AFL reserves explained

AFL reserves
Pixels:200px
Formerly:
VFL seconds/reserves
Sport:Australian rules football
Founded:1919
Inaugural:1919
Country:Australia
Folded:1999
Most Champs: (13)

The AFL reserve grade competition, commonly known simply as the AFL reserves, was an Australian rules football competition that operated as a second-tier competition to the Australian Football League (AFL) from 1919 until 1999.

Prior to 1990, it was known as the VFL reserve grade competition, VFL reserves or VFL seconds.[1]

In its final season in 1999, the competition was made up of the reserves teams of all the senior AFL clubs that were based in Melbourne plus that of the Sydney Swans.[2]

Since 2000, the Victorian Football League (VFL), formerly known as the Victorian Football Association (VFA), has operated as a hybrid second-tier senior competition and reserves competition for most of the AFL clubs.

History

Formation

In 1919, a new football competition known as the Victorian Junior Football League (VJFL) was established – at this time, junior was the term used for open age football of a lower standard than senior football, rather than for under age football.[3] The league was intended to bring a junior club affiliated with each of the Victorian Football League (VFL) senior clubs into a single competition, and to adopt the same district eligibility scheme which the VFL had introduced in 1916.[4] Player permit rules allowed for automatic transfers between the junior and senior clubs until July, allowing the juniors to serve as second eighteens for the seniors. The junior and senior clubs shared a home ground, with the juniors playing home when the seniors played away.[5]

For the inaugural season, four existing junior clubs – the Fitzroy Juniors, Collingwood District (also known as Collingwood Juniors) and Leopold (affiliated with) and Caulfield (affiliated with) – initially crossed to the new league from the Metropolitan Amateur Association; West Melbourne was affiliated with ; and new junior clubs were formed in Carlton, Richmond and St Kilda., which had left the VFL senior competition after 1914, also entered a stand-alone junior team in the competition.[6] [7]

Shortly before the season, Caulfield withdrew, and a second University team was quickly arranged to take its place for the 1919 season.[8] The two University teams were known as University A and University B, later becoming the modern day 'University Blues' and 'University Blacks'. University B contested only the 1919 season, with a Melbourne Juniors team established for 1920; University A contested the 1919 and 1920 seasons, reaching the grand final both years before dropping out.

West Melbourne faced multiple heavy losses in 1920, including a 197-point loss against Carlton District and a 229-point loss against St Kilda District. The club left the competition at the end of the season, and were replaced by .[9]

Name change

In 1925, the VJFL was renamed as the VFL seconds, later known more commonly as the VFL reserves.[10] Following the change, the seconds clubs still operated as distinct stand-alone clubs at this time, rather than coming directly under the influence of their senior clubs. This changed over the following decades, with all of the seconds teams gradually being subsumed by their senior counterparts.[11] [12]

won the 1931, 1932, 1933, 1934 and 1935 premierships - the only time in VFL/AFL history (seniors or reserves) that a club has won five grand finals in a row.[13]

Local players were primarily recruited via the league's metropolitan and country zoning rules, and the clubs had full ability to develop its players through its Under-19s and reserves teams: the same basic structure was also used consistently in the other two elite leagues, the South Australian National Football League (SANFL) and the West Australian Football League (WAFL).

VSFL era

History was made in 1991, with the Brisbane Bears winning the reserves premiership − the first non-Victorian club to win a VFL/AFL premiership in any grade.

The Victorian State Football League was established at the end of 1991 to take over administration of football in Victoria from the Australian Football League, which was now becoming preoccupied with administration of the game nationally.

The VSFL ran the AFL reserves competition from 1992 until 1999, which was also referred as the VSFL in its first few years.[14] At the end of 1994, the VSFL also took over administration of the Victorian Football Association (VFA) competition (which was renamed the Victorian Football League in 1996).[15]

Amalgamation with the VFL

See also: 2000 VFL season. Following the 1999 season, the AFL reserves was merged into the Victorian Football League. Such a merger had first been proposed as early as 1980, and a formal attempt to enact the merger for the 1995 season was defeated after strong opposition from the clubs.[16] [17]

Clubs

was relocated to Sydney at the end of the 1981 VFL season, after which the club continued to play in the VFL/AFL reserves as Sydney.[2]

The Brisbane Bears competed for four years between 1989 and 1992, winning their only premiership at any grade in 1991. After their merger with at the end of 1996, the did not compete in the competition.

No teams from South Australia or Western Australia ever competed in the VFL/AFL reserves.

