107-510: VFL Women's ( VFLW ) is the major state-level women's Australian rules football league in Victoria . The league initially comprised the six premier division clubs and the top four division 1 clubs from the now-defunct Victorian Women's Football League (VWFL), and has since evolved into what is also the second primary competition for AFL Women's (AFLW) clubs in Victoria. Following the 2017 season,
214-511: A QAFL Women's competition was formed in Brisbane in 2001, Queensland's first women's league after one off matches from as early as the 1970s. The first national junior championships for girls were established in 1992 with the advent of the first AFL Women's National Championship , while junior sides later took part in the first AFL Women's Under 18 Championships in 2008–2010. Women's Australian rules football began to rapidly grow in 2000, with
321-533: A 30-minute match was played on Adelaide Oval between workers of the Charles Moore & Co. factory and the Mirror Shirt and Pyjama Factory. Although the match was not a standalone event, newspapers at the time did refer to it as the main attraction of the day. A moth biplane dropped the game ball to start the match. In 1930, the club captain and secretary Veronica O'Callahan announced that the Charles Moore's club
428-439: A city store. The official name of the club is North Melbourne, but the club has gone under several other aliases over the years. The club was founded as the "North Melbourne Football Club", but changed to "North Melbourne cum Albert Park" after merging with Albert Park in 1876. Following the reformation of the club in 1877, it was known as the "Hotham Football Club" but later took the name "North Melbourne" again in 1888. In 1998
535-400: A disappointing 2020 season where North won only 3 games and finished second-last, Rhyce Shaw left the club in late October 2020 due to personal issues, bringing his short tenure as head coach to an end. In 2021, former Western Bulldogs and Adelaide assistant coach and long-time football administrator David Noble was appointed as the new senior coach on an open-ended staff contract. Noble led
642-662: A formal alignment with the VFL club. The competition also shifted to a February commencement, running concurrently with the AFLW season and mirroring other second-tier leagues like the SANFL Women's and WAFL Women's . In 2023, the competition commenced in March, and Hawthorn transferred its license back to Box Hill. Starting in 2024 , the home-and-away season included matches against New South Wales AFL Women's teams Greater Western Sydney and Sydney ;
749-515: A game took place at Alberton Oval between Port Adelaide and another club representing Thebarton. Port Adelaide was captained by Eileen Rend. Perth's successful "Shopgirls Premiership" competition continued after the war and through the 1920s and included teams from Brennan's drapery and Foy & Gibson among others. Women's teams were formed at Riverton, South Australia , to play scratch matches in 1920. The first match to be played in Melbourne
856-616: A golden era of success that transformed North Melbourne into one of the powerhouses of the VFL. Barassi took North to a Grand Final (losing to Richmond by 41 points) in 1974 and brought success in his 1975 and 1977 seasons. North made five consecutive Grand Finals from 1974 to 1978 and defeated Norwood in the 1975 national championship and thus declared Champions of Australia . In 1973 and 1974, North's wingman Keith Greig (recruited from Brunswick Football Club, Victoria) won consecutive Brownlow Medals ; forward Malcolm Blight (recruited from Woodville Football Club, South Australia) then won
963-480: A licences to participate by 13 existing AFL teams, with eight teams awarded licences to participate in the inaugural season with the competition to be known as "AFL Women's" or AFLW for short. The inaugural AFLW match was held at Ikon Park in February 2017 between traditional rivals Carlton and Collingwood and attracted 27,500 fans, however over 2,000 people were locked out due to security concerns. The AFL apologised for
1070-554: A match between North Melbourne and the South Yarra Football Club . Whether there was continuity between this team and today's club or not, no further mentions appear in the mainstream media until 1869. It is generally believed to have been founded in North Melbourne in 1869 by local cricketers desiring to keep fit over the winter months, however its involvement in the season 1868/1869 implies that it had been formed at
1177-414: A match in front of a large crowd at Caulfield Racecourse in Melbourne. In 1933, a match played between Carlton and Richmond women's teams at Princes Park stadium in Melbourne was incorrectly billed on Sydney company Cinesound Newsreel as the "first women's rugby match"; the teams were composed mostly of female netball and track-and-field athletes eager to try Australian rules. Women's football
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#17328551058941284-442: A matter of convenience the two clubs amalgamated so they could compete in the 1922 season. As it had after the merger with West Melbourne, North once again managed to avert its destruction. During this Period, North's main rivals were Footscray, Meeting them in three Grand Finals. After three attempts, 29 years of waiting and numerous other applications to enter the VFL, finally North was rewarded for its persistence with admittance to
1391-629: A place in light of their previous contributions to Australian Football. The 1880s marked the emergence of the modern identity we now associate with North today. In 1882, the club amalgamated with the Hotham Cricket Club and moved into the North Melbourne Recreation Reserve (Arden St Oval), which remains the home of the club today. The joint venture was aimed at affecting improvements at the Hotham Cricket Ground, which
