1897 VFL season

The 1897 Victorian Football League season was the inaugural season of the Victorian Football League and saw eight teams play in the first season. After fourteen rounds was played in the regular seasons, the top four teams played in a three week final series with Essendon claiming the premiership after they won all three of their games finishing ahead of minor premiers Geelong.

1897 VFL Premiership season
The Essendon FC won its first premiership
Teams8
PremiersEssendon
(1st premiership)
Minor premiersGeelong
(1st minor premiership)
Matches played62
Highest attendance8,000
Leading Goalkicker MedallistEddy James (Geelong) (22 goals)
Jack Leith (Melbourne) (22 goals)

Premiership season

In 1897, the VFL competition consisted of eight teams of 20 on-the-field players each, with no "reserves" (although any of the 20 players who had left the playing field for any reason could later resume their place on the field at any time during the match).[1]

Each team played each other twice in a home-and-away season of 14 rounds.

Once the 14 round home-and-away season had finished, the 1897 VFL Premiers were determined according to the conditions dictated by the specific format and conventions of the 1897 Finals System, which was used in this season only. A round-robin finals series would not be used again until 1924, and has not been used since then.

Round 1
Round 1
Saturday, 8 May (3:00 pm) Fitzroy 6.13 (49) def. Carlton 2.4 (16) Brunswick Street Oval Report
Saturday, 8 May (3:00 pm) Collingwood 5.11 (41) def. St Kilda 2.4 (16) Victoria Park Report
Saturday, 8 May (3:00 pm) Geelong 3.6 (24) def. by Essendon 7.5 (47) Corio Oval Report
Saturday, 8 May (3:00 pm) South Melbourne 3.9 (27) def. by Melbourne 6.8 (44) Lake Oval Report

Round 2
Round 2
Saturday, 15 May (3:00 pm) South Melbourne 6.4 (40) def. Carlton 5.6 (36) Lake Oval Report
Saturday, 15 May (3:00 pm) Essendon 4.6 (30) def. by Collingwood 8.2 (50) EMCG Report
Saturday, 15 May (3:00 pm) St Kilda 3.8 (26) def. by Fitzroy 10.6 (66) Junction Oval Report
Saturday, 15 May (3:00 pm) Melbourne 9.10 (64) def. Geelong 3.1 (19) MCG Report

Round 3
Round 3
Saturday, 22 May (3:00 pm) Collingwood 6.5 (41) def. Geelong 5.7 (37) Victoria Park Report
Saturday, 22 May (3:00 pm) Fitzroy 5.9 (39) def. by Melbourne 7.8 (50) Brunswick Street Oval Report
Monday, 24 May (3:00 pm) Essendon 12.6 (78) def. Carlton 6.5 (41) EMCG Report
Monday, 24 May (3:00 pm) South Melbourne 8.11 (59) def. St Kilda 0.2 (2) Lake Oval Report

Round 4
Round 4
Saturday, 29 May (3:00 pm) Geelong 5.14 (44) def. Carlton 3.4 (22) Corio Oval Report
Saturday, 29 May (3:00 pm) South Melbourne 5.11 (41) def. Collingwood 5.3 (33) Lake Oval Report
Saturday, 29 May (3:00 pm) Fitzroy 2.8 (20) def. by Essendon 6.6 (42) Brunswick Street Oval Report
Saturday, 29 May (3:00 pm) Melbourne 11.10 (76) def. St Kilda 7.4 (46) MCG Report

Round 5
Round 5
Saturday, 5 June (3:00 pm) Melbourne 15.17 (107) def. Carlton 3.8 (26) MCG Report
Saturday, 5 June (3:00 pm) Collingwood 5.7 (37) def. Fitzroy 2.9 (21) Victoria Park Report
Saturday, 5 June (3:00 pm) St Kilda 3.8 (26) def. by Essendon 9.9 (63) Junction Oval Report
Saturday, 5 June (3:00 pm) Geelong 10.12 (72) def. South Melbourne 3.6 (24) Corio Oval Report

Round 6
Round 6
Saturday, 19 June (3:00 pm) St Kilda 3.6 (24) def. by Carlton 5.5 (35) Junction Oval Report
Saturday, 19 June (3:00 pm) Melbourne 5.3 (33) def. Collingwood 3.8 (26) MCG Report
Saturday, 19 June (3:00 pm) South Melbourne 2.4 (16) def. by Essendon 1.13 (19) Lake Oval Report
Saturday, 19 June (3:00 pm) Geelong 3.13 (31) def. Fitzroy 2.3 (15) Corio Oval Report

