1945 VFL season
Encyclopedia
Results and statistics for the Victorian Football League
season of 1945.
Teams played each other in a home-and-away season of 20 rounds; matches 12 to 20 were the "home-and-way reverse" of matches 1 to 9.
The determination of the 1945 season's fixtures were greatly complicated by the fact that both the Melbourne Cricket Ground
and the Lake Oval were appropriated for military use
and, because of this, Melbourne
shared the Punt Road Oval
with Richmond
as their home ground, and South Melbourne
shared the Junction Oval
with St Kilda as their home ground.
Once the 20 round home-and-away season had finished, the 1945 VFL Premiers were determined by the specific format and conventions of the "Page-McIntyre system".
defeated South Melbourne
15.13 (103) to 10.15 (75), in front of a crowd of 62,986 people. (For an explanation of scoring see Australian rules football
).
Australian Football League
The Australian Football League is both the governing body and the major professional competition in the sport of Australian rules football...
season of 1945.
Premiership season
In 1945, the VFL competition consisted of twelve teams of 18 on-the-field players each, plus one substitute player, known as the 19th man. A player could be substituted for any reason; however, once substituted, a player could not return to the field of play under any circumstances.Teams played each other in a home-and-away season of 20 rounds; matches 12 to 20 were the "home-and-way reverse" of matches 1 to 9.
The determination of the 1945 season's fixtures were greatly complicated by the fact that both the Melbourne Cricket Ground
Melbourne Cricket Ground
The Melbourne Cricket Ground is an Australian sports stadium located in Yarra Park, Melbourne and is home to the Melbourne Cricket Club. It is the tenth largest stadium in the world, the largest in Australia, the largest stadium for playing cricket, and holds the world record for the highest light...
and the Lake Oval were appropriated for military use
Commandeering
Commandeering is an act of appropriation by the military or police whereby they take possession of the property of a member of the public.-External links:*"" at Straight Dope, 25 April 2006*"" at Urban Legends Reference Pages, 6 August 2001...
and, because of this, Melbourne
Melbourne Football Club
The Melbourne Football Club, nicknamed The Demons, is an Australian rules football club playing in the Australian Football League , based in Melbourne, Victoria....
shared the Punt Road Oval
Punt Road Oval
Punt Road Oval is a sporting ground located in Yarra Park, East Melbourne, Victoria situated only a few hundred metres to the east of the famous Melbourne Cricket Ground....
with Richmond
Richmond Football Club
The Richmond Football Club, nicknamed The Tigers, is an Australian rules football club which competes in the Australian Football League. Richmond shares healthy rivalries with Carlton, Collingwood and Essendon. After winning five premierships between 1967 and 1980, the club hit the depths in 1990,...
as their home ground, and South Melbourne
Sydney Swans
The Sydney Swans Football Club is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League . The club is based in Sydney, New South Wales. The club, founded in 1874, was known as the South Melbourne Football Club until it relocated to Sydney in 1982 to become the Sydney...
shared the Junction Oval
Junction Oval
The Junction Oval is an historic sports ground in the suburb of St Kilda in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Its location near the St Kilda Junction gave rise to its nickname...
with St Kilda as their home ground.
Once the 20 round home-and-away season had finished, the 1945 VFL Premiers were determined by the specific format and conventions of the "Page-McIntyre system".
Grand final
CarltonCarlton Football Club
The Carlton Football Club is a professional Australian rules football club based in Melbourne, Victoria. The club competes in the Australian Football League, and was one of the eight founding members of that competition in 1897...
defeated South Melbourne
Sydney Swans
The Sydney Swans Football Club is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League . The club is based in Sydney, New South Wales. The club, founded in 1874, was known as the South Melbourne Football Club until it relocated to Sydney in 1982 to become the Sydney...
15.13 (103) to 10.15 (75), in front of a crowd of 62,986 people. (For an explanation of scoring see Australian rules football
Australian rules football
Australian rules football, officially known as Australian football, also called football, Aussie rules or footy is a sport played between two teams of 22 players on either...
).
Awards
- The 1945 VFL Premiership team was CarltonCarlton Football ClubThe Carlton Football Club is a professional Australian rules football club based in Melbourne, Victoria. The club competes in the Australian Football League, and was one of the eight founding members of that competition in 1897...