ClubColoursMoniker SeasonsPremiershipsYears of premiershipsCurrent league
FirstLast
style=text-align:left Brisbanealign=centre Bears align=centre 1989align=centre 1992align=centre 1align=centre 1991align=left Merged
style=text-align:left Carlton
(Carlton District) 		align=centre Blues align=centre 1919align=centre 1999align=centre 8align=centre 1926, 1927, 1928, 1951, 1953, 1986, 1987, 1990align=left VFL
style=text-align:left Caulfieldalign=centre N/A
align=left Folded
style=text-align:left align=centre Lions align=centre 1921align=centre 1924align=centre 0align=centre align=left VFL
style=text-align:left Collingwood
align=centre Magpies align=centre 1919align=centre 1999align=centre 7align=centre 1919, 1920, 1922, 1925, 1940, 1965, 1976align=left VFL
style=text-align:left
align=centre Bombers align=centre 1921align=centre 1999align=centre 8align=centre 1921, 1941, 1950, 1952, 1968, 1983, 1992, 1999align=left VFL
style=text-align:left
align=centre Lions align=centre 1919align=centre 1996align=centre 3align=centre 1944, 1974, 1989align=left Merged
style=text-align:left Geelongalign=centre Cats align=centre 1922align=centre 1999align=centre 13align=centre 1923, 1924, 1930, 1937, 1938, 1948, 1960, 1963, 1964, 1975, 1980, 1981, 1982align=left VFL
style=text-align:left Hawthornalign=centre Hawks align=centre 1925align=centre 1999align=centre 4align=centre 1958, 1959, 1972, 1985align=left In recess
style=text-align:left Leopoldalign=centre Leosalign=centre 1919align=centre 1924align=centre 0align=centre align=left Folded
style=text-align:left Melbournealign=centre Demons align=centre 1920align=centre 1999align=centre 12align=centre 1931, 1932, 1933, 1934, 1935, 1939, 1949, 1956, 1969, 1970, 1984, 1993align=left In recess
style=text-align:left North Melbourne
(Kangaroos)		align=centre Kangaroosalign=centre 1925align=centre 1999align=centre 7align=centre 1947, 1957, 1967, 1978, 1979, 1995, 1996align=left VFL
style=text-align:left Richmondalign=centre Tigers align=centre 1919align=centre 1999align=centre 10align=centre 1929, 1946, 1954, 1955, 1966, 1967, 1971, 1973, 1977, 1997align=left VFL
style=text-align:left St Kilda
(St Kilda District) 		align=centre Saints align=centre 1919align=centre 1999align=centre 3align=centre 1942, 1943, 1961align=left In recess
style=text-align:left Sydney
(South Melbourne)		align=centre Swans align=centre 1925align=centre 1999align=centre 0align=centre align=left VFL
style=text-align:left align=centre Blues align=centre 1919align=centre 1920align=centre 0align=centre align=left VAFA
style=text-align:left align=centre Blacks align=centre 1919align=centre 1919align=centre 0align=centre align=left VAFA
style=text-align:left West Melbournealign=centre align=centre 1919align=centre 1920align=centre 0align=centre align=left Folded
style=text-align:left Western Bulldogs
(Footscray)		align=centre Bulldogs align=centre 1925align=centre 1999align=centre 6align=centre 1936, 1945, 1962, 1988, 1994, 1998align=left VFL

Uniforms

Notable players

A number of notable players competed solely in the reserves competition.

Shane Warne, considered to be one of the greatest bowlers in the history of cricket, played a single game for in 1988: he was erroneously listed in the Record as Trevor Warne, and played in the Under-19s for the remainder of the season.[18] Former St Kilda number one ticket holder John Moran also played for the reserves side.[19]

John Bourke, a forward, infamously shoved an umpire and then attacked a fan among other incidents during a 1985 game, leading to a suspension of ten years plus 16 games, equivalent to 240 matches.[20]

Premiers

See main article: List of VFL/AFL reserves premiers. won the most reserves premierships, with a total of 13.[21]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 1999 AFL Reserve Grade Competition . Australian Football.
  2. Web site: Unearthing roots of Harbour City talent. The Age. 23 August 2011. 3 August 2003.
  3. Book: Ross. John. 100 Years of Australian Football. 1996. Viking Books. Ringwood, Australia. 9781854714343. 382.
  4. News: The Age. Melbourne, VIC. New junior organisation. 18 January 1919. 13.
  5. News: Malvern Standard. 3. 8 March 1919. District junior football.
  6. https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/155222569 The Sporting World: A Look Ahead
  7. https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/155218895 Smith, W.H. & Ogilvey, A., The Football Season (Letter to the Editor)
  8. News: The Age. Melbourne. Football. 15 May 1919. 10.
  9. Web site: 1920 Reserves . Blueseum.
  10. Web site: V.F.L. SECONDS . Age . 26 June 1936 . The Age.
  11. News: Football - Carlton - Seniors may control second eighteen. 2 March 1936. 5. The Age.
  12. Web site: Collingwood District Football Club . Collingwood Forever.
  13. Web site: Records and Achievements . Melbourne Football Club.
  14. News: The Age. Melbourne, VIC. North to push for new jumpers. 21 March 1995. Stephen Linnell. 42.
  15. Web site: History of the VFL 1877 - 2009 .
  16. News: The Age. Melbourne, VIC. 24. 12 June 1980. League nearer Sunday games.
  17. News: The Age. Melbourne, VIC. 24 May 1994. Stephen Rielly. Stephen Linnell. 50. Vic clubs threaten AFL on reserves.
  18. Web site: Remembering Warnie: The football story before the cricket legend . 5 March 2022 . St Kilda Football Club.
  19. Web site: John Moran Loyalty Award . 28 July 2014 . St Kilda Football Club.
  20. Web site: 10 of the AFL's most famous suspensions . 19 June 2019 . ZeroHanger.
  21. Web site: Premierships . Geelong Cats.

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