Round 7
Round 7
Tuesday, 22 June (3:00 pm) Carlton 5.5 (35) def. by Collingwood 6.5 (41) Princes Park Report
Tuesday, 22 June (3:00 pm) Essendon 8.15 (63) def. Melbourne 3.9 (27) EMCG Report
Tuesday, 22 June (3:00 pm) Fitzroy 5.13 (43) drew with South Melbourne 5.13 (43) Brunswick Street Oval Report
Tuesday, 22 June (3:00 pm) St Kilda 4.7 (31) def. by Geelong 16.18 (114) Junction Oval Report
  • Geelong's 16.18.114 was the highest score in 1897

Round 8
Round 8
Saturday, 26 June (3:00 pm) Carlton 1.3 (9) def. by Fitzroy 5.17 (47) Princes Park Report
Saturday, 26 June (3:00 pm) St Kilda 4.5 (29) def. by Collingwood 7.11 (53) Junction Oval Report
Saturday, 26 June (3;00 pm) Essendon 5.2 (32) def. by Geelong 8.9 (57) EMCG Report
Saturday, 26 June (3:00 pm) Melbourne 3.2 (20) def. by South Melbourne 11.7 (73) MCG Report

Round 9
Round 9
Saturday, 3 July (3:00 pm) Carlton 4.4 (28) def. by South Melbourne 11.8 (74) Princes Park
Saturday, 3 July (3:00 pm) Collingwood 5.7 (37) def. by Essendon 6.10 (46) Victoria Park Report
Saturday, 3 July (3:00 pm) Fitzroy 9.21 (75) def. St Kilda 2.6 (18) Brunswick Street Oval
Saturday, 3 July (3:00 pm) Geelong 1.9 (15) def. Melbourne 0.10 (10) Corio Oval Report

Round 10
Round 10
Saturday, 10 July (3:00 pm) Carlton 2.1 (13) def. by Essendon 5.12 (42) Princes Park Report
Saturday, 10 July (3:00 pm) Geelong 7.10 (52) def. Collingwood 1.4 (10) Corio Oval Report
Saturday, 10 July (3:00 pm) Melbourne 8.5 (53) def. Fitzroy 3.8 (26) MCG Report
Saturday, 10 July (3:00 pm) St Kilda 0.3 (3) def. by South Melbourne 8.16 (64) Junction Oval Report

Round 11
Round 11
Saturday, 17 July (3:00 pm) Carlton 2.4 (16) def. by Geelong 9.12 (66) Princes Park Report
Saturday, 17 July (3:00 pm) Collingwood 0.8 (8) def. by South Melbourne 2.15 (27) Victoria Park Report
Saturday, 17 July (3:00 pm) Essendon 9.8 (62) def. Fitzroy 4.6 (30) EMCG Report
Saturday, 17 July (3:00 pm) St Kilda 1.7 (13) def. by Melbourne 10.11 (71) Junction Oval

Round 12
Round 12
Saturday, 24 July (3:00 pm) Carlton 2.6 (18) def. by Melbourne 5.16 (46) MCG Report
Saturday, 24 July (3:00 pm) Fitzroy 4.4 (28) def. by Collingwood 3.17 (35) Brunswick Street Oval Report
Saturday, 24 July (3:00 pm) Essendon 13.16 (94) def. St Kilda 0.3 (3) EMCG Report
Saturday, 24 July (3:00 pm) South Melbourne 5.2 (32) def. by Geelong 6.8 (44) Lake Oval Report

Round 13
Round 13
Saturday, 31 July (3:00 pm) Carlton 8.11 (59) def. St Kilda 3.7 (25) Princes Park Report
Saturday, 31 July (3:00 pm) Collingwood 5.13 (43) def. Melbourne 3.10 (28) Victoria Park Report
Saturday, 31 July (3:00 pm) Essendon 8.1 (49) def. South Melbourne 6.9 (45) EMCG Report
Saturday, 31 July (3:00 pm) Fitzroy 2.9 (21) def. by Geelong 5.3 (33) Brunswick Street Oval Report

Round 14
Round 14
Saturday, 7 August (3:00 pm) Collingwood 7.12 (54) def. Carlton 3.4 (22) Victoria Park Report
Saturday, 7 August (3:00 pm) Melbourne 8.8 (56) def. Essendon 6.3 (39) MCG Report
Saturday, 7 August (3:00 pm) South Melbourne 3.12 (30) def. Fitzroy 4.5 (29) Lake Oval Report
Saturday, 7 August (3:00 pm) Geelong 14.12 (96) def. St Kilda 3.0 (18) Corio Oval Report

