Jump to content

Victorian Football League

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by 203.222.92.113 (talk) at 09:25, 16 September 2013 (→Home guernseys). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

This article is about the present day Victorian state football league. For the league known as the Victorian Football League until 1990, see Australian Football League.
"VFL" redirects here. For other uses, see VFL (disambiguation).

Victorian Football League
FormerlyVictorian Football Association
SportAustralian rules football
First season1877
No. of teams14
Country Australia
Most recent
champion(s)		Geelong
TV partner(s)ABC1
Official websitewww.vfl.com.au

The Victorian Football League (VFL) which evolved from the former Victorian Football Association (VFA), taking its new name as from the 1996 season, is the major state-level Australian rules football league in Victoria. For historical purposes, the present VFL is sometimes referred to as the VFA/VFL, to distinguish it from the present day Australian Football League (AFL), which was known until 1990 as the Victorian Football League. The VFA was formed in 1877, immediately after the foundation of a similar body in South Australia and is the second-oldest Australian rules football league, replacing the loose affiliation of clubs that had been the hallmark of the early years of a game which was first played as early as the 1850s.

Today, the VFL is one of many regional Australian semi-professional competitions. It comprises 14 teams from throughout Victoria, nine of which have a continuous VFA heritage. Many Victorian-based clubs in the fully professional AFL are affiliated with VFL clubs, and as a result, the league partly serves as a reserves competition for the AFL.

History

Formative years

Brunswick during the early 1900s. The highlighted section in the bottom right-hand corner shows the future Australian Prime Minister John Curtin

The Victorian Football Association (VFA) was founded in 1877 on 17 May. The new governing body replaced an earlier system where club delegates met informally to decide on the rules, the selection of the winner of the Challenge Cup, the division of clubs into Senior and Junior status, and other matters of mutual interest. The VFA continued to list its teams as being of either Senior or Junior status.

Foundation senior clubs of the VFA in the Melbourne metropolitan area were Albert Park, Carlton, Hotham, Melbourne and St Kilda; regional senior clubs including Geelong, Barwon and Ballarat also competed. Foundation junior clubs included Essendon, Hawthorn Northcote, South Melbourne, Standard, Victoria United, Victorian Railways and Williamstown. During its early years, many clubs dropped in and out and there were erratic promotions between the Senior and Junior sections.

Scheduling was chaotic. Based on a system that had evolved before the emergence of the Association, the compilation of fixtures was not done by the VFA but was the responsibility of each club secretary. In a typical season a club would play against other VFA teams, both Senior and Junior, non-VFA Victorian clubs, and even interstate teams. At the end of each season, the VFA announced the Premier team. This was usually the club with the most wins, but there were some seasons where the VFA judged the leading team had had too many wins against junior clubs, and awarded the Premiership to the club with the second-highest number of wins.

From 1878 the Association recorded the number of behinds, but with only goals counting towards a win, thus the number of draws was much higher than under the modern scoring system. The number of players on the field was usually twenty but when a Senior and Junior team met, the Junior club was usually allowed to field extra players; there were no reserves and if a player was injured the team was a man short.

After 1889, the often-changeable collection of clubs in the VFA became settled at twelve consistent clubs: Carlton, Essendon, Fitzroy, Footscray, Geelong, Melbourne, North Melbourne, Port Melbourne, Richmond, St Kilda, South Melbourne and Williamstown; they were joined by a thirteenth club, Collingwood, in 1892.

Split

After the 1896 season, eight of the thirteen clubs broke away to form the Victorian Football League (VFL): Carlton, Collingwood, Essendon, Fitzroy, Geelong, Melbourne, St Kilda and South Melbourne. All twenty VFA premierships to that stage had been shared by six of those eight clubs. The VFA continued to be an independent body, with only five of its original clubs – Footscray, North Melbourne, Port Melbourne, Richmond and Williamstown – but within five years it had expanded to ten clubs, a size it maintained until the 1920s. Although its size was constant, its membership was not, with many new clubs lasting only a few years before leaving, and four clubs switching to the VFL: Richmond in 1908, and North Melbourne, Footscray and Hawthorn (who joined the VFA in 1914) in 1925.

In the late 1920s, the VFA expanded to twelve teams, including six new clubs, and those twelve teams remained unchanged for several decades thereafter. Those clubs were: Port Melbourne; Williamstown; Brunswick (joined 1897); Prahran (1899); Brighton (1908); Northcote (1908); Coburg (1925); Camberwell (1926); Preston (1926, after a temporary period between 1903-1911); Yarraville (1928); Oakleigh (1929); Sandringham (1929).

