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96-566: Essendon (Association) Football Club (often shortened to Essendon 'A' ) was an Australian rules football club which played in the Victorian Football Association (VFA) from 1900 until 1921. The Dreadnoughts wore black and red, and played their home games at the Essendon Recreation Reserve (known today as Windy Hill ). The club was originally formed as Essendon Town (1900–1904), in order to distinguish them from

192-606: A dominion , leagues were also established in the major cities. This renewed popularity helped encourage the formation of the Australasian Football Council , which in 1908 in Melbourne staged the first national interstate competition, the Jubilee Australasian Football Carnival , with teams representing each state and New Zealand. The game was also established early on in the new territories. In

288-622: A scratch match at the Richmond Paddock adjoining the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG). This was the first of several "kickabouts" held that year involving members of the Melbourne Cricket Club , including Wills, Bryant, W. J. Hammersley and J. B. Thompson . Trees were used as goalposts and play typically lasted an entire afternoon. Without an agreed-upon code of laws, some players were guided by rules they had learned in

384-482: A causal link with Australian football. In Melbourne , in 1858, in a move that would help to shape Australian football in its formative years, private schools (then termed " public schools " in accordance with nomenclature in England) began organising football games inspired by precedents at English public schools . The earliest match, held on 15 June, was between Melbourne Grammar and St Kilda Grammar. On 10 July 1858,

480-517: A century. State of Origin rules, introduced in 1977, stipulated that rather than representing the state of their adopted club, players would return to play for the state they were first recruited in. This instantly broke Victoria's stranglehold over state titles and Western Australia and South Australia began to win more of their games against Victoria. Both New South Wales and Tasmania scored surprise victories at home against Victoria in 1990. The term " Barassi Line ", named after VFL star Ron Barassi ,

576-406: A free kick or mark is paid players can be challenged from any direction at any time not always with full awareness of their opponent's positioning, potentially disadvantaging those playing in front whole sole intention is gaining possession. The rule is applied in two different circumstances: when the ball carrier is tackled and marking contests. While it was widely introduced in 1897, the rule

672-419: A game for either medical or tactical reasons. Players on the playing surface can be swapped with those on the interchange bench at any time. They must though pass through a designated "Interchange Area". In the event a player fails to pass through this area correctly, or if too many players from one team are found to be on the ground at a time, a free kick will be awarded to the opposing side. While there

768-399: A mark is taken, a small protected zone is established on the field, extending 10 metres (11 yd) either side of "the mark" and the player who marked the ball, with a small protected corridor between "the mark" and the player. The opposition player is permitted to jump, but is not allowed to move from their position on "the mark". Any other movements result in a distance penalty (50 metres in

864-413: A marking contest, whether there was a visible push or not, would be penalised. The rule was introduced after a 2006 season, in which there was an increasing tendency for forwards to play from behind in standing one-on-one marking contests, using their hands or bodies to nudge their opponents under the ball. It has become very difficult to adjudicate whether or not these nudges should be penalised, and there

960-404: A modified cricket ground . Points are scored by kicking the oval ball between the central goal posts (worth six points), or between a central and outer post (worth one point, otherwise known as a "behind"). During general play, players may position themselves anywhere on the field and use any part of their bodies to move the ball. The primary methods are kicking , handballing and running with

1056-407: A motion was passed banning pushing in the back in a marking contest which was agreed to by its member leagues including Victoria. After decades of controversy a rule against pushing for both marking and "running with the ball" was finally adopted in 1897 by the newly formed Victorian Football League . In the 1900s, an incidental contact rule (i.e. jumping on an opponent's back in an effort to mark

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1152-401: A player "take a dive" when he feels contact from behind, and umpires will not pay a free kick if they believe this to be the case. Nevertheless, it is relatively easy for fans to predict when these free kicks are going to be paid. Umpires are much less lenient if a player pushes another near the boundary line, due to the increased danger of crashing into the fence. One of the rules introduced by

1248-401: A player breaks a rule, a free kick is awarded to the opposing team, from the location that the misconduct occurred, or the ball's current location—whichever is closer to the team's scoring zone. As when a mark is taken, this location is called "the mark", and the same protections regarding the space apply. Push in the back Due to the lack of an offside rule, with the exception of when