1498-496: A preliminary final berth in 2007, and a first-round elimination final exit in 2008, North Melbourne dropped to 13th in 2009, and coach Dani Laidley announced her resignation, with Darren Crocker acting as caretaker coach for the rest of the season, to eventually be replaced by ex-Brisbane Lions premiership player and Collingwood assistant coach Brad Scott . A$ 15 million redevelopment of the Arden Street, which had started in 2006,
1605-637: A round-robin competition was held at Glenferrie Oval featuring VFL clubs, with South Melbourne, Footscray, Hawthorn and St Kilda competing in an all-female competition. The league competed through the 1950s and was actively promoted by Footscray VFL champions "Mr Football" Ted Whitten and Jack Collins . Regular girls football was also being played in North West Tasmania, with clubs in Ulverstone and Devonport playing in 1946. Tasmanian Football League clubs Launceston and Clarence added women's teams to
1712-401: A season full of close losses. Nick Dal Santo signed with the club at the end of the 2013 season as a restricted free agent . In 2014, North Melbourne finished 6th at the end of the home and away season and reached 40,000 members for the first time in the club's history. In September, North Melbourne went on to defeat Essendon by 12 points in the 2nd Elimination Final, only taking the lead in
1819-551: A seven-year lease with the City of Coburg after initially negotiating long-term leases for up to 40 years. The club came to an arrangement to merge with the VFA's Coburg Football Club , whom it was displacing from the ground; fourteen Coburg committeemen joined the North Melbourne committee, but the merger was never completed after Coburg established a rival committee which remained loyal to
1926-478: A spark into the side and lifted many hopes for North supporters and the excitement to the general football public. The innovative idea of night games was instigated by the club and meeting the challenges, the club survived. One major highlight was the recruitment of forward John Longmire in 1989, who topped the club goalkicking over five consecutive seasons (1990–1994) and won the Coleman medal in 1990 with 98 goals. At
2033-505: Is victoria amat curam , Latin for "victory demands dedication". Aside from their representation in the AFL, the Kangaroos also field teams in the competitions AFL Women's , VFL Women's and Victorian Football League competitions. The club has won four VFL/AFL premierships: 1975 , 1977 (replay), 1996 and the most recent in 1999 . In two aspects North Melbourne stands second to none. One
2140-489: Is limited, but it is known that it took place in Royal Park . James Henry Gardiner is often cited as a founder of the club, though he heavily promoted it in its early years in his role in the local council there is no documented evidence of his role in its formation. One of the earliest newspaper mentions of it was on 14 August 1869 when it was scheduled to play against Messrs. Walker, May, and Co. at Princes Bridge in what
2247-408: Is now central Melbourne. The article mentions that the two teams had already played an earlier match, though it does not say when it does names the team was captained by Fuhrhop, presumably Harry Fuhrhop . Fuhrhop was a Carlton United cricketer who would go on to later captain the football team between 1870 and its 1877 VFA team and, according to historian Gerard Dowling (1973), was a pivotal figure in
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#17328551058942354-464: Is one of the most popular women's football competitions in the world with an average attendance in 2019 of 6,262 a game. The record attendance is 53,034 which was set at the 2019 AFL Women's Grand Final which, prior to the 2020 ICC Women's T20 World Cup , held the record for the most attended fixture in Australian women's sport. Women's Australian rules has also grown rapidly outside of Australia since
2461-423: Is regarded as one of the most inspirational stories of Australian rules football and Australian sport in general, McCartney successfully returned to action on 6 June 2003 against Richmond at Docklands Stadium. Playing at full-forward, he took a mark in the final quarter, scored a goal from the resulting set shot, and set up Leigh Harding 's winning goal with two minutes remaining. McCartney retired immediately after
2568-475: Is significant evidence of a continuity in competition from the end of World War I spanning several Australian states. Both world wars were a great liberator for women; as the men fought in the war, women were often called to perform many tasks typically done by men, including spectator sports. In August 1880, a group gathered at Sandhurst (Bendigo) in Victoria responding to a postcard from signed "Lover of Football" to form an all-ladies football club. The idea
2675-447: Is the loyalty of its supporters. The other is the determination to carry on, despite its disadvantages. In the face of adversity, which might well have broken the spirit of most men, we find that from the earliest days there were always enthusiasts to fight for North Melbourne. The exact date of founding is not known. The club believes that there were early attempts at formation dating back as far as 1864. An 1865 newspaper article mentions
2782-666: The Australian Football League (AFL) assumed control of the sport with the intention of professionalising it and began restructuring competitions around the country to support an Australian national league, AFL Women's (AFLW), that commenced its inaugural season in 2017. By 2022 all 18 AFL clubs had begun fielding women's teams. The AFLW attracts a large audience of more than one million attendees and over two million viewers, and has managed to maintain its high levels of interest despite moving to primarily ticketed and subscription broadcasting models in 2021. The AFLW competition
