1898 VFL Grand Final
Encyclopedia
The 1898 VFL Grand Final was an Australian rules football
game contested between the Essendon Football Club
and Fitzroy Football Club
, held in Melbourne
on 24 September 1898. It was the first time the Victorian Football League
(VFL) premiership was decided by a grand finale match.
The game was played under atrocious ground conditions, in front of 16,538 people, at the St Kilda Cricket Ground
. The reason that this venue was chosen was because both clubs considered that if the game was played at the home ground of one of the teams, that team would gain an unfair advantage.
Essendon, exercising the season's minor premier team's right of "challenge", had challenged Fitzroy, the winner of the previous Saturday's "Sectional Final" match against Collingwood
, 5.8 (38) to 3.5 (23).
Fitzroy won the "Grand Final", scoring 5.8 (38) to Essendon's 3.5 (23). Neither side scored a goal in the last quarter of the match.
Both the Fitzroy back-pocket Stan Reid
and the Essendon full-forward Charlie Moore
would later die in South Africa in active service during the Anglo-Boer War; Moore on 5 May 1901, and Reid on 23 June 1901.
The teams in the two sections played three rounds of four round-robin matches on three consecutive Saturdays:
The winners of the two sections were Fitzroy
and Collingwood
respectively (for results of all of the round-robin matches and, a week later (17 September 1898), the two teams played each other at the Brunswick Street Oval
, with Fitzroy winning the match 2.10 (22) to 1.5 (11).
Although Essendon and Fitzroy could not agree on the choice of a single venue, they suggested three mutually acceptable venues for the match:
They referred the decision to the VFL's Match Arrangement Committee; and upon the express instructions of that Committee, the suggestions of the two teams were rejected outright, and the match was controversially scheduled to be played at the St Kilda Cricket Ground
.
The St Kilda Cricket Ground was in an appalling condition. The ground had not been used since the second Saturday of the Sectional round-robin match three weeks earlier (3 September) and, since then, it had been thoroughly topdressed and "cultivated" in anticipation of the coming cricket season. Also, the cricket ground's asphalt cycling track that lay between the boundary line and the fence presented a considerable danger to the footballers.
Despite being the "challenger", the Essendon Football Club flatly refused to play in the scheduled match, declaring that it would rather forfeit the match and the premiership than play on such a dangerous surface. This view was also strongly supported by the Fitzroy Football Club, whose captain had taken the extraordinary step of signing a declaration to the effect that, in his opinion, the ground was entirely unfit to play upon.
Essendon lodged an appeal with the VFL against the Match Arrangement Committee's decision, partly on the basis of the condition of the ground, and partly because the Committee, asked to decide on one of three mutually acceptable venues, had chosen a fourth that was acceptable to neither participant.
The VFL, perhaps somewhat driven by the fact that the attraction of a finals system was one of the major reasons that the eight teams left the VFA and formed the VFL in the first place, had a special meeting to hear Essendon's appeal. It chose to endorse the Committee's decision, and did everything it could to coerce the Essendon Club into playing the match.
Essendon did not actually agree to play the match until the night before the game; and, ultimately, this "in doubt until the last minute match" was still attended by 16,538 paying spectators (it certainly would have been a much larger crowd otherwise).
The ground had been in such a dreadful condition that in the week prior to the match over 40 dray-loads of rubbish, soil and street-sweepings had been taken from the ground.
Despite all this last minute work, the condition of the playing surface at the St Kilda Cricket Ground was still atrocious on the day of the final. Players kept skating over the grass-less slippery ground for want of some sort of grip, and play was often obscured from the spectators by clouds of dust from the patched areas where the topsoil had not bound.
However, although there were no "reserves", any player who had left the playing field for any reason at all could resume his place on the field at any time.
Fitzroy selected two sets of brothers in its "Grand Final" team: Bill and Jack Dalton; and Jim and Mick Grace.
The Fitzroy and the Essendon teams teams were:
Both teams had great difficulty playing football in the appalling ground conditions — as can be seen by the low scores — and the tough, bustling Fitzroy team handled the conditions far better than the Essendon team that had hoped to spread the game out as far as possible.
Fitzroy took the lead in the first few minutes of the match, and Essendon were never able to catch up.
Essendon were further demoralized when Fitzroy champion forward and follower, Mick Grace
, renowned for his marking skill and kicking prowess, flew high over a pack to take a spectacular high mark and kicked a long range goal.
In a very tight, defensive second half, as the playing conditions deteriorated even further, only one goal was scored. Fitzroy went on to beat Essendon 5.8 (38) to 3.5 (23).
