134-510: Administration & Training (1897–present) VFL/AFL (1897–2005) AFLW (2017–present) VFLW (2018–present) Northern Blues ( VFL ) (2012–2019) Fitzroy Football Club (1967–1969), (1987–1993) ( VFL/AFL ) Hawthorn Football Club ( VFL/AFL ) (1974–1991) Western Bulldogs ( AFL ) (1997–1999) Collingwood Reserves ( VFL ) (2008–2009) Western Bulldogs ( AFLW ) (2022) Essendon Football Club ( AFLW ) (2022) Princes Park (also known as Ikon Park under naming rights )
268-523: A proprietary limited company called Australian Football Championships Pty Ltd in 1978 to run its night competition and offered shareholdings to the other state leagues in an attempt to lure other states into the competition. For the three years from 1977 until 1979, the NFL and VFL night competitions were run separately as rival night competitions. In 1978, the Tasmanian representative team competed in both
402-835: A 20% cut in industry jobs. The 2021 grand final was played in September at Perth Stadium in Perth because an ongoing COVID-19 lockdown prevented the match from being played with spectators at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne , Victoria. It was the first grand final played in Perth and the second consecutive grand final to be played outside Victoria. The event set a new attendance record for Australian rules football in Western Australia, eclipsing
536-474: A 23-match regular (or home-and-away) season, which runs from March to September. The team with the best record at the end of the home-and-away season is awarded the minor premiership ; the top eight teams then play off in a four-round finals series , culminating in the AFL Grand Final , which is normally held at the Melbourne Cricket Ground each year. The grand final winners are termed the premiers ,
670-439: 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
804-400: 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
938-524: A few home games on the Gold Coast in previous years, was offered significant subsidies to relocate to the Gold Coast but declined. The AFL then began work to establish a club on the Gold Coast as a new expansion team. Early in 2008, a meeting held by the AFL discussed having two new teams enter the AFL competition. In March 2008, the AFL won the support of the league's 16 club presidents to establish sides on
1072-493: A joint venture to begin construction of a brand-new stadium situated at Melbourne's Docklands . Representative state football came to an end, with the last State of Origin match held in 1999. In the late 2000s, the AFL looked to establish a permanent presence on the Gold Coast in the state of Queensland, which was fast-developing as a major population centre. North Melbourne, which was in financial difficulty and had played
1206-418: A major recruitment drive North secured 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
1340-502: 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,
1474-573: 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 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
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#17327971755201608-609: A rival committee which remained loyal to 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
1742-401: 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
1876-452: A sole source of income for players who had previously had part-time or full-time jobs outside of football. Functionally, the AFL gave up control over its Victorian-based minor grades at the end of 1991 – clubs continued to field reserves teams in a competition run by the new Victorian State Football League and the under-19s competition and zone-based recruiting were abolished and replaced with an independent system . Midway through 1990,
2010-483: 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
2144-414: 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 is victoria amat curam , Latin for "victory demands dedication". Aside from their representation in
2278-615: Is an Australian rules football ground located inside the Princes Park precinct in the inner Melbourne suburb of Carlton North . Officially the Carlton Recreation Ground , it is a historic venue, having been Carlton Football Club 's VFL/AFL home ground from 1897. At its highest usage, the ground had a nominal capacity of 35,000, making it the third largest Australian rules football venue in Melbourne after
2412-423: 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
2546-519: 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 the Docklands area of Melbourne , Victoria , as well as Blundstone Arena in Hobart , Tasmania which
2680-561: The 1994 Winfield Cup . The higher crowd Balmain got was 14,762, when the Brisbane Broncos beat Balmain 36–14 in round 7 with Steve Renouf scoring 4 tries. From the 2006 NRL season onwards, the venue became the administrative headquarters for the Melbourne Storm rugby league club; the club relocated to the temporary home while plans were being made for the construction of a new purpose-built rectangular stadium next to