A number of rule changes were adopted during the last years of the 19th Century and the first years of the 20th:

  • From 1897 behinds (1 point) were counted towards the score. (The VFL also changed its scoring system in the same year.)
  • The 'little mark' was abolished in 1897. A 'little mark' was taken when a player passed the ball by foot at least two yards (1.83 m) generally from a pack of players. It was difficult for umpires to pick out 'little marks' in scrimmages. It was abolished to open up play. (The VFL also abolished it in the same year.)
  • Also in 1897 the number of players was reduced from 20 to 18. This worked well as it gave players more freedom around the packs. Since then there have been a few modifications to the VFA's on-field numbers: 1908 – to 17; 1912 – to 16; 1918 – reverted to 18; 1959 – to 16; 1992 – reverted to 18. (The VFL changed from 20 to 18 two years after the VFA [1899] and has had 18 players on the ground ever since.)
  • An order-off rule was also introduced in 1898 but only lasted for two seasons as it was not popular with either players or umpires. Umpires were never sure how rough things had to get before they could order a player off, rather than awarding a free kick to an opponent. (The VFL has never had an order-off rule.)
  • In 1903 the VFA introduced its first finals. Prior to this, the four teams at the top of the ladder at the end of what are now called home-and-away games made up the 'final four'. (The VFL had introduced finals in 1897.)

Between at least 1900 and 1902, there was a short-lived VFA 2nd Division consisting of junior clubs such as Heidelberg.

The first regular radio broadcasts of VFA games were made by 3XY, a little after the station commenced operations in 1935. The commentator was Wallace ("Jumbo") Sharland who had earlier been the first to describe VFL matches, that being on 3AR in 1923. (Jumbo Sharland was a former Geelong player and, at one time, a newspaper football reporter.) In 1954 3AK began broadcasting VFA games, albeit only for a season or two. In 1966 Network Ten began to televise Sunday games. The 1970s also saw broadcasts on 3UZ, while local Geelong station, 3GL, broadcast all Geelong West matches. In 1982, the then-dominant Melbourne sports radio station, 3AW, broadcast the Grand Final. In 2003 3AK evolved into sports radio station SEN 1116, and provided a coverage of VFL matches, but this was discontinued after they won the rights to broadcast the AFL (Australian Football League), as from the 2007 season. In the 2007 and 2008 seasons, Radio 1611 Double X began broadcasting VFL matches. The station was the first to podcast replays. (Details of current broadcasts are found below – "Radio".)

Northcote's 1929 premiership side. Second from right, front row, is Doug Nicholls.
Oakleigh's 1950 premiership side ([3]; [4]).

In 1938, the VFA made a bold rule change by legalising throwing of the football in general play, provided the throw was underarm with both hands below shoulder height. The throw-pass helped to speed up the game, and coupled with aggressive recruiting of stars from the VFL, it made the late 1930s and 1940s one of the most successful times in the VFA's history. The throw-pass was legal in the VFA between 1938 and 1949.[1][2]

During the 1940s, there were talks between the VFA and VFL towards an amalgamation of the two bodies with the VFA initially forming a second division of the VFL. The negotiations broke down over the issue of promotion and relegation. The VFA wanted an automatic promotion of each Division Two premier, while the bottom Division One team at the end of each season, would have been automatically relegated. On the other hand, the VFL wanted these two teams to play off for promotion and relegation.

Expansion

During the 1950s and 1960s, as Melbourne expanded geographically, the VFA embarked on a deliberate plan to establish its presence in new areas by expanding the number of teams, most of these coming from the newer, outer suburbs. By 1960, the league had expanded to seventeen teams; when the eighteenth club joined in 1961, the VFA was split into First and Second Divisions, the First Division originally having 10 teams, and Second Division eight. There was a promotion and relegation system between the two Divisions, with one team promoted and one relegated each season. Although the league was fairly constant at twenty teams during the 1970s, it expanded again (into the outer eastern suburbs) in the 1980s. At its peak in 1983, there were 24 teams competing in the VFA.

The VFA also pioneered night and Sunday games. After years of losing ground to the VFL, the VFA's launch of Sunday games in 1960 was a turning point for the better. Eventually, most games were played on a Sunday, while the VFL played its games on Saturdays. This was similar to the College/Pro football day divide still present in the US. The Victorian Government supported the VFA's new-found vigour, and banned the VFL from holding games on Sundays.

