Adelaide United II

The Grand Final of September 2023 was over as a contest long before the whistle. Adelaide United II beat Modbury Jets 7–2 at the end of that NPL SA season — a scoreline that gave the Young Reds the state championship, though not the premiership, which North Eastern MetroStars had already taken over the regular season.

Getting there took eight years of a deliberate detour. In 2015 the team was entered into the South Australian league pyramid at the second tier. They won State League 1 at the first attempt and went up.

In 2009 and again in 2016 the Young Reds reached the final and lost to Sydney FC Youth both times.

What the arrangement is for shows up on the senior teamsheet. Nestory Irankunda came through the pathway and left for Bayern Munich. Ethan Alagich went the shorter route — NPL SA football, then promotion into the A-League squad at Adelaide United.

Home is the State Centre for Football at Gepps Cross, known commercially as ServiceFM Stadium, which holds 7,000 with a thousand of those seated.

The national trophy is still missing. The state title of 2023 is what the club has to show for the years since it took the state-league route.