1344-555: A proposed hybrid code of Australian football and rugby league , the predominant code of football in New South Wales and Queensland, was trialled without success. In Queensland, the state league went into recess for the duration of the war. VFL club University left the league and went into recess due to severe casualties. The WAFL lost two clubs and the SANFL was suspended for one year in 1916 due to heavy club losses. The Anzac Day match ,

1440-502: A second-tier status. The VFA merged with the former VFL reserves competition in 1998, adopting the VFL name. State of Origin also declined in importance, especially after an increasing number of player withdrawals. The AFL turned its focus to the annual International Rules Series against Ireland in 1998 before abolishing State of Origin the following year. State and territorial leagues still contest interstate matches, as do AFL Women players. In

1536-506: A select few ways as defined by the Laws of Australian Football, published by the AFL. The ball can be propelled in any direction by way of a kick or a clenched fist (called a handball )—deemed a correct disposal. Failure to dispose of the ball in one of these two methods will result in a free kick to the opposing team. If the ball is not currently in a player's possession, it can be moved legally through

1632-603: A similar situation existing in Western Australia in the sport, the VFL pursued a more national competition. Two more non-Victorian clubs, West Coast and Brisbane , joined the league in 1987 generating more than $ 8 million in license revenue for the Victorian clubs and increasing broadcast revenues which helped the Victorian clubs survive. In their early years, the Sydney and Brisbane clubs struggled both on and off-field because

1728-498: A slightly modified version of the Victorian game in 1879. The South Australian Football Association (SAFA), the sport's first governing body , formed on 30 April 1877, firmly establishing Victorian rules as the preferred code in that colony. The Victorian Football Association (VFA) formed the following month. Clubs began touring the colonies in the late 1870s, and in 1879 the first intercolonial match took place in Melbourne between Victoria and South Australia . To standardise

1824-620: A team but no ground. North Melbourne was readmitted to the Association in January 1922 with the prospect of amalgamation with Essendon Association. The amalgamation was eventually endorsed by the Association in April 1922. Australian rules football Australian rules football , also called Australian football or Aussie rules , or more simply football or footy , is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an oval field , often

1920-406: A technique known shepherding when the ball is within 5 metres (5.5 yd) of an opposition player. Shepherding involves the use of a player's body to push, bump or otherwise block an opposition player, providing they do not have possession of the ball. If a player takes possession of the ball that has travelled more than 15 metres (16 yd) from another player's kick, by way of a catch within

2016-427: A uniform code known as "Victorian rules". In 1866, the "first distinctively Victorian rule", the running bounce , was formalised at a meeting of club delegates chaired by H. C. A. Harrison , an influential pioneer who took up football in 1859 at the invitation of Wills, his cousin. The game around this time was defensive and low-scoring, played low to the ground in congested rugby-style scrimmages. The typical match

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2112-405: Is analogous to a basketball center and as such rucks are typically the tallest player on the team. Lifting teammates is not allowed so the ruck may only jump to reach the ball. If the ruck does not take possession of the football, it must must be tapped or fisted, which is known as a hit-out. An effective hit-out that passes the ball to a teammate is known as a hit-out to advantage. In the event

2208-407: Is as almost old as the sport with its necessity to ensure the safety of players having been debated since 1860. A tackler, loosely speaking, is not allowed to push an opposition player in the back during a tackle. By the strictest definition of a push, any contact from behind could be considered a push in the back, so the rule is usually enforced under only the following three circumstances: While

2304-455: Is known as the Goal Line. Around the perimeter of the field, two white lines are drawn between the set of behind posts in an arc-shape, marking the field of play. Other field markings include: The 50m arcs, centre square, centre circle and goal square are used at the beginning of each quarter or after each goal. With each team permitted a maximum of six players in each 50m arc, with one in

2400-470: Is no set uniform, the basic equipment for Australian football consists of a guernsey, shorts, socks and boots, with additional pieces of apparel such as headbands and gloves additionally being permitted. Players may wear certain pieces of protective equipment, such as helmets or arm guards, if approved by the relevant controlling body. Mouthguards are strongly recommended for all players. Players are not permitted to wear jewellery, or other materials which