Decline

The decline of the VFA may be said to have commenced in 1982 when the VFL moved the struggling South Melbourne Swans to Sydney. All Sydney Swans home games were played on Sunday and televised. This move basically destroyed the VFA's television ratings, and in 1986 Network Ten stopped broadcasting matches. This role was later taken on by the ABC, but on a much lower-profile basis. VFA support declined. Increasing player payments and declining financial support and sponsorship forced clubs to leave the association, many unable to finish seasons. With fifteen teams remaining at the start of 1989, the VFA reverted to a single division.

In 1989, after the Seven Network was given exclusive rights to broadcast VFL/AFL, the ABC increased its television commitment to the VFA in lieu of telecasting the VFL/AFL games. It attracted good ratings. Despite this, the early 1990s was a difficult period for the association, with many sides, including stalwart sides such as Oakleigh, Prahran and Dandenong leaving the competition or becoming defunct, and others, such as Williamstown, on the verge of folding.

At its nadir in 1995, only nine teams remained. These clubs had joined in various eras. Two (Port Melbourne and Williamstown) had been in the VFA prior to 1897, three (Preston, Coburg and Sandringham) represented the 1920s expansion, and four (Box Hill, Frankston, Springvale and Werribee) were admitted during the last few decades.

In 1990, the VFL renamed itself the Australian Football League. The VFA evolved into the Victorian Football League in 1995, a change which caused much debate at the time. The new VFL adopted the original League logo, but featured a gold "V" and football, to reflect the colours of the former VFA logo. The logo reverted to the original VFL's blue and white, a few years later.

In 1996, the VFL began a period of expansion into regional areas, with existing powerhouse country clubs North Ballarat and Traralgon joining the nine existing teams. Traralgon's tenure was short-lived but they were soon replaced by another regional club, Bendigo.

Since 2000: affiliation with the AFL

See also: Australian Football League reserves affiliations

After the 1999 season, the VFL merged with the Victorian State Football League (VSFL), the latter of which was a reserves competition for the AFL's Victorian clubs (and Sydney). This new configuration received much media attention at the season launch. The main point of interest was that there were matchups that had not occurred since the 1897 VFA. The resulting competition contained a mixture of existing VFL clubs, reserves teams of AFL clubs, and affiliation arrangements between VFL and AFL clubs (whereby reserves players for the AFL would join the senior team of the VFL when not playing in the AFL). The affiliation deals greatly improved the financial viability of the clubs in question, but they diluted their ability to represent their suburb. There have been many changes to the affiliation arrangements in the decade since the VFL and VSFL merged. At its peak between 2003-2006, nine of the ten Victorian AFL clubs were involved in a VFL-affiliation, with only Geelong fielding its own reserves team. Many clubs have since migrated away from this model, and from 2014 there will be five AFL clubs fielding stand-alone reserves teams in the VFL.[3]

Also notable, but short-lived was the playing of feature matches on Monday nights, a time when no AFL matches were played. However, these matches were not shown on free-to-air television, but on Channel 7's C7 Sport subscription channel. This was at a time when pay TV penetration was very poor; there was no access to this channel in most of Melbourne, and in the parts of Melbourne that could receive it there was a much more popular competing subscription platform, Foxtel.

There was also a small continuation of the expansion of the league into regional areas, with the Murray Kangaroos Football Club representing the Ovens & Murray Football League and an expansion into Tasmania, although both of these teams have since folded.

These days the VFL is moderately popular in Victoria, although not nearly as well-supported as the dominant Australian Football League. Matches now attract both traditional fans of the VFA/VFL clubs, and fans of affiliated AFL clubs keen to watch their reserves players in action.

Awards

Best and fairest

Main article: J. J. Liston Trophy

The first award for the Association best and fairest player was the Recorder Cup, first awarded in 1923. Starting from 1933, a second award, the V.F.A. Medal, was awarded concurrently; the awards were both based on the votes of the umpires, but were based on different voting systems. In 1940, the Association dispensed with the Recorder Cup voting system, and awarded both trophies to the same player based on the same set of votes.[4]

Since 1945, the award for the best and fairest player in each VFA/VFL season has been the J. J. Liston Trophy, named after long-term Association president John James Liston, who died in 1944.[5]

Other awards

Salary cap

The VFL is classed as a semi-professional competition.

In 2007 the league had a salary cap of $185,000 excluding service payments. There are a significantly higher number of AFL reserves due to affiliations with Victorian clubs, but player payments for these appearances is apparently not included in the VFL's salary cap.

Attendance

Attendances are small by AFL standards, and generally less than the SANFL and WAFL, with an average of between 1,000–2,000 in attendance.

The VFL does not publish home and away attendance figures as some games are played as AFL curtain raisers, however various sources quote attendances for some games of the stronger clubs that maintain home records of their own.