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...
game contested between the Essendon Football Club
Essendon Football Club
The Essendon Football Club, nicknamed The Bombers, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League...
and Fitzroy Football Club
Fitzroy Football Club
The Fitzroy Football Club, formerly nicknamed The Lions, is an Australian rules football club formed in 1883 to represent the inner Melbourne suburb of Fitzroy, Victoria and was a foundation member club of the Victorian Football League on its inception in 1897...
, held in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
on 24 September 1898. It was the first time the Victorian Football League
Australian Football League
The Australian Football League is both the governing body and the major professional competition in the sport of Australian rules football...
(VFL) premiership was decided by a grand finale match.
The game was played under atrocious ground conditions, in front of 16,538 people, at the St Kilda Cricket Ground
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...
. The reason that this venue was chosen was because both clubs considered that if the game was played at the home ground of one of the teams, that team would gain an unfair advantage.
Essendon, exercising the season's minor premier team's right of "challenge", had challenged Fitzroy, the winner of the previous Saturday's "Sectional Final" match against Collingwood
Collingwood Football Club
The Collingwood Football Club, nicknamed The Magpies, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League...
, 5.8 (38) to 3.5 (23).
Fitzroy won the "Grand Final", scoring 5.8 (38) to Essendon's 3.5 (23). Neither side scored a goal in the last quarter of the match.
Both the Fitzroy back-pocket Stan Reid
Stan Reid
Stanley Spencer Reid was an Australian rules footballer with the Fitzroy Football Club from 1894 to 1898.Soon after his retirement from VFL football, he became an ordained minister of the Presbyterian Church....
and the Essendon full-forward Charlie Moore
Charlie Moore (Australian rules footballer)
Walter Charles "Charlie" Moore was an Australian rules footballer who played for Essendon Football Club in the Victorian Football League , and who also served as a trooper in the Anglo-Boer War....
would later die in South Africa in active service during the Anglo-Boer War; Moore on 5 May 1901, and Reid on 23 June 1901.
The Season
During the 1898 home-and-away season, all teams played each other twice. The final end-of season ladder was:| Team | Won | Lost | Draw | Points | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Essendon Essendon Football Club The Essendon Football Club, nicknamed The Bombers, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League... |
11 | 3 | 0 | 44 |
| 2 | Collingwood Collingwood Football Club The Collingwood Football Club, nicknamed The Magpies, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League... |
10 | 4 | 0 | 40 |
| 3 | Fitzroy Fitzroy Football Club The Fitzroy Football Club, formerly nicknamed The Lions, is an Australian rules football club formed in 1883 to represent the inner Melbourne suburb of Fitzroy, Victoria and was a foundation member club of the Victorian Football League on its inception in 1897... |
10 | 4 | 0 | 40 |
| 4 | 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... |
9 | 5 | 0 | 36 |
| 5 | 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... |
7 | 7 | 0 | 28 |
| 6 | 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.... |
5 | 8 | 1 | 22 |
| 7 | 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... |
3 | 10 | 1 | 14 |
| 8 | St Kilda | 0 | 14 | 0 | 0 |
Lead-up
According to the 1898 premiership system the eight teams in the VFL competition were divided into two sections based on their positions on the ladder: the first group were the teams that finished first, third, fifth, and seventh, and the second group were the teams that finished second, fourth, sixth, and eighth.The teams in the two sections played three rounds of four round-robin matches on three consecutive Saturdays:
- Round One: (1) v (3), (2) v (4), (5) v (7), and (6) v (8).
- Round Two: (1) v (5), (2) v (6), (3) v (7), and (4) v (8).
- Round Three: (1) v (7), (2) v (8), (3) v (5), and (4) v (6).
The winners of the two sections were Fitzroy
Fitzroy Football Club
The Fitzroy Football Club, formerly nicknamed The Lions, is an Australian rules football club formed in 1883 to represent the inner Melbourne suburb of Fitzroy, Victoria and was a foundation member club of the Victorian Football League on its inception in 1897...
and Collingwood
Collingwood Football Club
The Collingwood Football Club, nicknamed The Magpies, is an Australian rules football club which plays in the Australian Football League...
respectively (for results of all of the round-robin matches and, a week later (17 September 1898), the two teams played each other at the Brunswick Street Oval
Edinburgh Gardens, Melbourne
Edinburgh Gardens is a large park located in North Fitzroy. It is bounded by Brunswick Street and St Georges Road to the west, the curve of Alfred Crescent to the north and east, and Freeman Street to the south. It was created from a grant of land in March 1862 by Queen Victoria and laid out by...
