1965 VFL season
Encyclopedia
Results and statistics for the Victorian Football League
season of 1965.
Teams played each other in a home-and-away season of 18 rounds; matches 12 to 18 were the "home-and-way reverse" of matches 1 to 7.
Once the 18 round home-and-away season had finished, the 1965 VFL Premiers were determined by the specific format and conventions of the "Page-McIntyre system".
, for the teams (5th to 12th on ladder) out of the finals at the end of the season.
Final: North Melbourne
14.13 (97) defeated Carlton
9.3 (57).
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 1965.
Premiership season
In 1965, the VFL competition consisted of twelve teams of 18 on-the-field players each, plus two substitute players, known as the 19th man and the 20th 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 18 rounds; matches 12 to 18 were the "home-and-way reverse" of matches 1 to 7.
Once the 18 round home-and-away season had finished, the 1965 VFL Premiers were determined by the specific format and conventions of the "Page-McIntyre system".
Night Series Competition
The night series were held under the floodlights at Lake Oval, South MelbourneSouth Melbourne, Victoria
South Melbourne is an inner city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 2 km south from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area are the Cities of Port Phillip and Melbourne...
, for the teams (5th to 12th on ladder) out of the finals at the end of the season.
Final: North Melbourne
North Melbourne Football Club
The North Melbourne Football Club, nicknamed The Kangaroos, is the fourth oldest Australian rules football club in the Australian Football League and is one of the oldest sporting clubs in Australia and the world...
14.13 (97) defeated Carlton
Carlton 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...
9.3 (57).
First Semi-Final
| Team | 1 Qtr | 2 Qtr | 3 Qtr | Final |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Geelong Geelong Football Club The Geelong Football Club, nicknamed The Cats, is a professional Australian rules football club, named after and based in the city of Geelong, playing in the Australian Football League . The club has been the VFL/AFL premiers nine times, with a record equalling 3 in the AFL era. Geelong has also... |
2.0 | 4.3 | 6.8 | 7.9 (51) |
| Essendon Essendon Football Club The Essendon Football Club, nicknamed The Bombers, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League... |
3.5 | 8.14 | 10.16 | 14.19 (103) |
| Attendance: 89,833 | ||||
Second Semi-Final
| Team | 1 Qtr | 2 Qtr | 3 Qtr | Final |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| St Kilda | 2.7 | 6.14 | 11.22 | 13.24 (102) |
| Collingwood Collingwood Football Club The Collingwood Football Club, nicknamed The Magpies, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League... |
5.5 | 8.7 | 11.10 | 14.17 (101) |
| Attendance: 98,385 | ||||
Preliminary Final
| Team | 1 Qtr | 2 Qtr | 3 Qtr | Final |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Collingwood Collingwood Football Club The Collingwood Football Club, nicknamed The Magpies, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League... |
1.0 | 3.0 | 4.4 | 6.6 (42) |
| Essendon Essendon Football Club The Essendon Football Club, nicknamed The Bombers, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League... |
3.6 | 5.9 | 10.10 | 14.13 (97) |
| Attendance: 95,386 | ||||
Grand final
| Team | 1 Qtr | 2 Qtr | 3 Qtr | Final |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| St Kilda | 1.6 | 4.8 | 5.11 | 9.16 (70) |
| Essendon Essendon Football Club The Essendon Football Club, nicknamed The Bombers, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League... |
2.7 | 5.10 | 10.18 | 14.21 (105) |
| Attendance: 104,846 | ||||
Awards
- The 1965 VFL Premiership team was EssendonEssendon Football ClubThe Essendon Football Club, nicknamed The Bombers, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League...