2496-493: Is officiated by at least five match officials, known as an umpire . These match officials are placed into three categories based upon their roles and responsibilities, with varying minimum numbers of Umpires required depending on position: At AFL level, a video score review system is utilised. Only umpires are permitted to request a review, and only scoring shots and potential scoring shots are permitted to be reviewed. An Australian rules football may only be propelled forward in

2592-783: Is used. The ball must be inflated to a pressure of 69 kilopascals (10.0 pounds per square inch). There are no defined laws regarding what material a ball must be made from, but standard AFL match-used balls are produced by Sherrin using cowhide leather. While there is no standard colour of the ball, red and yellow are most common and the only colours used at AFL level. Yellow is used for games beginning after 3 pm or in an enclosed stadium, due to its greater visibility, and to assist score reviews. Unlike other forms of football which are played on rectangular fields, Australian rules football playing fields are oval-shaped, and are between 135 and 185 metres (148 and 202 yd) long and 110 and 155 metres (120 and 170 yd) wide. At either end of

2688-554: The Australian Football League , while the league itself also uses this name for local competitions in some areas. Primitive forms of football were played sporadically in the Australian colonies in the first half of the 19th century. Compared to cricket and horse racing , football was considered a mere "amusement" by colonists at the time, and while little is known about these early one-off games, evidence does not support

2784-542: The Carlton Football Club pointed out the unfairness of the practice and the advantage it gave to their Victorian opponents as something that rugby fans in the colony would not stomach. During the 1870s the lack of the rule was a major incumbrance for the game in Queensland and New South Wales, both early adopters of the code. In these colonies rugby was increasing in popularity and its proponents argued that without

2880-580: The Essendon Football Club that played in the Victorian Football League (VFL). The club was formed as Essendon Town in 1900 and joined the VFA that year. Essendon already had a team which competed in the VFL but many locals protested that they were based at East Melbourne instead of Essendon. The "Essendon Town Football Club" came about as a result, a side which would play their home games in

2976-493: The VFL when they split from the VFA 1897 was the protection of a player who jumped for a mark from being put off balance by a player pushing them from behind. Pushes in the back are usually paid under the following three circumstances. Free kicks under the first circumstance are easy to spot and are always paid, because a player already in the air cannot take a dive when pushed. However, under

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3072-407: The field umpire has deemed to be either potentially dangerous or increase the risk of injury to other players. Australian rules football is played with an ellipsoid ball, between 72 and 73 cm (28 and 29 in) in long circumference, and 54.5 and 55.5 cm (21.5 and 21.9 in) in short circumference. For women's competitions, a smaller ball size of 69 and 53 cm (27 and 21 in)

3168-596: The 2010s, the AFL signalled further attempts at expanding into markets outside Australian football's traditional heartlands by hosting home-and-away matches in New Zealand, followed by China. After several failed bids since the early 1990s for a Tasmania-based AFL team, the Tasmania Football Club secured the 19th AFL license in 2023, and is set to compete by 2028. In a standard match, a team may consist of anywhere between 14 and 18 players who may be permitted on

3264-599: The AFL for introducing the rule into the regular season without trialling it first in the NAB Cup . The AFL has stated that the rule would remain beyond 2007, and fans' angst decreased as the season progressed, and as players became used to working within the interpretation. Through the Laws of the Game committee, the rule was scrapped for the 2019 season. The decision to remove the rule has since been criticised as more and more obvious pushes were not being penalised. Gerard Healy labelled

3360-461: The AFL). The player who was awarded the mark may then choose to either dispose of the ball over "the mark" or may choose to attempt disposal via a different method, in which case the field umpire will call "play on"—a verbal instruction to continue play. "Play on" may also be called if the umpire deems the player awarded the mark to be taking an unreasonable amount of time to dispose of the football. Once

3456-468: The AFLW using 17 minutes per quarter. For any given match, two timekeepers are appointed to officiate the duration. The timekeepers record all relevant statistics for the match, such as total quarter duration and score by each team. Additionally timekeepers are required to sound a siren prior to and at the conclusion of each quarter until such time they are acknowledged by the field umpires. To stop and recommence

3552-624: The ANFC, and later the Australian Football Championships (AFC) ran a night series , which invited clubs and representative sides from around the country to participate in a knock-out tournament parallel to the premiership seasons, which Victorian sides still dominated. With the lack of international competition, state representative matches were regarded with great importance. Due in part to the VFL poaching talent from other states, Victoria dominated interstate matches for three-quarters of

