Adelaide will pay tribute to South Australian football legend Neil Kerley with a SANFL match against West Adelaide in the Riverland in August.

The game, which will be known as the Neil Kerley Memorial Match, will be played at the Imperial Football Club, Murray Bridge, on Sunday, August 13.

Kerley, who was an influential figure across more than four decades as a player, coach, administrator and media commentator, passed away in June last year.

He was 88.

Kerley coached West Adelaide to premierships in 1961 and 1983, before becoming one of the key people involved in the formation of the Crows and helped secure players for the Club’s inaugural list and training squad.

Originally from Barmera in the Riverland, he was inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame in 1997 and was an inaugural inductee of the South Australian Football Hall of Fame in 2002.

Adelaide Football Club Executive General Manager of Football Adam Kelly said the Crows were proud to be able to honour Kerley and the contribution he made to the Club and football in South Australia.

“As a Club we embrace the opportunity to visit and play in regional areas, with this game taking on particular significance, not only due to it being played in the memory of Neil, who is an icon of our game, but also that it will be played in a flood affected region,” Kelly said.

“Following from player visits to the Riverland in early December last year and those which will be happening on February sixth and seventh in Waikerie, Barmera, Loxton, Berri and Renmark, this is an opportunity for us to further engage with communities that have very much been in our thoughts and were much loved by Neil.”

Adelaide’s clash against West Adelaide will be among four regional games set to be played across the 2023 season.

The full 2023 SANFL fixture will be released on Tuesday, January 31.