. - 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 John Peck of 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...
who kicked 56 goals. - The winner of the 1965 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 Ian StewartIan Stewart (Australian rules footballer)Ian Harlow Stewart , son of Aldo Liberale Cervi and Anita Cervi who separated three years after his birth, is a former Australian rules footballer with Hobart in the Tasmanian Football League , and in the Victorian Football League with St Kilda and Richmond...
of St Kilda with 20 votes. He won on a count-back from Noel TeasdaleNoel TeasdaleNoel Teasdale is a former Australian rules footballer who played in the Victorian Football League.Originally from Daylesford, Teasdale made his debut with the North Melbourne Football Club in 1956 playing as a ruckman and for a period, a full-back.Teasdale was noted for his tough, uncompromising...
of North MelbourneNorth Melbourne Football ClubThe North Melbourne Football Club, nicknamed The Kangaroos, is the fourth oldest Australian rules football club in the Australian Football League and is one of the oldest sporting clubs in Australia and the world...
.- As a consequence of its 1981 decision to change its rules relating to tied Brownlow Medal contests, the AFL awarded a retrospective medal to Noel TeasdaleNoel TeasdaleNoel Teasdale is a former Australian rules footballer who played in the Victorian Football League.Originally from Daylesford, Teasdale made his debut with the North Melbourne Football Club in 1956 playing as a ruckman and for a period, a full-back.Teasdale was noted for his tough, uncompromising...
in 1989.
- As a consequence of its 1981 decision to change its rules relating to tied Brownlow Medal contests, the AFL awarded a retrospective medal to Noel Teasdale
- 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...
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 1965.
Notable events
- In January, Melbourne'sMelbourne Football ClubThe Melbourne Football Club, nicknamed The Demons, is an Australian rules football club playing in the Australian Football League , based in Melbourne, Victoria....
1964 premiership captain Ron BarassiRon BarassiRonald Dale Barassi, Jr AM is a former Australian rules football player and coach. During a long and decorated career, Barassi has been one of the most important figures in the history of Australian football. His father, Ron Barassi, Sr., was the first Australian footballer killed at Tobruk during...
astounds the VFL community by announcing that he will be the 1965 captain/coach of 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...
. - RichmondRichmond Football ClubThe 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,...
had moved its "home ground" to the Melbourne Cricket GroundMelbourne Cricket GroundThe 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...
(sharing it with 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....
), whilst continuing to train at the Punt Road OvalPunt Road OvalPunt 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....
. In round 1, Richmond played its first "home" match at the MCG, against Melbourne in front of 36,283 spectators; Melbourne win by a goal, 7.5 (47) to 6.5 (41). - North MelbourneNorth Melbourne Football ClubThe North Melbourne Football Club, nicknamed The Kangaroos, is the fourth oldest Australian rules football club in the Australian Football League and is one of the oldest sporting clubs in Australia and the world...
and St Kilda had moved their training base and their "home ground" to Coburg Oval and Moorabbin OvalMoorabbin OvalMoorabbin Oval, also known by its sponsorship name of Linen House Oval, is an Australian Rules Football ground in the city of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia at Linton Street in the suburb of Moorabbin....
respectively. In round 1, North Melbourne played its first "home" match at the Coburg Oval, against 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...
in front of 13,774 spectators; the ground is in shocking condition and North Melbourne lose 6.10 (46) to 4.12 (36). In round 1, St Kilda played its first "home" match at the Moorabbin Oval, against CollingwoodCollingwood Football ClubThe Collingwood Football Club, nicknamed The Magpies, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League...
in front of 51,370 spectators (an all-time crowd record for the Moorabbin Oval); St Kilda win 8.12 (60) to 8.6 (54). - In the round 2 match against EssendonEssendon Football ClubThe Essendon Football Club, nicknamed The Bombers, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League...