3648-524: The British Isles, "others by no rules at all". Another milestone in 1858 was a 40-a-side match played under experimental rules between Melbourne Grammar and Scotch College , held at the Richmond Paddock. Umpired by Wills and teacher John Macadam , it began on 7 August and continued over two subsequent Saturdays, ending in a draw with each side kicking one goal. It is commemorated with a statue outside

3744-568: The Irish game evolved in a similar direction. Another theory, first proposed in 1983, posits that Wills, having grown up among Aboriginals in Victoria, may have seen or played the Aboriginal ball game of Marn Grook , and incorporated some of its features into early Australian football. There is only circumstantial evidence that he knew of the game, and according to biographer Greg de Moore's research, Wills

3840-727: The MCG at the Parade Hotel, owned by Bryant, and drafted ten rules: "The Rules of the Melbourne Football Club" . These are the laws from which Australian football evolved. The club aimed to create a simple code suited to the hard playing surfaces around Melbourne, and to eliminate the roughest aspects of English school games—such as "hacking" (shin-kicking) in Rugby School football—to reduce the risk of injuries to working men. In another significant departure from English public school football,

3936-555: The MCG, and the two schools have since competed annually in the Cordner–Eggleston Cup , the world's oldest continuous football competition . Since the 1920s, it has been suggested that Australian football may have been derived from the Irish sport of Gaelic football . However, there is no archival evidence in favour of a Gaelic influence, and the style of play shared between the two modern codes appeared in Australia long before

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4032-576: The Melbourne rules omitted any offside law . "The new code was as much a reaction against the school games as influenced by them", writes Mark Pennings. The rules were distributed throughout the colony; Thompson in particular did much to promote the new code in his capacity as a journalist. Following Melbourne's lead, Geelong and Melbourne University also formed football clubs in 1859. While many early Victorian teams participated in one-off matches, most had not yet formed clubs for regular competition. A South Yarra club devised its own rules. To ensure

4128-673: The Melbourne-based Bell's Life in Victoria and Sporting Chronicle published a letter by Tom Wills , captain of the Victoria cricket team , calling for the formation of a "foot-ball club" with a "code of laws" to keep cricketers fit during winter. Born in Australia, Wills played a nascent form of rugby football while a pupil at Rugby School in England, and returned to his homeland a star athlete and cricketer. Two weeks later, Wills' friend, cricketer Jerry Bryant , posted an advertisement for

4224-754: The Push in the Back rule, their game was much safer to play than the Victorian code. Elsewhere in practice, however its use as a tactic was increasing and in the late 1870s umpires in Victoria (specifically of the Geelong Football Club ) began to penalise it with free kicks despite the absence of an official rule. In 1880, the New South Wales Football Association was formed becoming the first governing body for Australian rules football in New South Wales . As part of its first set of rules, it ignored

4320-409: The SANFL's Port Adelaide (1997), the only pre-existing club outside Victoria to join the league. In 2011 and 2012, respectively, two new non-Victorian clubs were added to the competition: Gold Coast and Greater Western Sydney . The AFL, currently with 18 member clubs, is the sport's elite competition and most powerful body. Following the emergence of the AFL, state leagues were quickly relegated to

4416-464: The Victorian rules and sought to ban pushing from behind in any form, a move which was more popular with rugby fans. The NSWFA believed that the Victorian league would follow its lead to "reduce the game's roughness", however it did not. Subsequent appeals by Victorian members to repeal the NSW law were rejected. In Queensland the practice was hugely unpopular and by 1882 had caused building resentment toward

4512-561: The annual game between Essendon and Collingwood on Anzac Day, is one example of how the war continues to be remembered in the football community. The role of the Australian National Football Council (ANFC) was primarily to govern the game at a national level and to facilitate interstate representative and club competition. In 1968, the ANFC revived the Championship of Australia , a competition first held in 1888 between

4608-551: The arms pushed further downwards. The idea of a Push in the Back rule has its origins in the 1860s just one year after the first Melbourne Football Club rules ( Laws of Australian rules football ) were published. Proponents of rugby football , in particular, felt that the practice of pushing a player from behind was unsportsmanlike and especially dangerous. With the Australian rules lacking an offside and defensive and offensive lines, rugby players in general play did not need as much positional awareness of players behind them. Among