2814-654: The 2018 AFL Women's Grand Final , which saw the Western Bulldogs defeat Brisbane 27 to 21 in front of a crowd of 7,083. The success of the AFL Women's competition resulted in both state and federal governments allocating funding towards enhancement of the stadium's facilities, to enable it to become the home of women's football in Victoria. The Victorian Government committed $ 20 million in April 2018 to cater for
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#17327971755202948-685: The Gold Coast and in Western Sydney . The Gold Coast Suns were established and joined the AFL in 2011 as the 17th team. The Greater Western Sydney Giants , representing both Western Sydney and Canberra, were then established and entered the league as the 18th team in 2012. On 25 April 2013 the Westpac Stadium in Wellington , New Zealand hosted the first ever Australian Football League game played for premiership points outside Australia. The night game between St Kilda and Sydney
3082-863: The Kangaroos or colloquially the Roos , is a professional Australian rules football club. The men's team competes in 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
3216-414: The Melbourne Cricket Ground and Docklands Stadium . Princes Park hosted three grand finals during World War II, with a record attendance of 62,986 at the 1945 VFL Grand Final between Carlton and South Melbourne . After 2005, when the ground hosted its last Australian Football League (AFL) game, two stands were removed and replaced with an indoor training facility and administration building, reducing
3350-560: The Melbourne Hawks but the merger ultimately fell through and both teams continued as separate entities. Fitzroy, however, was too weak to continue by itself. The club nearly merged with North Melbourne to form the Fitzroy-North Melbourne Kangaroos but the other clubs voted against it. In 1994 Port Adelaide was awarded an AFL licence but could not enter until a Victorian team had folded or merged. At
3484-553: The VFL Night Series (1956–1971) and records relating to the three competitions are often combined. With the number of players recruited from country leagues increasing, the wealthier VFL clubs were gaining an advantage that metropolitan zoning and the Coulter law (salary cap) restricting player payments had prevented in the past. Country zoning was introduced in the late 1960s and while it pushed Essendon and Geelong from
3618-655: The West Australian Football League and Queensland Australian Football League were awarded licences to field expansion teams in the VFL, leading to the establishment of the clubs in Brisbane and Perth ( Brisbane Bears and West Coast Eagles ), who both joined the league in 1987. These expansion team licences were awarded on payment of multimillion-dollar fees which were not required of the existing VFL clubs. In 1989 financial troubles nearly forced Footscray and Fitzroy to merge but fees paid by
3752-486: The $ 18 million training facility at Ikon Park was completed in 2010 on the collaboration of working closely with federal, state and local governments, along with the AFL, to deliver a world-class training and administration facility. The inaugural match of the AFL Women's competition was held at the ground in February 2017. The game, featuring Carlton and Collingwood, attracted a capacity crowd of 24,568. The venue hosted
3886-575: The 11 Titles of which Port Adelaide was the most successful winning four titles in 1890, 1910, 1913 and 1914. The majority of the matches were held in South Australia at Adelaide Oval . Following the outbreak of World War 1 the Championship playoff ceased and wasn't revived until 1968. In 1916, district football was introduced, meaning new players from metropolitan Melbourne were allocated to clubs based on residential address. In 1925,
4020-416: The 1890s, an off-field power struggle occurred between the VFA's stronger and weaker clubs, the former seeking greater administrative control commensurate with their relative financial contribution to the game. This came to a head in 1896 when it was proposed that gate profits, which were always lower in matches involving the weaker clubs, be shared equally among all teams in the VFA. After it was intimated that
4154-401: The 1911 season, with clubs permitted to pay players beyond the reimbursement of expenses for the first time. University, after three promising seasons, finished last each year from 1911 until 1914, including losing 51 matches in a row, in part caused by its players' focus on their studies rather than football and in part because it had chosen to remain amateur; as a result, the club withdrew from
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4288-568: The 1980s. The AFL publishes its Laws of Australian football , which are used, with variations, by other Australian rules football organisations. The AFL competition currently consists of 18 teams spread over Australia's five mainland states, with Tasmania to join the league as its 19th team in 2028. AFL premiership season matches have been played in all states and mainland territories, as well as in New Zealand and China to expand its audience. The AFL premiership season currently consists of