. - The VFL's leading goalkickerColeman MedalThe Coleman Medal is awarded yearly to the Australian Football League player who kicks the most goals in regular-season matches in that year...
was Fred FanningFred FanningFred Fanning is a former Australian rules footballer who played for Melbourne in the Victorian Football League . He was a strongly built forward who stood at 193 cm and weighed 102 kg and, prior to the Coleman Medal, topped the league's goal kicking charts in 1943 , 1944 and 1945...
of MelbourneMelbourne Football ClubThe Melbourne Football Club, nicknamed The Demons, is an Australian rules football club playing in the Australian Football League , based in Melbourne, Victoria....
with 67 goals. - No Brownlow MedalBrownlow MedalThe Chas Brownlow Trophy, better known as the Brownlow Medal , is awarded to the "fairest and best" player in the Australian Football League during the regular season as determined by votes cast by the officiating field umpires after each game...
was awarded in 1945. - St Kilda took the "wooden spoonWooden spoon (award)A wooden spoon is a mock or real award, usually given to an individual or team which has come last in a competition, but sometimes also to runners-up. Examples range from the academic to sporting and more frivolous events...
" in 1945.
Notable events
- The home-and-away season is expanded to 20 rounds.
- In round 1 and round 3, EssendonEssendon Football ClubThe Essendon Football Club, nicknamed The Bombers, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League...
thrashes HawthornHawthorn Football ClubThe Hawthorn Football Club, nicknamed the Hawks, is a professional Australian rules football club in the Australian Football League . The club, founded in 1902, is the youngest of the Victorian-based teams in the AFL. The team play in Brown & Gold vertically striped guernseys...
and CarltonCarlton Football ClubThe Carlton Football Club is a professional Australian rules football club based in Melbourne, Victoria. The club competes in the Australian Football League, and was one of the eight founding members of that competition in 1897...
by 71 and 100 points respectively whilst kicking precisely the same score: 22.18 (150). - South Melbourne'sSydney SwansThe Sydney Swans Football Club is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League . The club is based in Sydney, New South Wales. The club, founded in 1874, was known as the South Melbourne Football Club until it relocated to Sydney in 1982 to become the Sydney...
captain and Brownlow MedalBrownlow MedalThe Chas Brownlow Trophy, better known as the Brownlow Medal , is awarded to the "fairest and best" player in the Australian Football League during the regular season as determined by votes cast by the officiating field umpires after each game...
winner Herbie MatthewsHerbie MatthewsHerbie Matthews was an Australian rules footballer who played for South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League. He was recruited from suburban Fairfield under the League's "father and son" rule. His father, 'Butcher' Matthews, partnered the great Roy Cazaly in South Melbourne's ruck...
and South Melbourne forward Keith Smith were dropped from the round 13 match by their club for refusing to play in the positions they were directed to play in. - The Grand Final between South MelbourneSydney SwansThe Sydney Swans Football Club is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League . The club is based in Sydney, New South Wales. The club, founded in 1874, was known as the South Melbourne Football Club until it relocated to Sydney in 1982 to become the Sydney...
and CarltonCarlton Football ClubThe Carlton Football Club is a professional Australian rules football club based in Melbourne, Victoria. The club competes in the Australian Football League, and was one of the eight founding members of that competition in 1897...
was marred by extreme on-field violence and brawling from both teams. (see 1945 VFL Grand Final1945 VFL Grand FinalThe 1945 VFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football game contested between the South Melbourne Football Club and Carlton Football Club, held at Princes Park in Melbourne on 29 September 1945. It was the 49th annual Grand Final of the Victorian Football League, staged to determine the premiers...
). - After its round 14 loss to EssendonEssendon Football ClubThe Essendon Football Club, nicknamed The Bombers, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League...
, CarltonCarlton Football ClubThe Carlton Football Club is a professional Australian rules football club based in Melbourne, Victoria. The club competes in the Australian Football League, and was one of the eight founding members of that competition in 1897...
won its next nine consecutive matches (including the Grand Final). - Carlton'sCarlton Football ClubThe Carlton Football Club is a professional Australian rules football club based in Melbourne, Victoria. The club competes in the Australian Football League, and was one of the eight founding members of that competition in 1897...
1945 premiership win was the first time since the "Page-McIntyre system" had been adopted in 1931 that a team from fourth place on the home-and-away ladder (i.e., a team that had no "double chance") had won the Grand Final.