4704-447: The arms. Players in marking contests are allowed to push their opponents out of the contest with their bodies, within reason; so, a subtle nudge with the shoulder would not be penalised, but a full-blooded bump in the back would be penalised. In 2007, the AFL introduced an interpretation of the push in the back in marking contests, referred to as hands in the back . Under the rule, any player who placed his hands upon an opponent's back in

4800-415: The ball is in dispute at all times except when a free kick or mark is paid. Players can tackle using their hands or use their whole body to obstruct opponents. Dangerous physical contact (such as pushing an opponent in the back ), interference when marking, and deliberately slowing the play are discouraged with free kicks, distance penalties , or suspension for a certain number of matches depending on

4896-436: The ball. There are rules on how the ball can be handled; for example, players running with the ball must intermittently bounce or touch it on the ground . Throwing the ball is not allowed, and players must not get caught holding the ball . A distinctive feature of the game is the mark , where players anywhere on the field who catch the ball from a kick (with specific conditions) are awarded unimpeded possession . Possession of

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4992-442: The case of Sydney , denial of access to grounds, the influence of university headmasters from Britain who favoured rugby, and the loss of players to other codes inhibited the game's growth. In 1896, delegates from six of the wealthiest VFA clubs— Carlton , Essendon , Fitzroy , Geelong, Melbourne and South Melbourne —met to discuss the formation of a breakaway professional competition. Later joined by Collingwood and St Kilda ,

5088-517: The change to what was considered by far the most dangerous aspect of the game. Deliberate pushing in the back by unspirited clubs was seen as a blight on the game by South Australians. As such, representative matches in South Australia frequently rejected the Victorian rule allowing pushing. It wasn't until the early 1880s that the Victorian media began labelling pushing in marking contests as an unfair practice. Between 1885 and 1887 high marking

5184-435: The clock, the field umpires are required to signal to the timekeepers to indicate when the clock should be stopped or restarted. Between each quarter, a break is observed to allow players a rest period. Two six-minute breaks are observed between the first and second quarters, and the third and fourth quarters. A longer 20-minute break is observed between the second and third quarter, commonly known as half-time . Each game

5280-566: The club effectively disbanded in December 1921. In 1922, most Essendon Association players moved to the reformed North Melbourne Team. North Melbourne had disbanded during the 1921 VFA season , assuming that they would be amalgamating with the Essendon League team. This did not work out, and, at the end of 1921, the North Melbourne club had a ground but no team, and Essendon Association had

5376-426: The clubs formed the Victorian Football League (VFL), which held its inaugural season in 1897 . The VFL's popularity grew rapidly as it made several innovations, such as instituting a finals system, reducing teams from 20 to 18 players, and introducing the behind as a score. Richmond and University joined the VFL in 1908, and by 1925, with the addition of Hawthorn , Footscray and North Melbourne , it had become

5472-490: The code took hold during a series of gold rushes . Likewise, when New Zealand experienced a gold rush , the sport arrived with a rapid influx of Australian miners. Now known as Australian rules or Australasian rules, the sport became the first football code to develop mass spectator appeal, attracting world record attendances for sports viewing and gaining a reputation as "the people's game". Australian rules football reached Queensland and New South Wales as early as 1866;

5568-601: The code. Local clubs including the Brisbane Football Club had for years unsuccessfully lobbied the Victorian Football Association (VFA), whose rules it had affiliated with, to ban pushes from behind in an effort to improve its safety and fairness in comparison to rugby. The VFA's reluctance to listen to the Queenslanders eventually helped created a rift which saw the formation of a local governing body for rugby, mass switching of codes by schools, clubs and players and

5664-496: The commonly cited reasons for its rejection is the difficulty in officiating was seen to outweigh the benefit. The Ballarat Football Club enforced such a rule in 1872. The club staunchly defended its rule despite calls to fall in line with the Melbourne Football Club 's rules. In 1874 in matches against the Melbourne Football Club it succeeded in having the visiting club agree to a no pushing from behind rule. The rule