2889-830: The Australian Football League (AFL), and the women's team in the AFL Women's (AFLW). The Kangaroos also field a reserves men's team in the Victorian Football League (VFL) and women's team in the VFLW. Founded in the suburb of North Melbourne in 1869 and based at the Arden Street Oval , it is the 4th oldest club in the competition and one of the oldest surviving clubs in the world. Its original home at Arden Street continues to serve as its headquarters, training facilities and home ground for its women's side. The club's senior men's team plays its home matches at Marvel Stadium in
2996-843: The Ballarat Arch of Victory . The Lucas girls won the match 3 goals 6 (24) to the Khakis 1 goal 2 (8) in front of 7,000 people, then the largest football crowd in Ballarat history. A photograph of the Lucas Girls Football team appears in the Ballarat Star in December 1918. In September 1918 the Australian Red Cross organised a number of fundraising "ladies football" matches including a match at Broken Hill, New South Wales between teams of
3103-518: The Docklands area of Melbourne , Victoria , as well as Blundstone Arena in Hobart , Tasmania which is also used by the women's team as a secondary home ground. The club's mascot is a grey kangaroo wearing the club uniform, and its use dates from the mid-20th century. The club is also unofficially known as "The Shinboners", a term which dates to its 19th-century abattoir-worker origins. The club's motto
3210-655: The Essendon League Club to help facilitate the amalgamation. The amalgamation was foiled when some members of the VFA launched a successful legal challenge. As a result, the Essendon League Club moved instead to the Essendon Oval, replacing the ground's original occupants, Essendon Association . North was now without a playing team and the Essendon Association Club was now without a ground, so as
3317-598: The Gold Coast and Greater Western Sydney time to submit their bids in full. Not content to wait for the AFL, two of its member clubs, the Melbourne Football Club and the Western Bulldogs began organising women's matches against each other. Initially the clubs created representative teams drawn from local players from aligned VWFL clubs. In June 2013, they organised an AFL sanctioned exhibition match held at
VFL Women's - Misplaced Pages Continue
3424-663: The North East Australian Football League (NEAFL)-aligned Northern Territory ; Northern Territory aligned with Adelaide 's AFLW team, giving Crows players an opportunity to play in the Victorian competition. The Western Bulldogs joined in 2018 under a shared license with the Western Spurs, with the senior Spurs team competing as the Western Bulldogs and wearing red, white and blue. The Western Spurs' license
3531-535: The St Kilda Cricket Ground . Other high drawing matches were played in Western Australia between Kalgoorlie and Kalgoorlie Railways. In 1922, a Fitzroy female team travelled to Perth and played West Perth in front of 13,500 spectators. The 1923 Richmond ladies football team played against the men's side in Melbourne to raise funds for a junior trip. In 1929, as part of an annual charity day,
3638-467: The Victorian Football League (VFL), in 1896. Despite finishing 6th in 1896, North Melbourne was not invited to the breakaway competition. The main reasons for being excluded were: North continued on in the depleted VFA, emerging as a powerhouse, finishing 2nd in 1897, 1898 and 1899. In 1903, after 34 years of competing, the club won its first premiership, defeating Richmond in the final. The club became back to back premiers in 1904 after Richmond forfeited
3745-613: The Victorian Women's Football League (VWFL). Melbourne University already had an existing partnership with Australian Football League (AFL) club North Melbourne . Following the 2016 season, the Geelong Magpies were replaced with the AFL-aligned Geelong Cats , and Knox's license was purchased by Box Hill (then subsequently re-licensed to Hawthorn in 2018). Following the inaugural AFL Women's (AFLW) season in 2017,
3852-566: The laws of the game . It is played by more than half a million women worldwide and with 119,447 Australian adult and 66,998 youth female participants in 2023 is the second most played code among women and girls in Australia behind soccer . The first Australian rules football matches involving women were organised late in the 19th century, but for several decades it occurred mostly in the form of scratch matches , charity matches and one-off exhibition games . The first all-female matches began early in
3959-524: The 1998 Grand Final to Adelaide , not helped by an inaccurate goalkicking performance of 8.22 (70) to Adelaide's 15.15 (105). In 1999, the Kangaroos finished the regular season in second position on the ladder, and went on to defeat Carlton in the Grand Final, winning the club's fourth VFL/AFL premiership; former Sydney midfielder Shannon Grant taking out the Norm Smith Medal . The club was eliminated in
4066-471: The 2000s. The Women's International Cup has been run since 2011. Players to represent their country and be recruited at AFLW level include Laura Duryea , Clara Fitzpatrick (Ireland) and Kendra Heil (Canada). The game's governing body, the AFL Commission , has been criticised for its lack of acknowledgement of the history of women's football, taking credit only for the virtually overnight "revolution" of
4173-769: The 20th century, and regular competition first emerged after World War II . State-based leagues emerged between the 1980s and 2000s: the first was the Victorian Women's Football League (VWFL) formed in Melbourne in 1981, with others including the West Australian Women's Football League (WAWFL) formed in Perth in 1988 and the South Australian Women's Football League (SAWFL) formed in Adelaide in 1991. The AFL Women's National Championships were inaugurated in 1992. In 2010
4280-643: The 27th Battalion and Artillery as well as several in South Australia including Morphett Vale took on Coo-ee, as well as matches involving the factory of Charles Moore and Co. Perhaps the highest profile match was between North Adelaide iand South Adelaide at the Jubilee Oval in Adelaide on the 21st. In South Australia, an early example of Women's football was a Port Adelaide Women's team in November, 1918 where