, with Fitzroy winning the match 2.10 (22) to 1.5 (11).
The "Grand Final"
The "1898 rules" stipulated that, if the team at the top of the ladder at the end of the home-and-away season (the "minor premiers") had not won the "Sectional Final" match between the two sectional winners, the "minor premier" had the right to "challenge" the winner; and, having done so, the winner of that grand finale match was declared the season's premiership team.Venue selection
The VFL had not anticipated a challenge final in the schedule of match fixtures that it had determined before the home-and-away season began, nor had it made any sort of a tentative venue booking to provide for such a possible eventuality. It was certainly a significant omission, given that each of the grounds were to be top-dressed and otherwise "cultivated" in preparation for the oncoming cricket season, immediately the scheduled football season was over.Although Essendon and Fitzroy could not agree on the choice of a single venue, they suggested three mutually acceptable venues for the match:
- The Brunswick Street Oval, the home ground of Fitzroy.
- The East Melbourne Cricket GroundEast Melbourne Cricket GroundThe East Melbourne Cricket Ground was a sports venue located at the corner of Wellington Parade and Jolimont Parade, in East Melbourne, Victoria, Australia...
, the home ground of Essendon. - The neutral South Melbourne Cricket Ground on the verge of Albert Park LakeAlbert Park and LakeAlbert Park and Albert Park Lake are situated in the City of Port Phillip, Victoria, Australia, 3 km south of the Melbourne CBD....
, close to the city and well served by rail and a number of tram routes.
They referred the decision to the VFL's Match Arrangement Committee; and upon the express instructions of that Committee, the suggestions of the two teams were rejected outright, and the match was controversially scheduled to be played at the St Kilda Cricket Ground
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...
.
The St Kilda Cricket Ground was in an appalling condition. The ground had not been used since the second Saturday of the Sectional round-robin match three weeks earlier (3 September) and, since then, it had been thoroughly topdressed and "cultivated" in anticipation of the coming cricket season. Also, the cricket ground's asphalt cycling track that lay between the boundary line and the fence presented a considerable danger to the footballers.
Despite being the "challenger", the Essendon Football Club flatly refused to play in the scheduled match, declaring that it would rather forfeit the match and the premiership than play on such a dangerous surface. This view was also strongly supported by the Fitzroy Football Club, whose captain had taken the extraordinary step of signing a declaration to the effect that, in his opinion, the ground was entirely unfit to play upon.
Essendon lodged an appeal with the VFL against the Match Arrangement Committee's decision, partly on the basis of the condition of the ground, and partly because the Committee, asked to decide on one of three mutually acceptable venues, had chosen a fourth that was acceptable to neither participant.
The VFL, perhaps somewhat driven by the fact that the attraction of a finals system was one of the major reasons that the eight teams left the VFA and formed the VFL in the first place, had a special meeting to hear Essendon's appeal. It chose to endorse the Committee's decision, and did everything it could to coerce the Essendon Club into playing the match.
Essendon did not actually agree to play the match until the night before the game; and, ultimately, this "in doubt until the last minute match" was still attended by 16,538 paying spectators (it certainly would have been a much larger crowd otherwise).
The ground had been in such a dreadful condition that in the week prior to the match over 40 dray-loads of rubbish, soil and street-sweepings had been taken from the ground.
Despite all this last minute work, the condition of the playing surface at the St Kilda Cricket Ground was still atrocious on the day of the final. Players kept skating over the grass-less slippery ground for want of some sort of grip, and play was often obscured from the spectators by clouds of dust from the patched areas where the topsoil had not bound.
Teams
In 1898, all VFL teams had 20 on-the-field players, and no "reserves".However, although there were no "reserves", any player who had left the playing field for any reason at all could resume his place on the field at any time.
Fitzroy selected two sets of brothers in its "Grand Final" team: Bill and Jack Dalton; and Jim and Mick Grace.