, 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...
forward Garry YoungGarry YoungGarry Young is a former Australian rules footballer who played for Hawthorn in the Victorian Football League .A key position forward, Young topped Hawthorn's goalkicking in 1959 and 1960 and was a premiership player in 1961....
sustains a painful injury from a hard knock. Hawthorn captain Graham ArthurGraham ArthurGraham Arthur is a former Australian rules footballer who played in the VFL in the 1950s and 1960s.Arthur played primarily as a half forward, debuting while still only 18 years old....
stands over him and says "Get up you weak bastard". Young returns to the play and does his best to continue. Eventually he leaves the ground. He went straight to hospital where it was discovered that he had a perforated bowelGastrointestinal perforationGastrointestinal perforation is a complete penetration of the wall of the stomach, small intestine or large bowel, resulting in intestinal contents flowing into the abdominal cavity. Perforation of the intestines results in the potential for bacterial contamination of the abdominal cavity...
and peritonitisPeritonitisPeritonitis is an inflammation of the peritoneum, the serous membrane that lines part of the abdominal cavity and viscera. Peritonitis may be localised or generalised, and may result from infection or from a non-infectious process.-Abdominal pain and tenderness:The main manifestations of...
, both of which are life-threatening conditions. He never played again. - In round 6, EssendonEssendon Football ClubThe Essendon Football Club, nicknamed The Bombers, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League...
forward Geoff GosperGeoff GosperGeoff Gosper is a former Australian rules footballer who played for Essendon in the VFL during the 1960s.Gosper played mostly as a half forward flanker and was recruited to Essendon from Strathmore. He was a reserve in Essendon's 1962 premiership side and on a half forward flank in their 1965...
is the first VFL player to play with a mouthguard. - On Saturday 19 June, at the Melbourne Cricket GroundMelbourne Cricket GroundThe 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...
, Victoria thrashes South Australia 19.17 (131) to 9.18 (72); however, the tables are turned in the return match on 10 July, in Adelaide, when South Australia thrashes Victoria even more comprehensively 12.11 (83) to 3.1 (19). - Norm SmithNorm SmithNorman Walter "Norm" Smith was an Australian rules football player and coach in the Victorian Football League. After 200 games as a player with Melbourne and Fitzroy, Smith began a twenty year coaching career, including a fifteen year stint at Melbourne...
, a six-premiership 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....
coach, was sacked after round 12 and then reinstated before round 14. Smith had been unhappy about his lack of support from the Melbourne Football Club in the libel case that had been brought against him by VFL umpire Russell BlewRussell BlewRussell Blew is a former Australian rules footballer who played with Essendon in the VFL during the 1960s.A pacy wingman, Blew debuted for Essendon in 1960. In 1964 he finished second in the best and fairest awards and represented Victoria at interstate football. He was a premiership player with...
. - At the end of the season, North Melbourne Football ClubNorth Melbourne Football ClubThe North Melbourne Football Club, nicknamed The Kangaroos, is the fourth oldest Australian rules football club in the Australian Football League and is one of the oldest sporting clubs in Australia and the world...
declares its move to Coburg Oval a failure, and state that it will play all of its future "home games" at the Arden Street OvalArden Street OvalArden Street Oval is a sports oval based in Arden Street, North Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It is currently the training base of Australian rules team North Melbourne Football Club and up to the end of the 1985 season it was used for elite-level VFL/AFL matches.-History:The North Melbourne...
once again. - 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....
miss the finals for the first time since 1954, and St Kilda play in a Grand FinalAFL Grand FinalThe AFL Grand Final is an annual Australian rules football match, traditionally held on the final Saturday in September at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne, Australia to determine the Australian Football League premiership champions for that year...
for the first time since 1913. - Essendon'sEssendon Football ClubThe Essendon Football Club, nicknamed The Bombers, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League...
half-forward flanker John Somerville was felled behind play in first 10 minutes of the 1965 Preliminary Final. His opponent for the day, Collingwood'sCollingwood Football ClubThe Collingwood Football Club, nicknamed The Magpies, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League...
Duncan WrightDuncan WrightDuncan Wright Duncan Wright Duncan Wright (born 28 August 1940 is a former Australian rules footballer who played for Collingwood in the Victorian Football League (VFL) during the first part of the 1960s....
, was never selected to play for Collingwood again. The field umpire, Ron Brophy, was never selected to umpire a VFL match again. (See Duncan Wright and John Somerville.)