4387-573: The AFLW also broke women's football attendance records in all states and territories except South Australia, including Tasmania, the Northern Territory and Australian Capital Territory where no teams were based. The inaugural Grand Final held on the Gold Coast set a new record for the women's game in Queensland with an attendance of 15,610. Following the AFLW season, the first State of Origin match in
VFL Women's - Misplaced Pages Continue
4494-435: The AFLW while making only passing reference to its origins and development. While the Australian Football League has, in fact, played some role in the development of women's football in Australia, especially from the 2010s, it operated for 120 years without any official female teams, and was one of the last sporting competitions in the country to affiliate with a women's league. Overall public support for women's football in
4601-528: The Australian Football League (AFL) took over operations of Women's Football Australia and conducted a review of the organisation of its national organisation. This led to speculation that the AFL was investigating a national women's competition. Soon after, details of intentions emerged with the AFL slating a commencement in 2013 with four to eight teams. However the AFL would later miss this targe, postponing it until 2020 to allow its expansion clubs
4708-438: The Australian game passionately since the mid-19th century, accounting for approximately 50% of spectators at matches, a uniquely high figure among football codes. As early as 1862 women publicly questioned why they would not be able to play. Women's soccer became popular in the 1920s, and while documented mentions of football matches are often difficult to differentiate as to whether they were played under Australian rules, there
4815-671: The Federal Khaki Clothing Factory "Khaki girls" team (playing in khaki and white) travelled to Ballarat to play the Ballarat Eleanor Lucas's lingerie factory "Lucas girls" team (playing in pink and white and coached by Charlie Clymo ) at City Oval in Ballarat, Victoria in August which was, according to reports, a highly physical contest in front of a "huge crowd" and the even was met with substantial fanfare. The match funded
4922-476: The League in 1925, along with Footscray and Hawthorn . Even then, the opportunity was almost lost as the League delegates debated into the early hours of the morning on which clubs should be invited to join the intake. It was only after much deliberation that North Melbourne's name was eventually substituted for Prahran's making North "the lucky side" of the invitees that included Footscray and Hawthorn. North Melbourne
5029-405: The League. On 30 June 1921, North told its players it would disband and try to gain entry to the VFL by the 'back-door'. Essendon League Football Club had lost its playing ground at East Melbourne and had decided to acquire the North Melbourne Recreation Reserve as a new playing ground. North accepted their proposal in the idea that the clubs would amalgamate. All of North's players were urged to join
5136-563: The Melbourne Cricket Ground which attracted 7,500 spectators, then a record. The two teams competed annually over the next three years for the Hampson-Hardeman Cup. In women's Australian rules football in 2015, 163 new teams were formed, and a total of 284,501 players took part in organised games. In 2016 the AFL began a series of exhibition matches as double headers with men's matches. That same year it opened bidding for
5243-480: The New South Wales teams are not premiership eligible, but there will be premiership points available for the Victorian clubs in the matches. Women%27s Australian rules football Women's Australian rules football (in areas where it is popular, known simply as women's football or women's footy or women's AFL ), is the female-only form of Australian rules football , generally with some modification to
5350-546: The St Mary's Church of England Cricket Club, now the St Mary's Anglican Church North Melbourne, whose colours – blue and white – are reflected in the club's colours today. The association between the St Mary's Church of England Cricket Club and the establishment of the North Melbourne Football Club is believed to have been an informal gathering to play some competitive sport. Information on the club's first ever match
5457-645: The VFA. The lease at Coburg lasted only eight months; the Coburg council was hesitant to build a new grandstand without the security of a long-term lease, and neither party made the returns they expected, so it was terminated by mutual agreement in September 1965 and North Melbourne returned to the Arden Street Oval. Onfield, the 1950s and 1960s were lean years for North Melbourne, though the club did secure two consecutive Night Premierships in 1965 and 1966. Allen Aylett
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#17328551058945564-473: The VFL Women's was reconfigured to affiliate teams more closely with AFL clubs. Since 2021, twelve teams have appeared in the competition; all ten Victorian AFL clubs either field their own women's team or have an affiliation of sorts with an existing club in the VFLW, with the other teams being VFL-affiliated Williamstown and independent club Darebin . The reigning premiers are Port Melbourne . The competition
5671-462: The West Coast Eagles by 25 points after leading at half time. In 2016, North Melbourne won its first nine matches, which is the club's best start to a season in its VFL/AFL history. On 27 July 2016, the club announced it had surpassed 45,000 members for the first time in the club's history. In 2016, the Kangaroos fielded what was the oldest team in AFL history. Unfortunately after the midpoint of