4422-595: 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
4556-411: 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 is the loyalty of its supporters. The other is the determination to carry on, despite its disadvantages. In
4690-522: The Arden Street Oval to Coburg Oval , signing 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
4824-476: The Brisbane Bears and West Coast Eagles, propped up the struggling VFL sides. The 1980s first saw new regular timeslots for VFL matches. VFL matches had previously been played on Saturday afternoons but Sydney began playing its home matches on Sunday afternoons and North Melbourne pioneered playing matches on Friday night. These have since become regular timeslots for all teams. The first national draft
4958-660: The Carlton Cricket Club (CCC) which played elsewhere in Princes Park fought for exclusive access to it. In 1886, the CFC built its home ground, Princes Oval, specifically for football though it lacked facilities for spectators of other football club grounds. In response to the construction of the football ground, the Carlton Cricket Club which had a separate oval within the park lobbied the Minister of Lands to remove
5092-489: 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 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,
5226-647: The NFL and VFL night competitions but all SANFL and WAFL clubs and the minor states teams remained in the NFL Night Series. In 1979, the WAFL clubs and the New South Wales and A.C.T. representative teams defected from the NFL Night Series and joined the VFL's night competition, leaving the NFL Night Series mostly composed of SANFL teams. The NFL Night Series was not revived in 1980 and the SANFL clubs joined
5360-610: 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 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
5494-722: 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 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
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5628-492: 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 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,
5762-645: The Olympics. Princes Park was the venue for the second Ashes test of the 1992 Great Britain Lions tour , in which the visitors defeated Australia 33–10. In 1994, the Balmain Tigers played two New South Wales Rugby League premiership games at Princes Park. Work on the Legends Stand began in 1995 and was completed for opening on 25 April 1997. The roof, with its curved modern structure, ensured that
5896-543: The SANFL's most successful club, Port Adelaide , made a bid for an AFL licence. In response, the SANFL gained an injunction via Glenelg and Norwood against Port Adelaide , allowing it time to establish a composite South Australian team called the Adelaide Crows , which was awarded the licence and joined the league in 1991 as the fourth non-Victorian club. The same year saw the West Coast Eagles become
6030-558: 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 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
6164-486: The VFL Minor Premiership, finishing top of 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
6298-719: The VFL at the end of 1914. The VFL premier and the premier of the South Australian Football League met in a playoff matches for the Championship of Australia beginning in 1888 with a 3-game playoff between South Melbourne from the VFL and the Norwood the most successful club in the SAFA. Matches where then held sporadically during the 1890s as single game playoffs and then annually from 1907 until 1914 (except 1912). South Australian clubs won 8 of
6432-481: The VFL commenced in 1957 with direct telecasts of the final quarter permitted. At first, several channels competed through broadcasting different games. When the VFL found that television coverage had reduced crowds, it decided no that television coverage was to be allowed for 1960. In 1961 television replays in Melbourne were introduced although direct telecasts were rarely permitted, where as the rest of Australia received live telecasts every Saturday afternoon. In 1959,
6566-434: The VFL expanded from nine teams to twelve, with Footscray , Hawthorn and North Melbourne each crossing from the VFA. North Melbourne and Hawthorn remained very weak in the VFL for a very long period. Although North Melbourne would become the first of the 1925 expansion sides to reach a grand final in 1950 , initially it was Footscray that adapted to the VFL with the most ease of the three clubs and by 1928 were well off
6700-435: The VFL night competition was at its largest, with all VFL, WAFL and SANFL clubs plus the four minor states teams (selected under residential qualification rather than state of origin qualification) competing for a total of 34 teams. In 1982, the size of the competition was reduced and, thereafter, only the top two or three teams from the SANFL and WAFL and the winner of the minor states' annual carnival were invited. In 1987,
