The Sartori name is held in the highest esteem at the Grassy Football Club. JA Sartori arrived on King Island on May 22, 1939, and became a popular MC at dances.
His skills soon extended into football, golf and cricket administration.
Jim and his wife, Nell, were avid supporters of GFC, with their sons, Don and John, becoming budding footballers.
Jim first played for Grassy in 1942 and retired in 1957 after serving as coach, vice president, assistant coach and match manager.
Jim’s true legacy lies in his dedication to junior football. He successfully coached GFC juniors in the early ‘50s and was a key figure in forming the KIJFA, serving as its founding president from 1952 for eight years and then as its patron until it rejoined KIFA in 1965.
Jim donated a trophy for the best-dressed team for decades and made a life member of KIJFA, KIFA, and GFC.
He was known as the ‘father of King Island junior football’, served on the KIFA tribunal and was active in GFC and KIFA until the late ‘80s, acting as patron from 1980 to 1997.
Jim’s son Don played for GFC schoolboys, juniors and Southern seconds from 1947 to 1954.
He tied for the GFC junior B&F with his brother John in 1951 and played in three senior premierships until the mine closed in 1958.
with grandfather Don Sartori and the KIFA Premiership Cup won by Grassy.
He received many awards including best club man in 1956, most consistent in 1957 and most unselfish in 1958.
Don was on the GFC committee and a club delegate. Don moved to the West Coast and returned to the Island in 1961 to captain-coach GFC.
His wife Sheila supported Grassy juniors for decades, earning a life membership and serving as club patron in the 1990s.
Their eldest son Jimmy played junior football from 1972 to 1975 and senior football until 1981, including the 1978 senior premiership.
Younger brother Gerald ‘Jezza’ played juniors from 1974 to 1979, moved to senior ranks in 1979, and won the GFC B&F in 1992. Jezza had a 25-year senior playing career, likely the club’s games record holder, and played for King Island sides.
His son Leigh played junior and senior football, starring for the Southport Sharks in QLD.
Jim and Nell’s other son John played from 1947 to 1956, winning many awards and premierships. He played in the 1955 senior premiership, later moving to Traralgon and Maryvale.
John returned to captain-coach GFC and the King Island side in 1968 and coached the senior side in 1975-76. John’s son Peter played junior football, winning the KIFA junior B&F in 1980 and the GFC senior B&F in 1984.
His younger brother Shawn played juniors and seniors, later joining Burnie Hawks, Sandy Bay and the Southern Cats.
The Sartori maternal line also contributed to King Island football, with Jeremy Batey, Greg Munday and Alex van Ruiswyk as notable players.
The current crop includes Jackson and Rory Taylor, whose mother Nikki is a GFC life member and father Shane also played for Grassy in the ‘90s.
The Sartori medal, awarded to the best on the ground in the KIFA Seniors Grand Final, honours this family’s significant contributions to King Island Football.
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