The Fitzroy and the Essendon teams teams were:
| Fitzroy | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full-back | Stan Reid Stan Reid Stanley Spencer Reid was an Australian rules footballer with the Fitzroy Football Club from 1894 to 1898.Soon after his retirement from VFL football, he became an ordained minister of the Presbyterian Church.... |
Johnny Power Johnny Power Johnny Power was an Australian rules footballer who played with Fitzroy in the Victorian Football League .Although Power only made 10 senior appearances for Fitzroy, he was a premiership player. In his seventh game he played as a full-back in their 1898 premiership team.-References:*Holmesby,... |
Jerry Nolan Jerry Nolan (footballer) Gerald 'Jerry' Nolan was an Australian rules footballer who played for Fitzroy in the Victorian Football League .... |
| Half-back | Alec Sloan Alec Sloan Alec Sloan was an Australian rules footballer who played with Fitzroy in the VFL.Sloan was a member of Fitzroy's inaugural VFL team in 1897 and captained the club from 1898 to 1900. He played most of his football at half back and was a premiership winning captain in 1898 and 1899... (c) |
Pat Hickey Pat Hickey (footballer) Pat Hickey was an Australian rules footballer who played with Fitzroy in the early days of the VFL.Centre half-back Pat Hickey was part of the inaugural Fitzroy side in the VFL and played in their 1898 and 1899 premierships... |
Jack Dalton Jack Dalton (footballer) Jack G. Dalton was an Australian rules footballer who played for Fitzroy in the Victorian Football League .Dalton was a half back flanker in Fitzroy's 1898 premiership team. Brother of teammate Bill, he missed out on their premiership the following season due to injury.-References:*Holmesby,... |
| Centre | Eddie Drohan Eddie Drohan Edward 'Eddie' Drohan was an Australian rules footballer who played with Fitzroy and Collingwood in the Victorian Football League before becoming a coach.... |
Harry Clarke Harry J. Clarke Harry J. Clarke was an Australian rules footballer who played with Fitzroy in the VFL.A centreman, Clarke played in three Fitzroy premierships, 1898, 1899 and 1904. He also finished on losing Grand Final teams on two occasions.... |
Kelly Robinson Kelly Robinson J. H. Kelly Robinson was an Australian rules footballer who played for Fitzroy in the Victorian Football League .... |
| Half-forward | Chris Kiernan Chris Kiernan Christopher Kiernan was an Australian rules footballer who played with Fitzroy in the early years of the Victorian Football League and first-class cricketer.... |
Bert Sharpe Bert Sharpe Albert 'Bert' Sharpe was an Australian rules footballer who played for, Fitzroy and South Melbourne in the Victorian Football League .... |
Bill Dalton Bill Dalton (footballer) William 'Bill' Dalton was an Australian rules footballer who played with Fitzroy in the Victorian Football League .A dual premiership player, Dalton played beside his younger brother Jack in Fitzroy's 1898 premiership team and was a half forward flanker in the premiership the following... |
| Full-forward | Fred Fontaine Fred Fontaine Fred Fontaine was an Australian rules footballer who played with Fitzroy in the VFL.Fontaine played in a variety of positions during his career and was a member of a very successful Fitzroy side, winning four grand finals and losing two... |
Jim Grace Jim Grace (footballer) Jim Grace was an Australian rules footballer who played with Fitzroy in the club's early years. His younger brother, Mick Grace, played beside him at Fitzroy.... |
Alf McDougall Alf McDougall Alf McDougall was an Australian rules footballer who played for Fitzroy in the Victorian Football League .McDougall was the match winner in his debut game against Carlton, kicking two goals in a low scoring affair. He played as a forward pocket in the Fitzroy premiership teams of 1898 and 1899... |
| Followers | Mick Grace Mick Grace Michael John Grace was an Australian rules footballer in the Victorian Football League and Victorian Football Association .... |
Bill McSpeerin Bill McSpeerin William 'Bill' McSpeerin was an Australian rules footballer who played with Fitzroy in the VFL.McSpeerin was a rover and in 1903 became the first Fitzroy footballer to play in 100 VFL games. He had started out with the club in the VFA where he was a member of their 1895 premiership side... |
Bill Potter Bill Potter William 'Bill' Potter was an Australian rules footballer who played for Fitzroy in the Victorian Football League .Potter, who debuted in 1898, was a follower and participated in each of the first three VFL Grand Finals... |
| Pat Descrimes Pat Descrimes Pat Descrimes was an Australian rules footballer who played with Fitzroy in the Victorian Football League .Descrimes debut at Fitzroy in their opening game of the inaugural VFL season and went on to play four seasons for the club... |
Paddy Noonan Paddy Noonan Paddy Noonan was an Australian rules footballer who played with Fitzroy and Carlton in the VFL.A small rover, Noonan played in Fitzroy's inaugural VFL season in 1897 and then their inaugural premiership side the following year... |
||
