Goulburn Valley Suns

John McEwen Reserve sits inside the Shepparton Sports Precinct, and the Suns do not have it to themselves. Shepparton United and Shepparton South use the same complex, which means the club's nearest rivals are the ones sharing the changing rooms and the car park. The ground holds 3,200.

The club exists because Victorian football was rebuilt. When the state game was reorganised into the National Premier Leagues, three regional sides were brought in to give the country districts a place in a state-wide competition. The Suns were one of them — a new licence in 2013 rather than a merger of anything that already existed, though the first squads were drawn largely from United and South.

The football has mostly gone the wrong way. The Suns finished bottom of their first season and went straight down, and dropped again at the end of 2022. Promotion back to Victoria Premier League 2 came in 2026. No premiership, no cup.

What the club has instead is a reputation for producing players, built up over years under Craig Carley. Garang Kuol came through here before Central Coast Mariners, Sparta Prague and Newcastle United; his older brother Alou took a similar road, Mariners then Stuttgart.

The one run worth recalling came in 2023, when the Suns reached the Australia Cup final rounds for the first time and went out in the round of 32 to APIA Leichhardt.

The yellow and black turns out on a shared pitch against Tatura and Echuca as often as against anyone from the city.