5778-478: The Williamstown Chronicle. Costume football matches were popular from the late 1870s as a form of outdoor fancy dress theatre amusement mixing opera, comedy and pantomime. While early events were poorly documented, accounts from the time were over the top and gaudy affairs. However such matches provided a gateway for female participation and over time these there were more and more documented accounts of
5885-490: The award in 1978. Doug Wade (recruited from Geelong Football Club, Geelong) won the Coleman Medal in 1974 with his 103 goals for the season. Barassi remained team coach until 1980, but only a Night Premiership in that year resulted in him leaving Arden Street . North then entered another period of decline, though Malcolm Blight kicked 103 goals to take out the Coleman medal in 1982, and another Brownlow win came through
5992-428: The beginning of the 1993 season, in a dramatic and controversial move, the board of the club sacked coach and long-time player Wayne Schimmelbusch , and appointed Denis Pagan in his place. Results were immediate, as North reached the finals for the first time in nearly a decade. Pagan was instrumental in appointing young centre half-forward Wayne Carey as the club's youngest-ever captain. Carey had been recruited at
6099-428: The club develop a penchant for inter-colonial travel with trips to Tasmania (1881/1887) and South Australia (1889). Hotham also found itself well represented at the first ever inter-colonial representative game in 1879 with four players from the club gaining selection for Victoria. The VFA grew to 13 senior clubs in the 1890s. Led by Geelong and Essendon , the largest clubs of the VFA formed their own breakaway league,
6206-458: The club proposed changing its name to the "Northern Kangaroos", but it was rejected by the AFL. From 1999 to 2007, the club traded without much success as "The Kangaroos" in a bid to increase its appeal nationally; this decision was reversed at the end of 2007 when the club again reverted to the name "North Melbourne". "Join in the Chorus" is the official anthem of the North Melbourne Football Club. It
6313-467: The club such a strong North Melbourne character that many described it as "Albert-park cum North Melbourne". In 1877, the club was re-established as a stand-alone entity, under the name Hotham Football Club and moved to the Hotham Cricket Ground (now Arden Street Oval). Football took a giant step forward in 1877, with the formation of Victoria's first colonial football league, the VFA. Hotham were prime movers in establishing this league and were afforded
6420-442: The club to the wooden spoon in 2021 despite the team producing some encouraging results towards the end of the season and ending with four wins and a draw from the season. Noble resigned from the position in mid-2022 after pressure resulting from North's poor start to the season. On 19 August 2022, North Melbourne signed Alastair Clarkson to coach the team for five seasons, starting with the 2023 season. Clarkson stepped down as
6527-434: The club was known as the "Blue Birds", but this nickname did not last. It was Phonse Tobin, North president from 1953 to 1956, who oversaw the club adopting the kangaroo emblem in 1954; Tobin found the image of a shinbone unsavoury and wanted the club to have a mascot it could show with pride. In selecting a new name, he wanted something characteristically Australian and was inspired by a large kangaroo he saw on display outside
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#17328551058946634-477: The club won the championship in both 1915 and 1918 for finishing on top of the ladder, and accounted for VFL side St Kilda comfortably. During this period the club won 58 consecutive matches including 49 successive premiership matches, a record that has remained unmatched in Association or League history since. Despite being rejected from the VFL in both 1896 and 1907, North persisted in trying to gain admission into
6741-492: The coach of North Melbourne for part of the 2023 season due to him struggling with mental health problems from the racism accusations while he was at the Hawthorn Football Club, however returned toward the end of the season. The club was widely known as the "Shinboners" for much of its early history. The origins of the nickname is believed to come from the areas abattoirs, where a number of the players worked. By 1926,
6848-555: The code for almost a decade, attracting 9,400 to Docklands Stadium to watch Victoria women's team take on the Allies . North Melbourne Football Club#Women's teams Arden Street Oval (1966–1985) Coburg City Oval (1965) The North Melbourne Football Club , nicknamed the Kangaroos or colloquially the Roos , is a professional Australian rules football club. The men's team competes in
6955-490: The competition in 1947. Matches were also being played in the Wimmera - Mallee region of Victoria in towns such as Hopetoun , Lascelles and Camperdown . By 1947, the Adelaide women's competition had grown to seven teams. In 1953, a South Fremantle women's side took on and defeated Boans Limited at Perth Oval. In 1954, girls' football matches were held at Cobram. In 1959, a Victorian squad composed of Footscray players
7062-481: The earliest all-female teams which included Nellie Stewart , Florence Maude Young , Jennie Lee , Violet Varley and Flora Graupner. Played at the East Melbourne Cricket Ground the match attracted one of the largest crowds ever seen to the ground and was declared a draw and the media lauded the performance of the female team: "the ladies, in fact, carried all before them". A repeat female vs male match
7169-434: The early establishment of the club. Other early newspaper reports include the 24th September 1870 against Carlton United at Royal Park (which the paper noted was the second meeting of the season between the two clubs) and 1st October 1870 against East Brunswick. Royal Park served as the club's home ground until 1882. Regular premiership matches of Australian Football commenced in Victoria in 1870. Although North Melbourne
