Since its inception in 1880, Eaglehawk has won 28 senior premierships, three of which will be celebrated this weekend when the club holds a reunion during the round four Bendigo Football Netball League clash against Golden Square.

EFNC's Archie Lenten couldn't be prouder of the Hawks' track record in the Bendigo league.

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"Our history is so important to us as we go all the way back to 1880," he said.

"In 1999 we started a past players group and each year we have functions where we catch up and talk stories of how good we were or weren't in the big matches," he laughed.

"We're very fortunate as a club to have been up at the top a fair bit, but there's also the low moments which every team always experiences."

During the past two years the club hasn't been able to hold its reunions as frequently as it wished due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

However, come Saturday players will reunite at Canterbury Park to relive old memories.

Below are the numerous premiership triumphs that will be celebrated on Saturday.

Goals: Eaglehawk - R. Ashman 2, M. Hynes, R. King. South Bendigo - J. Kaladis

Best: Eaglehawk - D. Trewhella, B. Hayes, C. Ilsley, T. Lobb, R. Ashman, G. Eeles. South Bendigo - J. Strattan, L. Cowling, M. Boyd, R. Mierzejewski, D. McMurray

After Eaglehawk's under-18s went undefeated in the regular season it wasn't until the preliminary final when they endured their first loss.

It might have come as a shock to the team, but coach Albert Clough believes the loss helped the squad go on to clinch that year's premiership.

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"We'd had a really good year and hadn't lost a game until that preliminary final," he said.

"I feel the defeat was actually a good thing as the difference between how they played the next game showed how much they had lifted.

"This team was full of real goers."

Come grand final day the Hawks were ready to see out the season with nothing less than a win when they would meet South Bendigo in the premiership match.

In what ended up being quite a low-scoring match, the premiership was anyone's for the taking right up until the final quarter.

Heading into the fourth, Eaglehawk had a minor eight point lead (1.9 over 1.1) but would break away after goals from Ron Ashman to win the match by 30 points.

Goals: Eaglehawk - G. Kennedy 9, I. Williams 1, J. Kennedy 1, N. Munro 1, G. Brown 1, P. Shanahan 1, B. Clements 1. Golden Square - W. Garner 1, R. Best 1, P. Moroni 1

Best: Eaglehawk (Tim Habel) - G. Kennedy, G. Brown, P. Burke, G. Saunders. C. Gordon, K. Pedrotti, J. Kennedy, B. Clements. (Ron Auchetti) - G. Brown, G. Kennedy, P. Burke, P. Shanahan, B. Clements, I. Williams, K. Pedrotti

Golden Square (Tim Habel) - W. Garner, A. Southcombe, L. Holt, I. Drill. P. Moroni, J. Harris. (Ron Auchetti) - W. Garner, L. Holt, A. Southcombe, R. Gibson, I. Drill, P. Moroni

Heading into the premiership match there's no doubt the hawks were confident as it resulted in a one-sided demolition of the Bulldogs.

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Star player Greg Kennedy booted eight goals in the first half to give the Hawks a strong lead, however, his scoring power faded in the second half and would finish up on nine.

Hawks premiership player Neil 'Darby' Monro said the team had "star players on every line across the ground".

"We were ahead by nine goals at half time which pretty much had the result done and dusted," he said.

"We were a fantastic side with several players who had experience playing in Melbourne."

Hawks restricted the Bulldogs to just three goals and without even the slightest of chances at touching the premiership trophy - winning the game by 85 points.

Monro said the rivalry between the two clubs was stronger than ever during the 1970s.

"We were fierce competitors on the field, but also a bunch of good blokes who'd always have a drink with each other after the game," he said.

The win in 1971 marked Monro's first of three senior premierships with the Hawks - he was part of both the 1980 and 1982 flag teams.

"There were also three grand final losses too, but the game always goes in swings and roundabouts," he said.

The same day the club's reserves also won their grand final, defeating Sandhurst 8.5 (53) over 5.5 (35).

Goals: J. Price 5, G. Evans, N. Munro, G. Toma 3, R. Fehring, A. Williams, D. Slater

Best: G. Addlem, T. Devlin, N. Munro, R. Fehring, D. Higgins, G. Evans, G. Toma, P. Coughlan

This is one of the most thrilling Bendigo premiership wins in the history of the league.

The Hawks' triumph didn't come easy this year as the Bulldogs had Ron Best within their ranks.

It all came down to the last quarter with the control of the match changing hands five times with each team scoring eight goals.

Hawks premiership player Allan Williams said the game came down to the wire.

"Gary Evans didn't have a kick in the first three quarters," he said.

"He'd had a booming semi-final but hardly a kick during the grand final up until he was moved to the forward line after the three-quarter huddle.

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"He then kicked three goals in the last quarter to give us the lead which in a way then won us the grand final."

In front of a thrilled crowd at the Queen Elizabeth Oval with two minutes left, the Hawks had an eight-point lead, but in terms of relativity to the game it meant nothing as they had to contend with the goal-scoring power of Best.

He scored his eighth goal close to the siren to give the Bulldogs a fighting chance, but they would still trail by two points at full time - handing the jubilant Hawks the premiership.

Hawks couldn't have been more relieved to hear the siren ring out as "the way they were coming home they probably would've beaten us"

Goals - Eaglehawk: D. Gilmore 6, D. Slater, P. Byrne 3, D. Higgins, B. Keane, S. McDougall, G. Geary, N. Monro, R. Sheldon 1. Golden Square: E. Pascoe 3, R. Caldwell 2, V. Allen 1.

Best- Eaglehawk: S. McDougall, G. Geary, P. Byrne, B. Findlay, A. Williams, D. Slater. Golden Square: A. Patterson, E. Pascoe, V. Allen, C. Faulkner.

The 1982 win marked another demolition of the Bulldogs, this time the Hawks getting it done by 79 points.

The first quarter saw the scores near level with only two goals between them, but the Hawks had dug in to take a 5.4 over 3.7 lead.

The premiers then started to pile on the goals in the second quarter with seven compared to the Bulldogs only taking three behinds.

The momentum continued to sway the Borough's way in the final two quarters, much to the joy of their supporters who partied long into the night.

Premiership player Adam Metherall recalled the team having an extremely strong season in the lead up to the grand final match at the Queen Elizabeth Oval.

"We were a fantastic side and we'd only lost one other game that year - against Square by five points or so as we had a few players out with inter-league," he said.

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