5760-548: The decline of the sport in the colony. Clubs outside of Brisbane lost patience with the Victorian governing body and in early 1884 clubs in Toowoomba began banning the practice and began lobbying other QFA clubs to follow suit. In 1884 the QFA in response finally went against the VFA's advice and passed a push in the back rule, however the mass exodus to rugby had already begun a month earlier. South Australian leagues began agitating for

5856-441: The district. A winless season in 1903 meant that they took home their first wooden spoon. In 1905, the club officially changed its name to the "Essendon Football Club", the same name as the VFL club. To distinguish it from the VFL club, the club was referred to as Essendon (Association), Essendon (V.F.A.) or Essendon (A.) wherever there was confusion. The club's most successful period came between 1908 and 1914 when they competed in

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5952-483: The earlier advocates of the rule change was the South Yarra Football Club possibly the first club to have such a rule, however its introduction was deemed unnecessary and was voted down at the first committee meeting. In the early days many serious injuries resulted from players being pushed while contesting the ball, and its practice in marking contests discouraged players from attempting high marks. One of

6048-409: The field of play, it is deemed as a mark . To be awarded a mark, it must be deemed that the player sufficiently controlled the ball and took possession prior to it being touched, touching the ground, or in the case of a contest, being spoiled by an opponent. Upon a mark being taken, one opposition player may choose to stand on the point on the field where the mark was taken, known as "the mark". When

6144-413: The field, two sets of posts are erected in a straight line to indicate the scoring areas on the field, each with two kinds of posts, named the goal posts and the behind posts respectively. The goal posts are placed first, located 6.4 metres (7.0 yd) apart from each other, with a behind post being placed a further 6.4 metres to the side of each goal post. The name for the field line between two goal posts

6240-549: The finals each year and won back-to-back premierships in 1911 and 1912 – coincidentally, Essendon (League) won the VFL premiership in both of those years. In the 1912 premiership season, Essendon Association's full-forward Dave McNamara became the first VFA footballer to kick over 100 goals in a season. The club was left without a home ground and with diminished local support when the Essendon League club relocated to Essendon Recreation Reserve in October 1921; with no alternatives,

6336-484: The first laws of Australian football in May 1859. Australian football has the highest spectator attendance and television viewership of all sports in Australia, while the Australian Football League (AFL), the sport's only fully professional competition, is the nation's wealthiest sporting body. The AFL Grand Final , held annually at the Melbourne Cricket Ground , is the second-highest-attended club championship event in

6432-618: The first match in Darwin . The game went on to become the most popular sport in the Territory and build the highest participation rate for the sport nationally. Both World War I and World War II had a devastating effect on Australian football and on Australian sport in general. While scratch matches were played by Australian " diggers " in remote locations around the world, the game lost many of its great players to wartime service. Some clubs and competitions never fully recovered. Between 1914 and 1915,

6528-526: The formation of the Adelaide Football Club , the oldest football club in Australia outside Victoria. It devised its own rules, and, along with other Adelaide -based clubs, played a variety of codes until 1876, when they uniformly adopted most of the Victorian rules, with South Australian football pioneer Charles Kingston noting their similarity to "the old Adelaide rules". Similarly, Tasmanian clubs quarrelled over different rules until they adopted

6624-435: The goal square and four players in the centre square with one in the centre circle. If this is breached, a free kick is awarded. A game lasts for 80 minutes, split into four-quarters consisting of 20 minutes playing time, with the clock being stopped for stoppages in play such as scores, or at the umpire 's discretion, e.g. for serious injury. Leagues may choose to employ shorter quarters of play at their discretion, such as

6720-424: The knees (a low tackle or a trip ) or above the shoulders (a high tackle ), the team with possession of the football gets a free kick. Furthermore, tackles deemed to be dangerous by the umpire and those conducted from front-on while an opposition player has their head over the football are deemed to be prohibited contact, and will incur a free kick against the offending player. Additionally, players may perform

6816-548: The new national capital Canberra both soccer and rugby had a head start, but following the first matches in 1911, Australian rules football in the Australian Capital Territory became a major participation sport. By 1981 it had become much neglected and quickly lagged behind the other football codes. Australian rules football in the Northern Territory began shortly after the outbreak of the war in 1916 with