Recent Grand Finals

Season Premier Result Runner up Result Venue Crowd Norm Goss Memorial Medal
2012 Geelong 14.24 (108) Port Melbourne 11.9 (75) Etihad Stadium 14,536[6] George Horlin-Smith (Geelong)
2011 Port Melbourne 22.12 (144) Williamstown 13.10 (88) Etihad Stadium 11,879[7] Toby Pinwill (Port Melbourne)
2010 North Ballarat 20.13 (133) Northern Bullants 13.8 (86) Etihad Stadium 11,000[7] Myles Sewell (North Ballarat)
2009 North Ballarat 14.7 (91) Northern Bullants 10.8 (68) Etihad Stadium 14,026[8] Orren Stephenson (North Ballarat)
2008 North Ballarat 18.12 (120) Port Melbourne 11.9 (75) Telstra Dome 11,641[9] Josh Smith (North Ballarat)
2007 Geelong 17.24 (126) Coburg 7.10 (52) MC Labour Park 13,842[10] Tom Lonergan (Geelong)
2006 Sandringham 13.13 (91) Geelong 11.7 (73) Optus Oval 6,000 Phillip Read (Sandringham)
2005 Sandringham 11.17 (83) Werribee 11.8 (74) Optus Oval 9,000 Daniel Ward (Sandringham)
2004 Sandringham 9.13 (67) Port Melbourne 9.9 (63) Optus Oval 8,196 Guy Rigoni (Sandringham)
2003 Williamstown 13.14 (92) Box Hill 9.9 (63) Optus Oval 10,500 Adrian Fletcher (Williamstown)
2002 Geelong 15.15 (105) Port Melbourne 12.11 (83) Optus Oval 11,500 James Rahilly (Geelong)
2001 Box Hill Hawks 13.13 (91) Werribee 7.12 (54) Optus Oval 11,500 John Baird (Box Hill)
2000 Sandringham 15.18 (108) North Ballarat 11.11 (77) Waverley Park 8,652[11] Richard Maloney (Sandringham)

Media coverage

Television

ABC Victoria (branded ABC1) broadcasts the match of the round live from 1pm on Saturday afternoons during the home and away season, as well as broadcasting two week 1 finals matches, both semi and prelimanary finals and the Grand Final. In 2012 and 2013 ABC1 replayed the match fully to national audience during the early hours of Wednesday.[12] This was previously done in 2006 and 2007 during the early hours of Thursday on ABC2.[13] The VFL can also be viewed each week on the ABC's catch up TV service ABC iview.

Radio

VFL Radio is produced by BPM Media who broadcast live at least one game a week during the regular season plus each day of the finals series. The coverage is broadcast on the Vision Australia Radio network throughout Victoria on analogue radio, by Aussie digital radio (SEN 2) and on the internet at vfl.com.au or bpmmedia.com.au.[14]

In 2008, 3WBC 94.1 FM began broadcasting Box Hill Hawks home games and from 2009 to today they broadcast all Box Hill Hawks games. In 2013 This began with the Round 2 game between Box Hill Hawks and Tasmania. This coverage can also be heard on the web at www.3wbc.org.au.[15]

During the football season each Thursday night from 8.30pm to 9pm, 1116 SEN broadcasts the Peter Jackson VFL Show. Hosted by Mark Fine and Mark Stone the show features news from around the VFL and includes special guests and a preview of the upcoming round of football.[16] SEN 1116 broadcasts the VFL Grand Final and any finals matches that do not conflict with its AFL broadcast schedule. The station had previously broadcast matches on a regular basis from 2004 to 2006.

Commencing in 1993, 3SER-fm (Casey FM) has broadcast at least one VFL match per weekend. It was the only radio station to cover both the VFL reserves and seniors Grand Finals. Their coverage can be picked up on radio on 97.7 FM or on the internet at www.3ser.org.au.

Details of earlier broadcasts are listed in the History section (above).

Clubs

Current clubs

Club Location Home Ground AFL Affiliate
Bendigo Gold Bendigo, Victoria Queen Elizabeth Oval none
Box Hill Hawks Box Hill, Victoria Box Hill City Oval Hawthorn
Casey Scorpions Cranbourne, Victoria Casey Fields Melbourne
Coburg Coburg, Victoria Coburg City Oval Richmond
Collingwood Collingwood, Victoria Victoria Park Collingwood
Essendon Essendon, Victoria Windy Hill Essendon
Frankston Frankston, Victoria Frankston Park none
Geelong Geelong, Victoria Kardinia Park Geelong
North Ballarat Ballarat, Victoria Northern Oval North Melbourne (partial)[17]
Northern Blues Preston, Victoria Preston City Oval Carlton
Port Melbourne Port Melbourne, Victoria North Port Oval none
Sandringham Sandringham, Victoria Trevor Barker Beach Oval St Kilda
Werribee Werribee, Victoria Chirnside Park North Melbourne (partial)[17]
Williamstown Williamstown, Victoria Burbank Oval Western Bulldogs

Guernseys

Home guernseys

Clash guernseys

Former clubs

The VFL has undergone significant format changes since its induction which means several clubs have either left the league or changed identity for different reasons.

