as ‘Too Italian’. And so, the club, who still wanted to keep the black and white image alive, changed their name to the Hobart Zebra’s. It wouldn’t be until 2004 when they made an appearance in the championship final again, However, they were denied their 9th title in this one by Devonport City, who had finally gained revenge on their rivals for previous defeats, winning this match, 2-1.
The Zebra’s 9th title did finally come in 2007, when they defeated Somerset in the final, 3-1. That would be the last State Championship the club would win. The league format was changed in 2012, but they have still yet to win a league title since 2007. In 2012, the club finished 5th in the league, now known as the South Premier League, missing out on the play-offs.
The 2013 season saw the league being renamed the ‘Victory League’, and the club finished 3rd, meaning they qualified for the play-offs, however that was as far as the reached, as they were defeated by Devonport City n the semi-final, 4-2. They lost the third and fourth place play-off to Olympia, 3-2.
The 2014 campaign saw the club finish second in the group, behind South Hobart, who they would meet in the last four. South Hobart were to prove to strong for their local rivals, winning the tie, 3-1 and going on to win the title by beating Northern Rangers, 3-1 in the final. 2015 was the first time the club had reached a final since 2007, when. They came 3rd in the league, qualifying them for the play-offs once again. This time, it was a quarter-final that they would have to play first, facing Kingsborough Lions United, who they dispatched quite easily, 5-0. It set-up a semi-final with rivals, South Hobart and this time the result as different from the last one. The Zebra’s won the game, 3-0 and finally reached a final for the first time since 2007. There they met, Olympia Warriors, who proved to be too strong and beat Hobart Zebra’s, 3-1.
The 2016 was another successful one, when they finished runner-sup in the league to Devonport City and qualified for the play-offs. After beating Somerset, 4-0, they found themselves playing Devonport City in the semi-final. They proved to much for The Zebra’s, beating them 3-1. The 2017 season saw a 4th place finish qualify them for the play-offs again, but they didn’t make it past the quarter final stage, as they were beaten by Olympia Warriors, 2-1. The 2018 season saw a change in how the title was one, with a stand-out league format now being applied. Hobart Zebra’s came 3rd that season, 11 points behind the eventual champions, Devonport City. They were the 2019 champions, and Hobart Zebra’s finished 4th, but this would prove to be the last season that the club would play under the name, Hobart Zebra’s. In a move that seemed a little strange to those looking from the outside, inwards, the club decided to merge with Clarence United, a club who had just finished bottom of the league and had only won one game all season. So, as it was, the Zebra’s 63-year existence ended, well, under the guise of Hobart Zebra’s, albeit the new club took on the name, Clarence Zebra’s FC.
To this day, Hobart Zebra’s are one of the most successful clubs to come from Tasmania, winning 9 State Championships, 10 Southern Premierships, 7 KO Cups, and various other domestic cups. The club even played in National cup competitions in 1985 and 1986, when they played in the NSL Cup. Clarence Zebra’s FC continue to play in the National Premier League Tasmania Division 2, but have not had any success’ since the merger.