Win/Loss table
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 F1 F2 F3 Ladder
Carlton Fit
33		 SM
4		 Ess
37		 Geel
22		 Melb
81		 StK
11		 Coll
6		 Fit
38		 SM
46		 Ess
29		 Geel
50		 Melb
28		 StK
34		 Coll
32		 X
X
X
7
Collingwood StK
25		 Ess
20		 Geel
4		 SM
8		 Fit
16		 Melb
7		 Carl
6		 StK
24		 Ess
9		 Geel
42		 SM
19		 Fit
7		 Melb
15		 Carl
32		 Melb
4		 Ess
40		 Geel
4		 3
Essendon Geel
23		 Coll
20		 Carl
37		 Fit
22		 StK
37		 SM
3		 Melb
36		 Geel
25		 Coll
9		 Carl
29		 Fit
32		 StK
91		 SM
4		 Melb
17		 Geel
6		 Coll
40		 Melb
6		 1
Fitzroy Carl
33		 StK
40		 Melb
11		 Ess
22		 Coll
16		 Geel
16		 SM
0		 Carl
38		 StK
57		 Melb
27		 Ess
32		 Coll
7		 Geel
12		 SM
1		 X
X
X
6
Geelong Ess
23		 Melb
45		 Coll
4		 Carl
22		 SM
48		 Fit
16		 StK
83		 Ess
25		 Melb
5		 Coll
42		 Carl
50		 SM
12		 Fit
12		 StK
78		 Ess
6		 Melb
9		 Coll
4		 2
Melbourne SM
17		 Geel
45		 Fit
11		 StK
30		 Carl
81		 Coll
7		 Ess
36		 SM
53		 Geel
5		 Fit
27		 StK
58		 Carl
28		 Coll
15		 Ess
17		 Coll
4		 Geel
9		 Ess
6		 4
South Melbourne Melb
17		 Carl
4		 StK
57		 Coll
8		 Geel
48		 Ess
3		 Fit
0		 Melb
53		 Carl
46		 StK
61		 Coll
19		 Geel
12		 Ess
4		 Fit
1		 X
X
X
5
St Kilda Coll
25		 Fit
40		 SM
57		 Melb
30		 Ess
37		 Carl
11		 Geel
83		 Coll
24		 Fit
57		 SM
61		 Melb
58		 Ess
91		 Carl
34		 Geel
78		 X
X
X
8
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 F1 F2 F3 Ladder
ColourResult
GreenWin
RedLoss
BlueDraw

Bold – Home game
Opponent for round listed above margin

Ladder
Pos Team Pld W L D PF PA PP Pts
1 Geelong 14 11 3 0 704 383 183.8 44 Finals series
2 Essendon (P) 14 11 3 0 706 445 158.7 44
3 Melbourne 14 10 4 0 685 473 144.8 40
4 Collingwood 14 9 5 0 509 445 114.4 36
5 South Melbourne 14 8 5 1 595 430 138.4 34
6 Fitzroy 14 4 9 1 509 485 104.9 18
7 Carlton 14 2 12 0 376 737 51.0 8
8 St Kilda 14 0 14 0 280 966 29.0 0
Source: VFL ladder
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) percentage; 3) number of points for.
(P) Premiers.

Ladder progression
  • Numbers highlighted in green indicates the team finished the round inside the top 4.
  • Numbers highlighted in blue indicates the team finished in first place on the ladder in that round.
  • Numbers highlighted in red indicates the team finished in last place on the ladder in that round.
  • Subscript numbers indicate ladder position at round's end.
Points by round
Team ╲ Round1234567891011121314
Geelong0608074686124164204242282322362402441
Essendon434485122162202241241281321361401441442
Melbourne4482121161201241242243243283323363363403
Collingwood4283122124163163203242244245245285324364
South Melbourne054584123124125145185225264304304305345
Fitzroy418183858586106146186186186186186186
Carlton0806060707474747474747478787
St Kilda0707080808080808080808080808
Source:

Finals series
Main article: 1897 VFL finals series

Week 1
Week 1
Saturday, 21 August Geelong 3.11 (29) def. by Essendon 5.5 (35) Corio Oval (crowd: 5,000) Report
Saturday, 21 August Melbourne 7.5 (47) def. by Collingwood 7.9 (51) MCG (crowd: 7,000) Report

Week 2
Week 2
Saturday, 28 August Essendon 9.16 (70) def. Collingwood 4.6 (30) MCG (crowd: 8,000) Report
Saturday, 28 August Geelong 5.16 (46) def. Melbourne 5.7 (37) Brunswick Street Oval (crowd: 4,000) Report

Week 3
Week 3
Saturday, 4 September Essendon 1.8 (14) def. Melbourne 0.8 (8) Lake Oval (crowd: 3,800) Report
Saturday, 4 September Geelong 8.4 (52) def. Collingwood 6.12 (48) EMCG (crowd: 3,000) Report

Finals Ladder
1897 Finals ladder
Pos Team Pld W L D PF PA PP Pts
1 Essendon 3 3 0 0 119 67 177.6 12
2 Geelong 3 2 1 0 127 120 105.8 8
3 Collingwood 3 1 2 0 129 169 76.3 4
4 Melbourne 3 0 3 0 92 111 82.9 0
Source:
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) percentage; 3) number of points for.