Club participation timeline

Season results

VFA 1877–1994

From 1888, the VFA published a list of the final four clubs at the end of what are now called home-and-away matches. The listings (below) for 1877 to 1887 are based on various newspaper reports as researched by Graeme Atkinson and published in his book Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Australian Rules Football ... (1982, The Five Mile Press, Melbourne).

Finals series (initially the Argus system, and from 1933 the Page-McIntyre system) were introduced in 1903 and, therefore from that date, the listing (below) reflects that situation after the finals.

In 1989 the VFA changed from a final four to a final five.

Year PREMIER RUNNER-UP THIRD FOURTH
1877 Carlton Melbourne Hotham Albert Park
1878 Geelong Melbourne Carlton Hotham
1879 Geelong Carlton South Melbourne Melbourne
1880 Geelong South Melbourne Carlton Melbourne
1881 South Melbourne Geelong Carlton Melbourne
1882 Geelong Essendon South Melbourne Carlton
1883 Geelong South Melbourne Carlton Melbourne
1884 Geelong Essendon Hotham South Melbourne
1885 South Melbourne Essendon Geelong Carlton
1886 Geelong South Melbourne Carlton Port Melbourne
1887 Carlton Geelong South Melbourne Fitzroy
1888 South Melbourne Geelong Williamstown Carlton
1889 South Melbourne Carlton Port Melbourne Essendon
1890 South Melbourne Carlton Essendon Fitzroy
1891 Essendon Carlton Fitzroy South Melbourne
1892 Essendon Fitzroy Geelong Melbourne
1893 Essendon Melbourne Geelong South Melbourne
1894 Essendon Melbourne South Melbourne Fitzroy
1895 Fitzroy Geelong Melbourne Collingwood
1896 Collingwood South Melbourne Essendon Melbourne
1897 Port Melbourne North Melbourne Footscray Williamstown
1898 Footscray North Melbourne Port Melbourne Richmond
1899 Footscray North Melbourne Port Melbourne Williamstown
1900 Footscray Williamstown Richmond Prahran
1901 Port Melbourne Richmond North Melbourne Williamstown
1902 Richmond Port Melbourne North Melbourne Williamstown
1903 North Melbourne Richmond Footscray West Melbourne
1904 North Melbourne Richmond Footscray Port Melbourne
1905 Richmond North Melbourne Williamstown Port Melbourne
1906 West Melbourne Footscray Richmond North Melbourne
1907 Williamstown West Melbourne Richmond Footscray
1908 Footscray Brunswick Essendon Association Williamstown
1909 Brunswick Prahran Essendon Association Footscray
1910 North Melbourne Brunswick Essendon Association Prahran
1911 Essendon Association Brunswick North Melbourne Prahran
1912 Essendon Association Footscray North Melbourne Brunswick
1913 Footscray North Melbourne Essendon Association Brunswick
1914 North Melbourne Footscray Essendon Association Williamstown
1915 North Melbourne Brunswick Williamstown Port Melbourne
1916 In recess – WW1
1917 In recess – WW1
1918 North Melbourne Prahran Brunswick Port Melbourne
1919 Footscray North Melbourne Brunswick Northcote
1920 Footscray Brunswick North Melbourne Port Melbourne
1921 Williamstown Footscray Port Melbourne Brunswick
1922 Port Melbourne Footscray North Melbourne Williamstown
1923 Footscray Port Melbourne Williamstown Hawthorn
1924 Footscray Williamstown Northcote Brunswick
1925 Brunswick Port Melbourne Northcote Coburg
1926 Coburg Brighton Northcote Port Melbourne
1927 Coburg Brighton Port Melbourne Preston
1928 Coburg Port Melbourne Brighton Preston
1929 Northcote Port Melbourne Preston Brunswick
1930 Oakleigh Northcote Williamstown Yarraville
1931 Oakleigh Northcote Preston Port Melbourne
1932 Northcote Coburg Camberwell Preston
1933 Northcote Coburg Port Melbourne Yarraville
1934 Northcote Coburg Preston Prahran
1935 Yarraville Camberwell Northcote Coburg
1936 Northcote Prahran Brunswick Camberwell
1937 Prahran Brunswick Brighton Yarraville
1938 Brunswick Brighton Northcote Prahran
1939 Williamstown Brunswick Prahran Northcote
1940 Port Melbourne Prahran Williamstown Preston
1941 Port Melbourne Coburg Prahran Preston
1942 In recess – WWII
1943 In recess – WWII
1944 In recess – WWII
1945 Williamstown Port Melbourne Coburg Camberwell
1946 Sandringham Camberwell Williamstown Port Melbourne