6912-440: The other two circumstances, making judgement calls can be very difficult: it is easy for a player to take a dive in these circumstances; a sprinting player who is pushed may, in the act of trying to fall safely, take an unnatural leap which inadvertently makes the play look like a deliberate dive. As such, paying free kicks for pushes in the back in marking contests has always been contentious. However, these pushes are all caused by

7008-455: The phasing out of many of the game's kicking styles and the increasing use of handball; while presentation was influenced by television. In 1982, in a move that heralded big changes within the sport, one of the original VFL clubs, South Melbourne, relocated to Sydney and became known as the Sydney Swans . In the late 1980s, due to the poor financial standing of many of the Victorian clubs, and

7104-407: The player has disposed of the ball, or "play on" is called, normal play resumes. Rucking is the only specialist skill and is performed by a ruck, the term for designated players from each side to which umpire sends the ball to commence play. Only a nominated ruck may contest ball-ups and throw-ins. They are the only player allowed within the 10 metre circle at a centre bounce. Functionally the role

7200-429: The player penalised for ' holding the ball ', except if the umpire deems there was a lack of prior opportunity to do so. The ball carrier may only be tackled between the shoulders and knees from the front or side. If the player forcefully contacts the opposing in the back while performing a tackle, the opposition player will be penalised for a push in the back . If the opposition tackles the player with possession below

7296-436: The playing surface at any given time. Each team may have up to four interchange (reserve) players who may be swapped for those on the field at any time during the game. Although some leagues in less populated areas may use as few as 12 players. In addition, some leagues notably including the AFL, have each team designate one additional player as a substitute who can be used to make a single permanent exchange of players during

7392-503: The practice in its official rules in April 1877. However Victorian clubs still allowed the practice and players accepted it as part of the game and when South Australia agreed in 1877 to adopt the Victorian rules to participate in representative matches against Victoria , due to strong pressure from the Victorians they compromised to allow players to be pushed from behind. In 1877, Sydney rugby club Waratah, playing an intercolonial against

7488-424: The practice of pushing altogether for intercolonial matches however the VFA and Tasmanian leagues, the last in the country to allow it continued to follow the 1885 rules. In 1886 two Tasmanian football deaths were directly attributed to the practice so the colony adopted the new rule and its intercolonial delegates pleaded for the Victorians to follow suit. At a meeting of the Australasian Football Council in 1890

7584-580: The preeminent league in the country and would take a leading role in many aspects of the sport. The time around the federation of the Australian colonies in 1901 saw Australian rules undergo a revival in New South Wales, New Zealand and Queensland. In 1903, both the Queensland Australian Football League and the NSW Australian Football Association were established, and in New Zealand, as it moved towards becoming

7680-475: The premiers of the VFA and SAFA. Although clubs from other states were at times invited, the final was almost always between the premiers from the two strongest state competitions of the time—South Australia and Victoria—with Adelaide hosting most of the matches at the request of the SAFA/SANFL. The last match took place in 1976, with North Adelaide being the last non-Victorian winner in 1972. Between 1976 and 1987,

7776-404: The removal of the rule "a blight on the game". The umpire signals a push in the back by holding both hands open, palms facing outwards, in front of his chest, then making a pushing motion outwards with them. However, his action often reflects the push which is being penalised so a push in a marking contest will see the umpire push his hands outwards, while driving a player into the ground will see

7872-404: The second and third circumstances are objectively applied by umpires, there is some subjectivity concerning the first interpretation. This arises because a bent-over player can be easily knocked over by incidental contact, forcing the umpire to make a judgement call regarding whether or not he considers the push to be sufficiently substantial to warrant penalty. Furthermore, it is not uncommon to see

7968-484: The severity of the infringement. The game features frequent physical contests, spectacular marking , fast movement of both players and the ball, and high scoring. The sport's origins can be traced to football matches played in Melbourne , Victoria , in 1858, inspired by English public school football games . Seeking to develop a game more suited to adults and Australian conditions, the Melbourne Football Club published

8064-467: The sport across Australia, delegates representing the football associations of South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria and Queensland met in 1883 and updated the code. New rules such as holding the ball led to a "golden era" of fast, long-kicking and high-marking football in the 1880s, a time which also saw players such as George Coulthard achieve superstardom, as well as the rise of professionalism , particularly in Victoria and Western Australia , where