7276-464: The game, citing that his recovery had left him spent, and he was chaired from the ground. McCartney wore the numbers "88" and "202" on the front of his long-sleeved guernsey for the match, signifying the Australian and total number of victims of the Bali bombings, while many in the crowd bore signs reading "Bali 88/202". Onfield, the club reached the elimination finals in 2002 and 2004. After a top-4 finish and
7383-462: The grand final due to the appointment of an umpire whose performance when the two teams met earlier in the year was severely criticised by Richmond players and officials. North merged with fellow VFA football club West Melbourne in 1907, which at the time had lost its home ground. The joint venture saw a chance of promotion, and the club applied for admission to the more prestigious VFL in 1908, but Richmond and University were admitted instead. North
7490-423: The inclusion of female characters. In 1887 one of the earliest accounts of numerous "young ladies" participating was held in Ballarat, at the Eastern Oval in front of a huge crowd of 6,000. In 1892, a Bendigo woman was charged with nuisance for kicking a football in the street. In 1894, a high profile costume match was played to raise funds for the Australian Dramatic and Musical Association which featured one of
7597-417: The ladder at the end of the home-and-away season with 14 wins and 5 losses. They failed to make the Grand Final that year (eventually won by Essendon ), but in 1950 they did reach the final, but were defeated by Essendon. It was in this year that the club adopted the "Kangaroos" mascot. In February 1965, North Melbourne moved its playing and training base from the Arden Street Oval to Coburg Oval , signing
7704-402: The last quarter. The following week, North Melbourne beat Geelong in the 2nd Semi-final by 6 points advancing them through to their first preliminary final since 2007. Their finals campaign came to a disappointing end at Stadium Australia when they were beaten by Sydney by 71 points. In 2015 the club made history by becoming the first team to qualify for a preliminary final from 8th spot, losing to
7811-481: The latest the previous year. There is little evidence to support any connection to the North Melbourne Cricket Club except that the two clubs shared some players. Interestingly, while the borough was originally named Hotham, the club didn't identify with that name until later and went by the name of North Melbourne Football Club for much of its early history. One thought is that the club was connected to
7918-612: The league made further changes to the competition to affiliate clubs more directly with AFL clubs and the AFL Women's competition. Five other foundation clubs departed, leaving Darebin, Melbourne University and Western Spurs as the only remaining foundation clubs. The departing clubs were replaced by the AFL-aligned Carlton , Collingwood , Essendon , Richmond and Southern Saints , the VFL-aligned Casey and Williamstown , and
8025-405: The league's home of Melbourne has also lagged behind the rest of the country to an extent. Codified in 1859, Australian football had been played by men for almost half a century before the first all-women's football matches were played: exceptions to this included charity matches, such as patriotic fundraisers, which occasionally featured women players. Despite this, women have nonetheless followed
8132-405: The lock out which turned away fans stating that it had underestimated demand, expecting just 12,000 people. Despite this, the league later ruled out hosting women's matches at Docklands Stadium or the code's spiritual home Melbourne Cricket Ground deeming them to be too large for the women's game. As such, this was to remain a long standing record attendance for Victoria. During its debut season
8239-489: The more notable clubs of the time such as Melbourne, University, Carlton or Geelong and as such was not invited to compete in the Challenge Cup . The club continued to develop, graduating to senior ranks in 1874, finishing 4th. Along with the promotion, the club adopted its first uniform of blue and white horizontal stripes. In 1876, North Melbourne disbanded, and many of its player and members joined Albert-park , giving
8346-602: The number of registered teams increasing by a phenomenal 450%. In 2006 the Australian Services and the ADF conducted a national development camps for female players to form a services league. In June 2007, the organisers of the E. J. Whitten Legends Game included, for the first time, female participants - Daisy Pearce and Shannon McFerran , both of the Victorian Women's Football League (VWFL) - enabling them to play against former men's AFL players. This significantly raised
8453-471: The preliminary finals in 1994 and 1995, North went on to defeat the Sydney Swans in the 1996 Grand Final to take out the club's third premiership, and the gold centenary AFL cup; Glenn Archer won the Norm Smith Medal . The club was again eliminated in the preliminary final in 1997. In 1998, as the club won both the pre-season Ansett Cup and topped the ladder with 16 wins and 6 losses, but went on to lose
8560-545: The preliminary finals in 2000 against Melbourne. In 1996, the club was in advanced merger talks with the financially depleted Fitzroy Football Club to create the North Fitzroy Kangaroos Football Club ; however, Fitzroy ultimately merged with the Brisbane Bears instead. Seeking new markets and greater financial security in an increasingly corporatized AFL environment, the title "North Melbourne"
8667-516: The profile of women's football in Victoria, with some of the former AFL players being outplayed by the female players. It became one of the few high-profile mixed-gender exhibition matches featuring high-profile women's players. The first full international game was held between the USA Freedom and Team Canada in Vancouver on Saturday 4 August 2007 in front of a crowd of almost 2,500. In 2010,