6834-483: The VFL planned the first purpose-built mega-stadium, VFL Park (later known as Waverley Park) , to give it some independence from the Melbourne Cricket Club , which managed the Melbourne Cricket Ground . VFL Park was planned to hold 155,000 spectators, which would have made it one of the largest stadiums in the world – although it would ultimately be built with a capacity of 78,000. Land for the stadium
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#17327971755206968-423: The VFL's night competition. Although the NFL itself continued to exist as an administrative body into the early 1990s, the power gained by the VFL as a result of its take-over of night competition was one of the first significant steps in the VFL's spread interstate and ultimately its take-over and control of Australian football across Australia. In 1980 and 1981, the first years after the NFL Night Series ended,
7102-476: The VFL's weaker clubs into dire financial situations. The South Melbourne Swans became the first VFL team to relocate interstate. The South Melbourne Football Club was deeply indebted, including to the VFL which took over the club's Swans team and moved the team's home games to Sydney in 1982 and renamed the team the Sydney Swans the following year. Under the private ownership of Dr Geoffrey Edelsten during
7236-428: The VFL, SANFL and WAFL, as well as state representative teams from other states. In November 1976, the VFL announced that it was withdrawing from the NFL's competition, having arranged more substantial television and sponsorship deals for its own, rival night competition for 1977 to be based in Melbourne and feature only the VFL clubs. Light towers were erected at VFL Park specifically for the event. The VFL established
7370-435: The VFL, finally North was rewarded for its persistence with admittance to 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
7504-402: 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
7638-574: The assistance of state governments and health officials, the season resumed on 11 June, with the length of the season reduced from 22 matches per team to 17 matches. The grand final was played in October at The Gabba in Brisbane , the first time it was held outside of Victoria since the creation of the league due to the spiking cases in that state. The pandemic caused the league to lose out on up to $ 400 million in anticipated revenue and also precipitated
7772-497: 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
7906-428: 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
8040-511: The bottom of the ladder. Between the years of 1927 and 1930, Collingwood became the first and only VFL team, to win four successive premierships. In 1952, the VFL hosted a national day, when all six matches were played outside Melbourne. Matches were played at the Sydney Cricket Ground , Brisbane Exhibition Ground , North Hobart Oval , Albury Sports Ground and Victorian country towns Yallourn and Euroa . Footscray became
8174-443: The capacity. The venue reached capacity (24,500) for the inaugural AFL Women's match between Carlton and Collingwood in 2017. Subsequent renovations and modernisation of the ground and surrounding precinct have reduced Ikon Park's capacity to approximately 13,000. The Carlton Football Club (CFC) had been playing in Princes Park as early as 1865. In the 1880s football and cricket were played on separate grounds and as early as 1885
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#17327971755208308-533: 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 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
8442-522: The club did secure two consecutive Night Premierships in 1965 and 1966. Allen Aylett 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
8576-462: 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
8710-535: 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 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
8844-442: 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
8978-434: 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
9112-415: 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, 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,
9246-528: 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 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
9380-502: 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,
9514-643: The competition through to 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
9648-514: 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 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
9782-596: The end of 1996 Fitzroy played its last match and merged with Brisbane to form the Brisbane Lions. This allowed Port Adelaide to enter the AFL for the 1997 season as the sixth and only pre-existing non Victorian club. Through the 1990s there was a significant trend of Melbourne-based teams abandoning the use of their small (20,000–30,000 capacity) suburban venues for home matches in favour of the MCG and VFL Park , which have and had larger seating capacities. The 1990s saw
