The Club 
The North Ballarat Rebels compete in the Victorian Football League under-18 TAC Cup - the elite under age competition in the country.
The TAC Cup competition was established in 1992 following the disbandment of the VFL/AFL Under 19 competition due to Metropolitan and Country zoning ceasing for AFL clubs.
The competition is based on geographic regions throughout country Victoria and metropolitan Melbourne with a team representing each of the 12 Victorian regions. It provides a holistic approach to football, as it focuses not only on the development of elite athletes but also the development of community leaders.
Since 1992 the TAC Cup has become the major source of AFL Draftees with in excess of 50% of new AFL players each year being recruited from the competition and it is recognised as one of the premier sporting talent programs in Australia. Current AFL stars such as Adam Goodes (former North Ballarat Rebels player), Matthew Lloyd, Lance Whitnall, Matthew Primus, Steven King, Anthony Rocca, Justin Leppitsch, Josh Fraser, Lenny Hayes and Chris Judd are all graduates of the TAC Cup.
The TAC Cup has also been very successful in providing an opportunity for talented country players to play in a very high standard competition without having to relocate to Melbourne and for providing quality young players, not only to the AFL, but also to the senior VFL competition and local country and metropolitan football.
The Rebels’ recruitment region is throughout Western Victoria, covering the regions of Ballarat, Daylesford, Creswick, Avoca, Ararat, Stawell, Horsham, Warracknabeal, Edenhope, Hamilton, Portland, Heywood and Mortlake.
TAC Cup games are played in Shepparton, Wangaratta, Hamilton, Stawell, Morwell, Bendigo, Mildura, Warrnambool, Ballarat and also in the Northern Territory and Queensland.
Development Program The North Ballarat Rebels program also has a strong focus on development throughout the region. We have Football Development Managers based in Ballarat, Hamilton and Horsham who are involved in over 450 clubs and in excess of 1200 teams. They conduct the Secondary School football competitions in each region and assist Leagues, their clubs, schools and local communities in growing all aspects of football.
There is also a strong focus on the pathway into the under 18 competition which includes the under 15 and under 16 programs.
Under 15 program The under 15 program is the beginning of the elite pathway for developing juniors. This schoolboys program gathers the three regions (Western, Wimmera & Ballarat) best juniors and starts to develop them through an extensive elite training program that gives each participant the chance to develop their football and personal skills.
Each year, the Ballarat, Wimmera and Western regions invite over 150 players to join the Schoolboys Development Squads who train once a week from December until the V/Line Victorian Schoolboys Championships (April) held in Melbourne. The squads also train during the school holidays throughout the year.
Under 16 program This program is the gateway to playing in the under 18 team. It is set up to again further develop a player’s football and personal skills and this stage of our development program focuses heavily on each individual player’s weaknesses so they can hopefully progress to the Rebels TAC Cup team. Each year approximately 150 invites are sent out to developing players within our regions to join the under 16 program.
