Footy · Melbourne’s north-west

Footy clubs and training in Macedon Ranges

8 clubs in the Macedon Ranges, and every one of them picks its best side on who can run, tackle and back up week after week. Here is where they play — and how to be the player they pick.

One month free, then A$24.99/month. Cancel any time. iPhone and iPad.

Short answer

8 footy clubs have a home ground in the Macedon Ranges (population 51,458 at the 2021 census), across 8 suburbs. Most play in the Riddell District Football Netball League (8 clubs), with others in the Ballarat Football Netball League (1) and the Essendon District Football League (1).

Juniors who live in Macedon Ranges are zoned to the Calder Cannons, based at Highgate Recreation Reserve in Craigieburn, whose zone runs from Merri-bek and Moonee Valley out through Hume to the Macedon Ranges.

8 clubs

Footy clubs in Macedon Ranges

Every club with a home ground in the Macedon Ranges, where it plays, and the league and grades it fields. Most senior clubs also run junior and girls’ teams — the club can tell you which age groups have spots.

Footy clubs with a home ground in the Macedon Ranges, by suburb
ClubHome groundCompetition and grades
GisborneGardiner Reserve, GisborneBFL seniors
RDFNL juniors
EDFL women’s
KynetonKyneton Showgrounds, KynetonRDFNL seniors
LancefieldLancefield Park, LancefieldRDFNL seniors · women’s
MacedonTony Clarke Reserve, MacedonRDFNL seniors · women’s
Gisborne GiantsMacedon Ranges Sports Precinct, New GisborneRDFNL seniors
RiddellRiddells Creek Recreation Reserve, Riddells CreekRDFNL seniors · women’s
RomseyRomsey Park, RomseyRDFNL seniors
Woodend-HesketGilbert Gordon Reserve, WoodendRDFNL seniors

From each league’s current club list, checked September 2026. Clubs change leagues and divisions between seasons; the league is right if this is not.

Your pathway

Which Talent League club you trial for

Juniors who live in Macedon Ranges are zoned to the Calder Cannons, based at Highgate Recreation Reserve in Craigieburn, whose zone runs from Merri-bek and Moonee Valley out through Hume to the Macedon Ranges.

Melbourne’s north-west: the zones, the leagues and the VFL clubs →

How the AFL pathway works, step by step →

Your first ten minutes

Set it up for your club in Macedon Ranges

Four things, in the order the app asks them. The footy calendar and conditions are on the Melbourne guide.

Choose footy, then your team nights

Onboarding asks “When do you train with your team?” Pick your club nights — Riddell District Football Netball League or wherever you play — and your gym and conditioning are scheduled around them, lighter the day after a big one. Tell it your equipment and any niggles and every exercise is fitted to both.

Match the program to your league’s start

The app treats March as the start of the AFL season. If your league does not start until mid-April, set your season phase yourself and stay in pre-season a few weeks longer. The phase lives in Program → Your year.

Know your numbers on day one

Your first testing session is ready immediately: 2km time trial, Bench press 1RM, Max pull-ups, Trap-bar deadlift 1RM, Running vertical jump. It is re-run every 8 weeks, and the results re-price your training weights and conditioning paces.

Put your suburb on the board

In Social → Town, set where you train. Your minutes count toward that town’s weekly conditioning and strength top-10 boards — only the town is kept, never your location.

GisborneKynetonWoodendRomseyRiddells CreekLancefieldNew GisborneMacedonMount MacedonMalmsbury

The suburbs

The Macedon Ranges by suburb

51,458 people at the 2021 census. Suburb populations from the same census; a suburb marked * is shared with a neighbouring council.

Gisborne 10,142Kyneton 7,513Woodend 6,732Romsey 5,797Riddells Creek 4,390Lancefield 2,743New Gisborne 2,509Macedon 2,073Mount Macedon 1,450Malmsbury* 905Gisborne South 854Toolern Vale* 818Bullengarook 714Tylden* 645Newham 533Taradale* 524Darraweit Guim 402Carlsruhe 382Woodend North 315Clarkefield* 303Drummond* 294Goldie 253Lauriston 247Ashbourne 242Monegeetta 207Spring Hill* 200Pipers Creek 189Bolinda 185Trentham East* 181Hesket 178Denver* 148Benloch 138Fern Hill* 125Bylands* 117Kyneton South 116Chintin 111Cobaw 104Edgecombe 103Baynton 95Kerrie 83Pastoria 75Rochford 71Cherokee 68Greenhill* 60Pastoria East 51Sidonia 28Cadello 25
For coaches

Coaching a side in Macedon Ranges?

A club licence is A$8 per player, per month (minimum 5), and every player on it gets full Train Smart membership at no cost to them. You write the block once, it lands in each player’s app, and the console shows who actually did it.

FAQ

Footy in Macedon Ranges: questions

What footy clubs are in the Macedon Ranges?
8 clubs have a home ground in the Macedon Ranges: Gisborne, Kyneton, Lancefield, Macedon, Gisborne Giants, Riddell, Romsey and Woodend-Hesket. The table on this page lists each one’s ground, league and grades.
Which Talent League club are Macedon Ranges juniors zoned to?
Juniors who live in Macedon Ranges are zoned to the Calder Cannons, based at Highgate Recreation Reserve in Craigieburn, whose zone runs from Merri-bek and Moonee Valley out through Hume to the Macedon Ranges.
Where can women and girls play footy in the Macedon Ranges?
4 clubs field a women’s senior side: Gisborne, Lancefield, Macedon and Riddell. Most junior clubs also run girls’ teams — ask the club directly.
Which league do Macedon Ranges footy clubs play in?
Most Macedon Ranges clubs play in the Riddell District Football Netball League (8 clubs), with others in the Ballarat Football Netball League (1) and the Essendon District Football League (1).

Turn up to round one already fit

Pick footy, tell it your Gisborne training nights — or wherever you play — and your first block and testing session are ready before you leave the car park.

One month free, then A$24.99/month. Cancel any time. iPhone and iPad.