9916-502: 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 a match between North Melbourne and the South Yarra Football Club . Whether there
10050-774: The field, a succession of owners and transfer to its supporter "members", the Sydney Swans remain indebted to the AFL and subject to its veto control and reversion rights in what became a model for the AFL control of teams. Throughout the 1980s, approaches were made by SANFL and WAFL clubs to enter the VFL. Of particular note were approaches by the East Perth Royals in 1980, the Norwood Redlegs in 1986 and 1988, and an East – South Fremantle merger proposal in 1987. None of these attempts were successful despite Norwood trying again in 1990 and 1994. In 1986,
10184-473: 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, 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
10318-518: The first non-Victorian club to reach the grand final, which was won by Hawthorn. The Eagles would then win the premiership in 1992 and 1994. In 1994, Fremantle obtained an AFL licence and joined the AFL in 1995, becoming the fifth non-Victorian club, and the second from Western Australia. The VFA took over the Victorian Football League name in 1996. In 1996 several Victorian clubs were in severe financial difficulties, most notably Fitzroy and Hawthorn. Hawthorn proposed to merge with Melbourne to form
10452-443: The first of the 1925 expansion teams to win the premiership in 1954. Melbourne became a powerhouse during the 1950s and early 1960s under coach Norm Smith and star player Ron Barassi . The club contested seven consecutive grand finals from 1954 to 1960, winning five premierships, including three in a row from 1955 to 1957. The became the only club to win the minor premiership 6 times in a row from 1955-1960. Television coverage for
10586-601: The first-ever AFL match for premiership points in Shanghai , China, attracting a crowd of 10,114 at Jiangwan Stadium . Port Adelaide won the game by 72 points. In 2020, the AFL season was severely disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic . The first round of matches was played in front of no crowds due to the pandemic, before the season was suspended on 22 March due to health concerns and strict government regulations on non-essential travel. After nearly two months of planning with
10720-490: The following month. The 2023 AFL Women's Grand Final was held at Ikon Park on 3 December 2023, which saw Brisbane defeat North Melbourne 44 to 27 in front of a crowd of 12,616. Public transport to the venue is primarily by tram along Royal Parade directly adjoining the ground, or along Lygon St 700m east of the ground. It was served by North Carlton railway station , 700m north of the ground, until that station's closure in 1948; and by Royal Park railway station 1.1 km to
10854-428: The football ground from the park. The cricket club, unsuccessful in seeking to access the oval, began to look elsewhere for a permanent venue and the football ground was however retained in situ. However the dispute between the two clubs over occupancy of the park and the legitimacy of the football ground would continue for years. Permissive occupancy of Princes Park was granted to CFC and CCC simultaneously in 1889. It
10988-452: The football ground. The VFL played the first of a series of exhibition matches in 1962 in an effort to lift the international profile of the league. In 1967, district football was expanded throughout all of Victoria, clubs now allocated a country zone in addition to their metropolitan districts. The 1970 season saw the opening of VFL Park, with the inaugural match being played between Geelong and Fitzroy, on 18 April 1970. Construction work
11122-556: The game by 10 points, featured a famous spectacular mark by Alex Jesaulenko and was witnessed by a record crowd of 121,696. In 1976, the National Football League , which was the peak national administrative body of Australian rules football at the time, established the NFL Night Series to succeed the Championship of Australia . The Night Series was played concurrently with the premiership season and
11256-527: 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
11390-477: The ground for VFL/AFL home matches have been: The ground has hosted VFA/VFL grand finals on and off from 1990 to 2007 and again from 2019. Carlton's reserves team plays its VFL matches at the ground; and from 2012 until the dissolution of their affiliation in 2020, the Northern Blues , Carlton's VFL - affiliate , split their home games between Princes Park and Preston City Oval . From 2007 until 2010,
11524-516: The ground was the home ground of the Collingwood reserves , which was ironic considering that Collingwood and Carlton are bitter rivals in the AFL. Carlton's senior team has continued to play some pre-season and practice matches at the ground since it stopped playing premiership matches there. Carlton's AFL Women's (AFLW) team plays its matches at the venue, as have some other clubs for specific matches. The venue's most notable alternative use