| Essendon | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full-back | Ted Kinnear Ted Kinnear Edward 'Ted' Kinnear was an Australian rules footballer who played for Essendon in the Victorian Football League .... |
Ned Officer | Hugh Gavin Hugh Gavin Lodovic Hugh Gavin was an Australian rules footballer who played 108 games with Essendon in the years following the formation of the Victorian Football League .... |
| Half-back | George Stuckey George Stuckey George Stuckey was an Australian rules footballer who played with and captained Essendon in the Victorian Football League .... (c) |
Jim Anderson Jim Anderson (footballer) Jim Anderson was an Australian rules footballer who played for Essendon in the Victorian Football League .Anderson, a defender, played in three successive premiership teams during his time with Essendon in the Victorian Football Association. He was a member of two VFL premierships, the first in... |
George Vautin George Vautin George James Phillips Vautin was an Australian rules footballer who played with Essendon in the Victorian Football League . He was born at Orielton, Tasmania and died at West Preston, Victoria.... |
| Centre | Joe Groves Joe Groves Joe Groves was an Australian rules footballer who played with Essendon. A smart winger whose tact overpowered other players, he played in Essendon's first premiership side in 1897... |
Harry Wright Harry Wright (Australian footballer) Harry Lovegrove Wright was an Australian rules footballer who played with Essendon during the years following the formation of the Victorian Football League .... |
Alf Gray |
| Half-forward | Tod Collins Tod Collins George "Tod" Collins was an Australian rules footballer who played with Essendon in the Victorian Football League . Although his given name was George he was known as Tod Collins.... |
Colin Campbell Colin Campbell (Australian footballer) Dr Colin Mansfield Campbell was an Australian rules footballer who played for Essendon in the Victorian Football League and a first-class cricketer, representing Tasmania.... |
George Hastings George Hastings (footballer) George Hastings was an Australian rules footballer who played with Essendon in the early years of the VFL.Hastings usually played on the wing but was also a centreman at times. A member of Essendon's inaugural premiership team in 1897 and again in 1901, Hasting also played in losing Grand Final... |
| Full-forward | Conrad Tenbrink | Charlie Moore Charlie Moore (Australian rules footballer) Walter Charles "Charlie" Moore was an Australian rules footballer who played for Essendon Football Club in the Victorian Football League , and who also served as a trooper in the Anglo-Boer War.... |
Gus Kearney Gus Kearney August D. "Gus" Kearney was an Australian rules footballer that played for the Essendon Football Club, and was a part of the Bombers' 1897 premiership team.... |
| Followers | Charlie Forbes Charlie Forbes Charlie 'Tracker' Forbes was an Australian rules footballer who played with Essendon in the VFL.Forbes was a successful player for Essendon in the years leading up to the formation of the VFL in the 1890s... |
Arthur Cleghorn | Pat O'Loughlin |
| Bill Jackson Bill Jackson (footballer) Bill 'Newhaven' Jackson was an Australian rules footballer who played for Essendon and St Kilda in the Victorian Football League .... |
Son Barry Son Barry Edward 'Son' Barry was an Australian rules footballer who played for Essendon in the Victorian Football League .Although his first name was Edward, Barry was known during his career by the nickname 'Son'. He joined Essendon from Albert Park and was a rover in their 1897 premiership team... |
||
The Match
Essendon had beaten Fitzroy in their round 1 and round 8 matches by 53 and 43 points respectively. Fitzroy had beaten Essendon by 29 points in the third match of their round-robin Sectional matches.Both teams had great difficulty playing football in the appalling ground conditions — as can be seen by the low scores — and the tough, bustling Fitzroy team handled the conditions far better than the Essendon team that had hoped to spread the game out as far as possible.
Fitzroy took the lead in the first few minutes of the match, and Essendon were never able to catch up.
Essendon were further demoralized when Fitzroy champion forward and follower, Mick Grace
Mick Grace
Michael John Grace was an Australian rules footballer in the Victorian Football League and Victorian Football Association ....
, renowned for his marking skill and kicking prowess, flew high over a pack to take a spectacular high mark and kicked a long range goal.
In a very tight, defensive second half, as the playing conditions deteriorated even further, only one goal was scored. Fitzroy went on to beat Essendon 5.8 (38) to 3.5 (23).
Statistics
External links
- 1898 Finals - AFL Tables
- AFL Player Statistics (Round by Round): Essendon Football Club 1898
- AFL Player Statistics (Round by Round): Fitzroy Football Club 1898
- Observer,"Football Championship: The Final Match: Fitzroy v. Essendon: Fitzroy Win the Premiership", The Argus, (Monday, 26 September 1898), p.7, col.E.
- "1898" (Brisbane Lions Website, 1 May, 2006)
- "Fitzroy Firsts: Etched in History" (Brisbane Lions Website, 1 May, 2006)
- Australian Football League Umpires Association: VFL Grand Finals 1898-1909