8160-467: The sport experienced a period of dominance in the former, and in the latter, several regions remain strongholds of Australian rules, such as the Riverina . However, by the late 1880s, rugby football had become the dominant code in both colonies, as well as in New Zealand. This shift was largely due to rugby's spread with British migration, regional rivalries and the lack of strong local governing bodies. In

8256-414: The substantial TV revenues they generated by playing on a Sunday went to the VFL. To protect these revenues the VFL granted significant draft concessions and financial aid to keep the expansion clubs competitive. The VFL changed its name to the Australian Football League (AFL) for the 1990 season , and over the next decade, three non-Victorian clubs gained entry: Adelaide (1991), Fremantle (1995) and

8352-587: The supremacy of the Melbourne rules, the first-club level competition in Australia, the Caledonian Society's Challenge Cup (1861–64), stipulated that only the Melbourne rules were to be used. This law was reinforced by the Athletic Sports Committee (ASC), which ran a variation of the Challenge Cup in 1865–66. With input from other clubs, the rules underwent several minor revisions, establishing

8448-412: The usage of other means, such as punching. While in possession of the ball, players may run with the ball, but are required to either bounce or touch the ball on the ground at least once every 15 metres (16 yd). Tackling is a technique employed by players used to force opposition players to dispose of the ball when they are in possession. Failure to dispose of the ball when legally tackled may see

8544-531: The world . The sport is also played at amateur level in many countries and in several variations . Its rules are governed by the AFL Commission with the advice of the AFL's Laws of the Game Committee. Australian rules football is known by several nicknames, including Aussie rules, football and footy. In some regions, where other codes of football are more popular, the sport is most often called AFL after

8640-429: Was "almost solely influenced by his experience at Rugby School". A loosely organised Melbourne side, captained by Wills, played against other football enthusiasts in the winter and spring of 1858. The following year, on 14 May, the Melbourne Football Club was officially established, making it one of the world's oldest football clubs . Three days later, Wills, Hammersley, Thompson and teacher Thomas H. Smith met near

8736-545: Was a 20-per-side affair, played with a ball that was roughly spherical, and lasted until a team scored two goals. The shape of the playing field was not standardised; matches often took place in rough, tree-spotted public parks, most notably the Richmond Paddock ( Yarra Park ), known colloquially as the Melbourne Football Ground. Wills argued that the turf of cricket fields would benefit from being trampled upon by footballers in winter, and, as early as 1859, football

8832-467: Was a high degree of inconsistency. The AFL introduced the hands in the back rule to remove the subjectivity of these calls: in other words, a push with the body/forearms/closed hand was fine, but a push with open hands was not, regardless of the strength of the push. The rule has encountered a wide range of problems, with two particularly notable ones. There were repeated calls for the rule to be repealed, even midseason, and there has been much criticism of

8928-478: Was allowed on the MCG. However, cricket authorities frequently prohibited football on their grounds until the 1870s, when they saw an opportunity to capitalise on the sport's growing popularity. Football gradually adapted to an oval-shaped field, and most grounds in Victoria expanded to accommodate the dual purpose—a situation that continues to this day. Football became organised in South Australia in 1860 with

9024-513: Was becoming popular in Victoria. Following a conference with intercolonial delegates in 1885 the first restrictions on pushing were introduced by the Victorian Football Association "only when the player is running within five or six yards of the ball", a rule used for some time by and pushed for by Geelong. Delegates from other colonies and umpires were not satisfied and the following year in 1886 successfully pushed that Rule 16 ban

9120-435: Was coined by scholar Ian Turner in 1978 to describe the "fictitious geographical barrier" separating the rugby-following parts of New South Wales and Queensland from the rest of the country, where Australian football reigned. It became a reference point for the expansion of Australian football and for establishing a national league. The way the game was played had changed dramatically due to innovative coaching tactics, with

9216-420: Was then debated by clubs at a 1874 conference but was again voted down. Ballarat continued to enforce the law on visiting clubs for decades. By 1876, South Australian leagues, also playing under their own rules, began to outlaw the practice in marking contests. The South Australian Football Association , the first governing body for Australian rules football in South Australia was the colonial body to outlaw

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