8774-455: The same time as Longmire , but had taken longer to develop as a player. Over the next nine seasons, Carey came to be regarded as the standout player in the league and was known as 'the King'. North Melbourne became a powerhouse through the 1990s under Pagan and Carey, and finished in the top four, making the preliminary finals or better, in every season from 1994 until 2000. After being eliminated in
8881-402: The season they fell away and struggled against some of the worst teams in competition. In the mid season of 2019 Brad Scott made the decision to leave NMFC after 10 years at the club taking them to the finals on multiple occasions. Rhyce Shaw took over as caretaker coach in the interim in mid- to late 2019 and was later awarded the position as head coach for the following 2020 season . After
8988-405: The services of several big-name stars, including Barry Davis from Essendon , Doug Wade from Geelong , John Rantall from South Melbourne , and Barry Cable from Perth . In a major coup, the great Ron Barassi was appointed coach in 1973. Barrassi reversed the club's playing fortunes, taking a struggling team that was once regarded as the traditional cellar dwellers of the competition through to
9095-425: The talented Ross Glendinning in 1983. In that year, North Melbourne won a third Minor Premiership with 16 wins and 6 losses for the season, but they failed to make the Grand Final. Despite the tough, disciplined coaching of the legendary John Kennedy , the 1980s and early 1990s were mostly lean years for the Kangaroos. However, the rebuilding of the club was taking place. The Krakouer brothers (Jim and Phil) brought
9202-472: The years, women's football was rarely organised until the formation of the Victorian Women's Football League in 1981, with four teams competing at open level. With the West Australian Women's Football League 's formation in 1988, followed by that of the South Australian Women's Football League in 1991, there were competitions in the three major states in the sport. A women's competition in Sydney began in 1999 and
9309-467: Was a brilliant player in the late 1950s and early 1960s (and captain between 1961 and 1964), as was Noel Teasdale , who lost the Brownlow Medal on a countback in 1965 (he was later awarded a retrospective medal when the counting system was amended). In the late 1960s, under the leadership of Allen Aylett , North Melbourne began its climb to supremacy. As part of a major recruitment drive North secured
9416-410: Was a part of this, it was classed as a "junior club". The words junior and senior at the time were not used to distinguish underage side but rather the playing quality and strength of the side. The Australasian noted them as being "one of the best of many junior clubs" meaning it the club was considered respectable but far from being regarded a powerhouse as such it would rarely if ever compete against
9523-455: Was also taken over by North Melbourne , ending the clubs' ten-year partnership and allowing North Melbourne to field its own standalone team. In 2020, amidst the COVID-19 pandemic , AFL Victoria decided to cancel the 2020 VFL Women's season and instead hold a four-team Super Series in September to give 120 footballers the chance to push their case to be selected in the 2020 AFL Women's draft ; this
9630-687: Was being increasingly organised in northern Tasmania in the 1940s with the formation of several dedicated clubs and matches in Launceston. Archives also show a charity women's match occurred on Bassendean Oval in Perth, Western Australia, 27 August 1944. It is unknown whether the game had been played continuously in the state. Another match in 1944 was held in June at Memorial Oval Port Pirie, South Australia . Calls were made for big VFL clubs, including reigning premiers Essendon, to field women's sides in 1947. That year
9737-577: Was completed in 2009, giving the club top-class training facilities. North Melbourne struggled in its first two years under Brad Scott , finishing 9th in both 2010 and 2011. In 2012, the club returned to the finals for the first time since 2008, finishing the season in 8th place, but would go down to the West Coast Eagles by 96 points in an elimination final. In 2012, the club began a three-year deal to play two games each year at Blundstone Arena in Hobart , Tasmania . The club finished 10th in 2013 in
9844-529: Was considered a novelty at the time, and did not proceed, though generated some attention across regional Victoria. In 1886, a local paper reported that a group of women in Williamstown were seen playing kick-to-kick . In the same year a call for a ladies football club affiliated with the North Williamstown Football Club suggesting a hybrid match against a women's lacrosse club was made in
9951-611: Was defeated by a Tasmanian team. In 1967, a charity match was played in Regent's Park in London , between Aussie Girls and Wild Colonial Girls as a curtain raiser to a promotional men's match. In 1970 in Brisbane, Queensland, the Sherwood and Western Districts clubs began an annual women's competition which continued until 1985. The Mt Gravatt Football Club also had a dedicated women's team from 1973. Beyond this and occasional matches over
10058-465: Was eventually victorious and moved on to the final, but lost the game by a mere four points with the last kick of the day. The next few years were punctuated by "The Invincibles". In the Northerners' most illustrious period ever, the club went undefeated from 1914 to 1919, collecting premierships in 1914, 1915 and 1918 – the competition was in recess in 1916 and 1917 due to World War I . As well as this,
