National freight and logistics company Northline has kicked off a milestone year for the Palmerston Magpies Football Club by committing a record sponsorship as the club moves into its new $10 million footy oval.

Northline’s financial support will underpin a major change for the club in its first season at the purpose-built facility at Charles Darwin University by allowing the club to recruit a facilities manager to run the newly-dubbed Northline Oval.

As well as fielding competitive teams throughout the NT Football League, the Palmerston Magpies Football Club is committed to giving back to the local communities from which many of its players come.The club actively supports educating and training its players, two of whom are now in Melbourne studying a fully-funded program at Swinburne College. Next year, four players will attend Swinburne College.

For both Northline and the Palmerston Magpies, 2012-13 is a milestone year. Northline is celebrating its 30th anniversary since it opened the long-haul lane between Adelaide and Darwin while the Football Club is celebrating its 40th birthday.

The sponsorship came from two of Northline’s Darwin-based executives, Matthew Leyden, who has just become president of the Palmerston Magpies Football Club, and John Stokes, the Magpies legend who captained the club’s first team to win the NTFL flag in 1980-81.

Northline CEO Craige Whitton said the company was proud to sponsor the Palmerston Magpies Football Club. “It’s about investing in the NT community as much as it is about football,” he said.