1947 Port Melbourne Sandringham Williamstown Prahran
1948 Brighton Williamstown Brunswick Northcote
1949 Williamstown Oakleigh Brighton Northcote
1950 Oakleigh Port Melbourne Brighton Williamstown
1951 Prahran Port Melbourne Oakleigh Sandringham
1952 Oakleigh Port Melbourne Coburg Yarraville
1953 Port Melbourne Yarraville Williamstown Prahran
1954 Williamstown Port Melbourne Northcote Moorabbin
1955 Williamstown Port Melbourne Preston Moorabbin
1956 Williamstown Port Melbourne Box Hill Brunswick
1957 Moorabbin Port Melbourne Williamstown Preston
1958 Williamstown Moorabbin Port Melbourne Box Hill
1959 Williamstown Coburg Sandringham Oakleigh
1960 Oakleigh Sandringham Williamstown Yarraville
Year Division PREMIER RUNNER-UP THIRD FOURTH
1961 1st
2nd 		YARRAVILLE
Northcote 		WILLIAMSTOWN
Dandenong 		MOORABBIN
Camberwell 		SANDRINGHAM
Preston
1962 1st
2nd 		SANDRINGHAM
Dandenong 		MOORABBIN
Prahran 		COBURG
Preston 		WILLIAMSTOWN
Box Hill
1963 1st
2nd 		MOORABBIN
Preston 		SANDRINGHAM
Waverley 		YARRAVILLE
Prahran 		COBURG
Sunshine
1964 1st
2nd 		PORT MELBOURNE
Geelong West 		WILLIAMSTOWN
Sunshine 		COBURG
Mordialloc 		SANDRINGHAM
Brighton-Caulfield
1965 1st
2nd 		WAVERLEY
Preston 		PORT MELBOURNE
Mordialloc 		DANDENONG
Northcote 		SANDRINGHAM
Sunshine
1966 1st
2nd 		PORT MELBOURNE
Prahran 		WAVERLEY
Geelong West 		PRESTON
Northcote 		YARRAVILLE
Sunshine
1967 1st
2nd 		DANDENONG
Oakleigh 		PORT MELBOURNE
Geelong West 		SANDRINGHAM
Frankston 		PRESTON
Sunshine
1968 1st
2nd 		PRESTON
Geelong West 		PRAHRAN
Williamstown 		SANDRINGHAM
Sunshine 		DANDENONG
Werribee
1969 1st
2nd 		PRESTON
Williamstown 		DANDENONG
Sunshine 		PORT MELBOURNE
Coburg 		SANDRINGHAM
Box Hill
1970 1st
2nd 		PRAHRAN
Coburg 		WILLIAMSTOWN
Box Hill 		WAVERLEY
Sunshine 		PORT MELBOURNE
Brunswick
1971 1st
2nd 		DANDENONG
Sunshine 		PRESTON
Brunswick 		SANDRINGHAM
Caulfield 		OAKLEIGH
Yarraville
1972 1st
2nd 		OAKLEIGH
Geelong West 		DANDENONG
Caulfield 		WILLIAMSTOWN
Yarraville 		PRESTON
Brunswick
1973 1st
2nd 		PRAHRAN
Caulfield 		OAKLEIGH
Brunswick 		DANDENONG
Waverley 		PORT MELBOURNE
Camberwell
1974 1st
2nd 		PORT MELBOURNE
Coburg 		OAKLEIGH
Brunswick 		GEELONG WEST
Waverley 		DANDENONG
Camberwell
1975 1st
2nd 		GEELONG WEST
Brunswick 		DANDENONG
Camberwell 		PORT MELBOURNE
Sunshine 		COBURG
Frankston
1976 1st
2nd 		PORT MELBOURNE
Williamstown 		DANDENONG
Mordialloc 		PRESTON
Frankston 		CAULFIELD
Northcote
1977 1st
2nd 		PORT MELBOURNE
Mordialloc 		SANDRINGHAM
Yarraville 		C0BURG
Camberwell 		BRUNSWICK
Oakleigh
1978 1st
2nd 		PRAHRAN
Frankston 		PRESTON
Camberwell 		PORT MELBOURNE
Oakleigh 		DANDENONG
Yarraville
1979 1st
2nd 		COBURG
Camberwell 		GEELONG WEST
Oakleigh 		PORT MELBOURNE
Mordialloc 		PRAHRAN
Williamstown
1980 1st
2nd 		PORT MELBOURNE
Brunswick 		COBURG
Yarraville 		GEELONG WEST
Waverley 		SANDRINGHAM
Williamstown
1981 1st
2nd 		PORT MELBOURNE
Camberwell 		PRESTON
Waverley 		SANDRINGHAM
Mordialloc 		FRANKSTON
Werribee
1982 1st
2nd 		PORT MELBOURNE
Northcote 		PRESTON
Caulfield 		COBURG
Oakleigh 		GEELONG WEST
Brunswick
1983 1st
2nd 		PRESTON
Springvale 		GEELONG WEST
Brunswick 		PORT MELBOURNE
Mordialloc 		SANDRINGHAM
Oakleigh
1984 1st
2nd 		PRESTON
Box Hill 		FRANKSTON
Oakleigh 		GEELONG WEST
Brunswick 		CAMBERWELL
Caulfield
1985 1st
2nd 		SANDRINGHAM
Brunswick 		WILLIAMSTOWN
Oakleigh 		COBURG
Sunshine 		PRESTON
Caulfield
1986 1st
2nd 		WILLIAMSTOWN
Box Hill 		COBURG
Sunshine 		FRANKSTON
Prahran 		PRESTON
Oakleigh
1987 1st
2nd 		SPRINGVALE
Prahran 		PORT MELBOURNE
Waverley 		WILLIAMSTOWN
Werribee 		FRANKSTON
Sunshine
1988 1st
2nd 		COBURG
Oakleigh 		WILLIAMSTOWN
Sunshine 		PRESTON
Werribee 		PORT MELBOURNE
Dandenong
Year PREMIER RUNNER-UP THIRD FOURTH FIFTH
1989 Coburg Williamstown Box Hill Springvale Frankston
1990 Williamstown Springvale Preston Coburg Werribee
1991 Dandenong Werribee Box Hill Springvale Port Melbourne
1992 Sandringham Williamstown Prahran Box Hill Werribee
1993 Werribee Port Melbourne Springvale Prahran Frankston
1994 Sandringham Box Hill Springvale Dandenong Redlegs Frankston