11658-608: 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 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
11792-545: The growth of women's football, which was followed the next year by $ 15 million from the Federal Government . The joint funding allows the venue to host a high performance women's training facility, with an upgraded oval, women's coaching education hub, sports injury prevention and research centre and allied health centre. Construction of the upgrades commenced in January 2021. The training and administration building
11926-418: The inaugural season. Six clubs joined the league in the coming years; Geelong and North Melbourne entered the competition in 2019, while Gold Coast , Richmond , St Kilda and West Coast made their debut in 2020. The remaining four clubs— Essendon , Hawthorn , Port Adelaide and Sydney — entered AFL Women's in the seventh season in 2022. On 14 May 2017, Port Adelaide and the Gold Coast played
12060-585: The invitees that included Footscray and Hawthorn. North Melbourne 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
12194-460: The last matches played at Windy Hill (Essendon), Moorabbin Oval (St Kilda), Western Oval (Footscray) and Victoria Park (Collingwood) and saw Princes Park abandoned by its long-term co-tenant, Hawthorn. The transition to the use of only two venues in Melbourne was ultimately completed in 2005 when Carlton abandoned the use of Princes Park. In 1999, the league sold VFL Park and used the funds in
12328-402: 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
12462-399: 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 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
12596-535: The mid-1980s, the Sydney Swans became successful on-field. Moving the Swans team to Sydney effectively shifted the debts of a Melbourne club onto Australian football in Sydney and re-directed support and finance to the Swans team to the detriment of existing Australian Football clubs and league competitions in Sydney. However, the Swans team attracted new prominence and supporters for the sport. Despite becoming successful on
12730-553: The modern scoring system, in which six points are awarded for a goal and one point for a behind. Although the VFL and the VFA continued to compete for spectator interest for many years, the VFL quickly established itself as the premier competition in Victoria. In 1908, the league expanded to ten teams, with Richmond crossing from the VFA and University Football Club from the Metropolitan Junior Football Association . Professionalism began from
12864-424: The most important team prizes for which are the premiership cup and flag . Carlton , Collingwood and Essendon are the joint-most successful clubs in the competition, having each won 16 premierships. The Brisbane Lions are the reigning premiers, having won the 2024 AFL Grand Final . Several of the AFL's current member clubs date back to the origins of Australian football and were instrumental in establishing
12998-400: The night competition reverted to include only the VFL teams. The competition was pushed earlier into the year, with the final played on 28 April. The following season, the competition did not overlap with the day premiership season at all and became entirely a pre-season competition . The night competition is generally considered to be of equivalent importance as the pre-season competition and
13132-414: The opportunity to compete as junior sides at a level beneath the VFL but rejected the offer and remained for the 1897 VFA season . The VFL's inaugural season occurred in 1897. It made several innovations early on to entice the public's interest, including an annual finals tournament, rather than awarding the premiership to the team with the best record through the season; and, the formal establishment of
13266-476: The oval was now enclosed with a roof all the way around its circumference. In 2005, it was decided to discontinue the use of the ground for AFL home and away games. A farewell AFL game was played at Princes Park on Saturday 21 May 2005. The game was contested between Carlton and Melbourne . It was the last of the suburban grounds in Melbourne to be used in the AFL . The result was an 18-point win to Melbourne. Also in
13400-565: 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 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
13534-417: 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
13668-567: 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"
13802-471: The previous record set in 2018 despite not featuring any WA-based teams and being played during the COVID pandemic. [REDACTED] The AFL operates on a single table system, with no divisions and conferences, nor promotion and relegation from other leagues. North Melbourne Football Club Arden Street Oval (1966–1985) Coburg City Oval (1965) The North Melbourne Football Club , nicknamed