Grand final

Essendon won the premiership for finishing on top of the round robin finals ladder and no Grand Final was played.

See List of Australian Football League premiers for a complete list.

Awards

Leading goalkicker medal
  • Larger numbers indicate number of goals scored in each round. Subscript numbers indicate total cumulative goals scored through that round.
  • Numbers highlighted in blue indicates the player that was the leading goalkicker at the end of that round.
  • Numbers underlined indicates the player did not play in that round.
Player 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Total
1 Eddy James 2213033639110313013114014014115419322 22
Jack Leith 22461707411314216016016117219221122022
3 Norman Waugh 220213250505162819110212214418119 19
4 Charlie Coles 00001112351628311011213114115116117 17
5 Wally O'Cock 1112131426063909090909211213215 15
6 Dinny McKay 1134260606062819312012012113114014 14
Archie Smith 00222415271808210111112012012214014
7 Michael O'Gorman 1101232505050527310010111011112113 13
8 Sam Chapman 000000001145161729110010010212012 12
Hugh Gavin 00000011230325052707310010010212
Charlie Young 22023516061707070729211011011112

Other Awards

Notable events
  • The game between Essendon and Melbourne in the third round of the round robin tournament holds the record for the lowest combined score in a match in VFL/AFL history: 1.16 (22).
  • George Stuckey, the captain of the Essendon Football Club team that won the VFL's inaugural premiership, also won the 130-yard Stawell Gift in 1897 in 12.2 seconds off a handicap of 12 yards.
  • In the first round of 1897, the VFL revoked the VFA's (then prevailing) push-in-the-back rule. The rule was reinstated before the second round's matches on the following Saturday due to complaints from fans, players and officials.
  • On 12 June, a League representative team played against a Ballarat Football League representative team at the Brunswick Street Oval. Ballarat 13.11 (89) defeated the League 8.6 (54).[2]
  • On 3 July 1897, Fitzroy rover Bill McSpeerin weaved his way and bounced the ball the length of the Brunswick Street Oval to score a goal against St Kilda.[3]
  • Fred Waugh was unable to play in South Melbourne's team for the Round 11 game with St Kilda after attempting suicide. He had been spurned by his lover, and had become disconsolate. His mother found him in his room covered in blood, having cut his throat with a blunt knife. Luckily, he missed severing his windpipe and blood vessels, and a doctor was able to repair the wounds.[4]
  • Carlton's first six matches were all away games due to renovations at Princes Park, with the first game at Princes Park being a 5.6 (36) loss to Collingwood 6.4 (40) on the 22nd of June - Diamond Jubilee Holiday.[5]
  • The first round finals match between Geelong and Essendon at the Corio Oval was the only finals match to be played in Geelong until 2013.[5]

Footnotes
  1. "THE FOOTBALL SEASON". The Argus. Melbourne. 8 May 1897. p. 11.
  2. Markwell (19 June 1897). "Football Notes". The Australasian. Melbourne. p. 1229.
  3. Markwell, "Football: Hollow Defeat", The Australasian, (Saturday, 10 July 1897), p.21.
  4. A Footballer's Romance: Rejected by his Sweetheart: He Attempts Suicide, The Argus, (Monday, 12 July 1897), p.5.
  5. Ross, John (1996). 100 Years of Australian Football. Ringwood, Victoria: Penguin Books. p. 39. ISBN 978-0670868148.

References
  • Maplestone, M., Flying Higher: History of the Essendon Football Club 1872–1996, Essendon Football Club, (Melbourne), 1996. ISBN 0-9591740-2-8
  • Rogers, S. & Brown, A., Every Game Ever Played: VFL/AFL Results 1897–1997 (Sixth Edition), Viking Books, (Ringwood), 1998. ISBN 0-670-90809-6
  • Ross, J. (ed), 100 Years of Australian Football 1897–1996: The Complete Story of the AFL, All the Big Stories, All the Great Pictures, All the Champions, Every AFL Season Reported, Viking, (Ringwood), 1996. ISBN 0-670-86814-0
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