VFL 1995–present

Year PREMIER RUNNER-UP THIRD FOURTH FIFTH (SIXTH) (SEVENTH) (EIGHTH)
1995 Springvale Sandringham Port Melbourne Frankston Werribee
1996 Springvale Frankston Werribee Williamstown Port Melbourne
1997 Sandringham Frankston Springvale Port Melbourne Werribee
1998 Springvale Werribee North Ballarat Frankston Preston
1999 Springvale North Ballarat Sandringham Frankston Williamstown
2000 Sandringham North Ballarat Carlton St Kilda Geelong Williamstown Box Hill Hawks Sandringham
2001 Box Hill Hawks Werribee Springvale Murray Kangaroos Carlton Frankston Coburg Tigers Essendon
2002 Geelong Port Melbourne Werribee Coburg Tigers Box Hill Hawks Williamstown Murray Kangaroos Sandringham
2003 Williamstown Box Hill Hawks Port Melbourne Sandringham Tasmania Springvale Werribee Geelong
2004 Sandringham Port Melbourne Werribee North Ballarat Tasmania Coburg Tigers Box Hill Hawks Bendigo Bombers
2005 Sandringham Werribee Northern Bullants Bendigo Bombers Port Melbourne Tasmania Frankston Box Hill Hawks
2006 Sandringham Geelong Northern Bullants Williamstown Frankston North Ballarat Werribee Coburg Tigers
2007 Geelong Coburg Tigers Williamstown North Ballarat Sandringham Port Melbourne Casey Scorpions Bendigo Bombers
2008 North Ballarat Port Melbourne Williamstown Werribee Casey Scorpions Frankston Coburg Tigers Northern Bullants
2009 North Ballarat Northern Bullants Port Melbourne Collingwood Williamstown Box Hill Hawks Casey Scorpions Geelong
2010 North Ballarat Northern Bullants Williamstown Box Hill Hawks Casey Scorpions Port Melbourne Collingwood Bendigo Bombers
2011 Port Melbourne Williamstown Werribee Northern Bullants North Ballarat Casey Scorpions Bendigo Bombers Box Hill Hawks
2012 Geelong Port Melbourne Werribee Williamstown Casey Scorpions Box Hill Hawks Sandringham Bendigo Gold