13936-416: 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 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
14070-481: The proposal would be put to a vote, six of the strongest clubs— Collingwood , Essendon , Fitzroy , Geelong, Melbourne and South Melbourne —seceded from the VFA and later invited Carlton and St Kilda to join them in founding a new competition, the Victorian Football League (VFL). The remaining VFA clubs— Footscray , North Melbourne , Port Melbourne , Richmond and Williamstown —were given
14204-459: 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
14338-639: The same year, the ground hosted matches from the Australian Football Multicultural Cup as well as finals for the 2005 Australian Football International Cup . In January 2007, Graham Smorgon , then-president of the Carlton Football Club, announced a A$ 67 million redevelopment proposal involving the demolition of most of the stands, returning much of the ground to parkland and the establishment of club training facilities and community centre. On 7 June 2007 it
14472-402: 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
14606-455: The sport's popularity and the AFL. The oldest club is Melbourne Football Club , which wrote the first laws of the code, and Geelong , which date back to 1858 and 1859 respectively, while Melbourne University , also founded in 1859, is also one of the oldest clubs to have later participated in the competition. The Victorian Football Association (VFA) was established in 1877 and quickly went on to become Victoria 's football competition. During
14740-425: 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
14874-491: The then-current Melbourne Storm home ground, Olympic Park Stadium . The stadium was the home ground for now defunct Association football club Carlton SC . In December 2023, A-League club Melbourne City hosted Chinese Super League club Zhejiang in the AFC Champions League due to scheduling conflicts at its usual home ground. Other sports, boxing and rugby , have also been played there. The ground
15008-425: 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 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
15142-455: The top of the ladder, it created severe inequality during the 1970s and 1980s. Between 1972 and 1987, only six of the league's twelve clubs – Carlton, Collingwood, Essendon, Hawthorn, North Melbourne and Richmond – played in grand finals. (equivalent to $ 53,142 in 2022) (equivalent to $ 2,898,675 in 2022) (equivalent to $ 3,221,426 in 2022) (equivalent to $ 99,714 in 2022) (equivalent to $ 12,885,702 in 2022) The 1980s
15276-511: The west thereafter. The ground became known as Optus Oval in November 1993 due to a naming rights deal with telecommunications company Optus . In April 2006, it was announced that the naming rights for the stadium had once again been awarded, this time for a two-year term, during which the stadium was known as MC Labour Park . It was later re-named Visy Park . Since 2015, the ground has been commercially been known as Ikon Park . Tenants of
15410-601: Was Carlton Football Club's home ground during the inaugural season of the VFL/AFL in 1897. The club went on to win 673 of its 962 VFL/AFL games at the venue. The Alderman Gardiner Stand was designed in 1903 and completed in stages between 1909 and 1913, as a mostly iron stand with original cast iron columns still in place. The Robert Heatley Stand was officially opened by Alderman Sir William Brunton on Saturday, 7 May 1932. During World War II, Princes Park hosted three VFL grand finals – in 1942 , 1943 , and 1945 . (The 1944 match
15544-440: Was a period of significant structural change in Australian football around the country. The VFL was dominant among the Australian football leagues around the country in terms of overall attendance, interest and money and began to look towards expanding its influence directly into other states. The VFL and its top clubs were asserting their financial power to recruit top players from interstate. The resulting rising cost pressures drove
15678-679: Was also host to a production of the opera Aida . 15. ^ http://www.austadiums.com/sport/event.php?eventid=19268 Australian Football League The Australian Football League ( AFL ) is the pre-eminent professional competition of Australian rules football . It was originally named the Victorian Football League (VFL) and was founded in 1896 as a breakaway competition from the Victorian Football Association (VFA), with its inaugural season in 1897. It changed its name to Australian Football League in 1990 after expanding its competition to other Australian states in
15812-500: Was announced that the stadium would receive a A$ 15.7m redevelopment to provide the Carlton with elite training and administration facilities. The proposed redevelopment incorporated a gymnasium, weights and stretch areas, a 4-lane, 25-metre indoor heated pool, medical offices and rehabilitation/treatment spaces, football administration offices, lecture theatre and meeting rooms and additional changing room facilities. The redevelopment of
