The Djerriwarrh Rally name was seemingly first used in 1982 when the Melton Motor Sports Club sought to leverage support from the local council and community during their Djerriwarrh Festival. But the event arguably began back in 1976 soon after the club’s formation. The original event was the Melton Shell Autosport 250, which after three editions became the Melton Shell 200 and then the Djerriwarrah Trial/Rally. The event was a round of the Victorian Clubman Championship and then the Victorian Trials Championship before achieving VRC status in the mid 1980s. After a break of several years it was resurrected first as a rallysprint and then as a VRC round from 1995 to 2000.