VFA/VFL all-time final placings

Team PREMIERS RUNNERS-UP 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th TOTAL
Port Melbourne 16 21 15 13 3 4 - - 72
Williamstown 13 11 14 13 2 2 - 1 56
Sandringham 10 5 6 8 2 2 1 - 34
Footscray 9 5 3 2 - - - - 19
Geelong (VFA) 8 4 3 - - - - - 15
Coburg 6 9 7 7 - - 3 1 33
Hotham/North Melbourne 6 6 8 2 - - - - 22
Oakleigh 6 3 1 2 - - - - 12
Prahran 5 5 3 9 - - - - 22
South Melbourne 5 4 4 3 - - - - 16
Northcote 5 2 6 3 - - - - 16
Springvale/Casey Scorpions 5 1 4 2 2 2 3 1 20
Preston/Northern Bullants/Northern Blues 4 6 8 11 1 1 1 - 32
Essendon (VFA) 4 3 2 1 - - - - 10
Brunswick 3 7 4 7 - - - - 21
Dandenong 3 4 2 3 - - - - 12
Carlton (VFA) 2 4 5 3 - - - - 14
Richmond (VFA) 2 3 3 1 - - - - 9
North Ballarat 3 2 4 - 1 1 - - 11
Moorabbin 2 2 1 2 - - - - 7
Geelong (VFL) 3 1 - 1 - - - 2 7
Yarraville 2 1 1 6 - - - - 10
Essendon Association 2 - 5 - - - - - 7
Werribee 1 4 4 1 6 1 - 1 18
Brighton 1 3 4 - - - - - 8
Box Hill 1 2 3 5 - 1 2 2 16
Geelong West 1 2 3 1 - - - - 7
West Melbourne 1 1 - 1 - - - - 3
Fitzroy 1 1 1 3 - - - - 6
Waverley 1 1 1 - - - - - 3
Collingwood (VFA) 1 - - 1 1 - - - 3
Melbourne (VFA) - 4 1 6 - - - - 11
Frankston - 3 2 6 3 - 1 - 15
Camberwell - 2 1 3 - - - - 6
Carlton (VFL) - - 1 - 1 1 - - 3
Tasmania - - 1 - 1 1 - - 3
Albert Park - - - 1 - - - - 1
Caulfield - - - 1 - - - - 1
Dandenong Redlegs - - - 1 - - - - 1
Hawthorn (VFA) - - - 1 - - - - 1
Murray Kangaroos - - - 1 1 - - - 2
Bendigo - - - 1 - - - 5 6
St Kilda (VFL) - - - - 1 - - - 1
Essendon (VFL) - - - - - - - 1 1
Collingwood (VFL) - - - - - - - - -

AFL Victoria Development League / AFL Victoria VFL Football Academy

As from the beginning of the 2012 season, the former VFL Reserves competition was replaced with the AFL Victoria Development League, a move that coincided with the introduction of the AFL Victoria Development League which provides development opportunities for up to 25 selected VFL players per year.[18]

All current VFL teams enter a reserves team in the Development League.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Association joins ANFC". The Argus, Supplement. Melbourne, VIC. 9 August 1949. p. 20.
  2. ^ Rover (16 April 1938). "Crowds will be attracted by new rules". The Argus. Melbourne, VIC. p. 22.
  3. ^ d'Anello, Luke (21 September 2012). "Seagulls and Bulldogs cut ties". Leader. {{cite news}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)
  4. ^ Percy Taylor (16 September 1940). "Exciting V.F.A. semi-final". The Argus. Melbourne, VIC. p. 11.
  5. ^ "Wind spoils game". Williamstown Chronicle. Williamstown, VIC. 29 June 1945. p. 2.
  6. ^ Wojcinski's perfect exit as Cats claim VFL flag
  7. ^ a b www.austadiums.com/sport/comp.php?sid=25
  8. ^ http://www.austadiums.com/sport/event.php?eventid=9523
  9. ^ http://www.austadiums.com/sport/event.php?eventid=8348
  10. ^ Australian Stadiums :: VFL GF: Geelong v Coburg
  11. ^ [1]
  12. ^ VFL - ABC News
  13. ^ ABC TV Guide
  14. ^ Broadcast Partners - VFL
  15. ^ 3WBC - Local footy in 2013
  16. ^ SEN SportsSENtral > Programs > Evenings With Finey
  17. ^ a b Link to Roos, but Tigers not in the hunt
  18. ^ [2]
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=Victorian_Football_League&oldid=573131968"