15946-802: Was as a cricket ground. The ground has hosted seven first-class cricket matches, including three Sheffield Shield games, and two List A matches. Until 2000, the ground was the home of the Carlton Cricket Club in the Victorian Premier/District Cricket competition; in 2000, the club moved to the No. 1 Oval in the wider Princes Park area to enable the football club unlimited access to the venue for year-round training. The Balmain Tigers took two games away from their traditional home Leichhardt Oval to Princes Park in
16080-413: 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 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
16214-406: Was carried out at the stadium as the 1970s progressed, culminating in the building of the now heritage listed Sir Kenneth Luke Stand. Queen Elizabeth II , was a guest at the game and formally opened the stadium to the public. The 1970 grand final between traditional rivals Carlton and Collingwood, arguably the league's most famous game, saw Carlton recover from a 44-point deficit at half-time to win
16348-585: 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
16482-536: Was contested among twelve clubs from the VFL, SANFL and WAFL , invited based on their finishing positions from the previous year. The event was mostly played on Tuesday nights, with night games at Norwood Oval in Adelaide and all games were televised live in colour on Channel 9 , which opened up unprecedented revenue streams from television rights and sponsorship opportunities for the sport. The NFL began plans to expand its Night Series to incorporate more teams from
16616-494: 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 the latest the previous year. There is little evidence to support any connection to
16750-556: 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
16884-541: Was introduced in 1986 and a salary cap was introduced in 1987. District football within Victoria was discontinued around the same time. The league was renamed the Australian Football League in 1990 to reflect its national composition. In 1990 the AFLPA , the players union, signed its first Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) with the league which outlined wages and conditions in what was becoming
17018-505: 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
17152-493: 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
17286-588: Was originally selected to be the main stadium for the 1956 Melbourne Olympics , which would have resulted in a major redevelopment to accommodate up to 100,000 spectators. It was also expected that VFL finals would be transferred to the ground after the upgrade. However, in early 1953 after a change of government , the Olympic Organising Committee changed its decision, instead redeveloping the Melbourne Cricket Ground for
17420-518: Was played at the Junction Oval .) The 1945 grand final, between Carlton and South Melbourne , attracted a record crowd of 62,986. Three weeks earlier, the semi-final between Carlton and North Melbourne had attracted 54,846 people. Those were the only two crowds of over 50,000 in the venue's history. The record home-and-away (i.e., non-finals) crowd was set in 1963 , when 47,514 attended a match between Carlton and Geelong. In 1952, Princes Park
17554-570: Was played in front of a crowd of 22,183 on Anzac Day to honour the Anzac bond between the two countries. A national women's league comprising a subset of AFL clubs began in 2017. Thirteen AFL clubs placed bids to participate in the women's competition. Eight clubs – Adelaide , Brisbane Lions , Carlton , Collingwood , Fremantle , Greater Western Sydney , Melbourne and the Western Bulldogs – were granted licences to participate in
17688-658: Was purchased at Mulgrave, then farmland but predicted to be near the demographic centre of Melbourne's population. The VFL premiership trophy was first awarded in addition to a pennant flag in 1959; essentially the same trophy design has been in use since. In the 1960s, television coverage began to have a huge impact on the VFL. Spectators hurried home from games to watch replays and many former players took up positions as commentators on pre-game preview programs and post-game review programs. There were also several attempts at variety programs featuring VFL players, who generally succeeded in demonstrating that their skills were limited to
17822-558: Was refurbished, the Pratt Stand was demolished to make way for a match-day pavilion containing changing-rooms, high-performance areas, an indoor training field measuring 25m x 50m, broadcast-quality lighting, expanded retail facilities, a new café and function and events centre. The bulk of the redevelopment was completed in August 2022, with the match-day pavilion housing additional changerooms and function centre and event space completed
17956-424: 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 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
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