10165-611: Was forced to change its uniform to avoid a clash when it joined the VFL. North Melbourne struggled for most of its first twenty-five years in the VFL , with one of few bright notes being Sel Murray winning the VFL Leading Goalkicker Medal in 1941 with 88 goals. By the late 1940s, North Melbourne had developed a strong list and significant supporter base. In 1949 North secured the VFL Minor Premiership, finishing top of
10272-519: Was going into recess, claiming that the game is "too rough" to become popular with girls in Adelaide. Nevertheless, Port Adelaide Magpies reformed a women's team for the following year to play against a team from Queenstown. In August 1930, a charity match was organised in Perth on what is now the WACA Ground . In 1931, women protested against all-female matches being organised for Melbourne. That year, Oakleigh and Carnegie Football girls' clubs staged
10379-716: Was handed over entirely to the Bulldogs ahead of the 2019 season, with the Spurs fielding teams solely in the Northern Football Netball League . In 2019, Greater Western Sydney 's AFLW team played five invitational matches in Victoria against teams having a bye. Following the 2019 season, AFL Northern Territory ended Northern Territory's involvement in the NEAFL and VFLW competitions, and Williamstown aligned with Adelaide in Northern Territory's place. Melbourne University's license
10486-570: Was in 1921. According to the AFL Record, following World War I , a match in Melbourne was held to show that women could play what had previously been seen to be a man's sport. The first women's match attracted a large crowd and interest. The umpire wore a skirt. In 1921, a women's team in St Kilda organised a game with the women wearing kits donated by the St Kilda men's club and shorts rather than dresses. A team regularly practiced on Saturday mornings at
10593-543: Was in decline, and questions were raised about its financial position and long-term sustainability. Furthermore, three of the people most important to the club's success in the 1990s left the club under acrimonious circumstances: CEO Greg Miller left the club, captain Wayne Carey left prior to the 2002 season following an extramarital affair with the wife of teammate and vice captain Anthony Stevens , and coach Denis Pagan
10700-417: Was kicked out of the VFA during the 1907/08 offseason as a result of applying to join the VFL, before the local community reestablished the North Melbourne Football Club under a new committee, successfully enabling the club to play in the VFA in the 1908 season. The reformation of the club necessitated a massive cleanout of the team, leaving only two players remaining from the previous season. The 1910 season
10807-408: Was later cancelled as well due to the increase of restrictions around COVID-19 in Victoria. The Coburg Football Club , already competing in the VFL, formed a women's team in 2020 with a plan to join the VFLW in 2021 . However, the plan did not eventuate. In 2021, Port Melbourne joined the league, replacing Richmond, which initially left the competition due to financial issues before entering into
10914-505: Was lured to Carlton at the end of 2002. Pagan was replaced by 1996 premiership player Dani Laidley , who had previously been an Assistant Coach at Collingwood from 1999 until the end of season 2002. On a post-season holiday, several players were caught in the 2002 Bali bombings terrorist attack, notably defender Jason McCartney , who suffered second-degree burns to over 50% of his body while carrying others to safety and nearly died during surgery after being flown back to Melbourne. In what
11021-477: Was marked by one of the most sensational transfers in Victorian football history, when Andy Curran masterminded the clearance of Carlton's famed "Big Four" of 'Mallee' Johnson, Fred Jinks , Charlie Hammond and Frank 'Silver' Caine to North Melbourne. These signings secured the Northerners' third premiership in 1910. The 1912 finals series was one of the most amazing ever, with the semi-final having to be played three times, after North and Brunswick drew twice. North
11128-608: Was not held in 2020 due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic ; the grand final was also cancelled in 2021 due to the pandemic, with no premiership being awarded. AFL Victoria launched the VFL Women's competition on 21 March 2016, with its inaugural season featuring twelve doubleheaders with the Victorian Football League (VFL). The league initially comprised the six Premier Division clubs ( Darebin , Diamond Creek , Eastern Devils, Melbourne University , St Kilda Sharks and Western Spurs ) and 2015's top four Division 1 clubs ( Cranbourne , Geelong Magpies , Knox and Seaford ) from
11235-486: Was officially dropped from the logo in 1999, during which time the team played only as the "Kangaroos". During the successful 1999 season, North Melbourne played home games in Sydney with a view of becoming a second team in New South Wales ; however, the experiment was not successful, with crowds averaging only 12,000. North’s dominance of the league did not continue into the 21st century. Its decade-long on-field potency
11342-644: Was played at the Theatrical Carnival at the Royal Exhibition Building in 1895. Women's role on the Home front during World War I saw the organisation of the earliest recorded all-women's matches. Records exist of a football side in Perth , Western Australia made up of department store staff playing as Foy & Gibson 's as early as 1915. Some of the first organised matches were played on Perth Oval , including one on 14 October 1917. In Victoria
11449-517: Was the name of the Reserve at the time. Four years later the club adopted the traditional uniform of blue and white vertical stripes at the insistence of the VFA, who wanted a visible contrast between Geelong's and Hotham's uniforms. The third significant development occurred in 1888 with the club returning to its original name of the North Melbourne Football Club. This followed the name of the local area reverting from Hotham to North Melbourne. The 1880s saw
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