History:

The Redbacks began in 2009 when a group of parents saw the need for a soccer team in Buninyong. It began as a satellite of Vic Park soccer club with 3 Junior teams and a total of 30 players. After training at Buninyong Primary School for a few months we eventually found a "home" at Royal Park, sharing the grounds with the community gardens group. In 2012, the Redbacks became a club in its own right and so began the Buninyong Soccer club.

In that same year the club, together with the Ballarat Council, rejuvenated the old soccer pitch behind the Buninyong Tennis Courts in Forest Street and later a shed was constructed to store equipment. By this stage the club had grown to around 55 players and although facilities were limited, the club had established a great vibe and a good, fair reputation.

After a couple of years, the original Under 11s reached the Under 17 competition and numbers in the club swelled to 95 players. The small Buninyong ground was unable to sustain all of the teams and the older Juniors played their home games on the Ballarat University ground. In 2015, the Under 17s surprised many by being the first to qualify for a grand final. Although they did not win, they gained enormous respect and had a massive crowd of supporters cheering them on.

2016 was the clubs first foray into the Senior Mens competition with the team exceeding all expectations by brining home the club's first ever premiership. The council and BDSA have recognised the substantial interest there is in soccer in Buninyong and a grand plan to create a club room, change rooms and 2 senior pitches at Royal Park has been formulated.

In 2017, the club membership reached an impressive 165 players. It was the first year for our all girls team and our seniors mens were promoted to Division 1. Teams trained at various locations, with some at Royal Park and some at Morshead.

The following years saw a gradual decrease in numbers, largely due to the lack of facilities and many players drifting away to the bigger clubs.

In 2019, the Council obtained a State Government grant and finalised plans for the construction of 2 new soccer pitches at Royal Park.

The following year soccer, as was the case with most sports, was significantly impacted by Covid 19 and the competition was unable to go ahead. A silver lining was that the development of the pitches was able to proceed without delay or interruption.

2021 will be 11 years since the club first began and finally it will have a home and quality pitches to play on. With the decrease in numbers, it will take time for the club to relaunch and get back to the numbers it enjoyed only a few years ago.