West Melbourne Football Club
| Names | |
|---|---|
| Full name | West Melbourne Football Club |
| Nickname(s) | Wests |
| Club details | |
| Dissolved | 1908 |
| Colours | Red and white |
| Competition | Victorian Football Association (1879–1880, 1899–1907) |
| Premierships | 1906 |
| Ground(s) | North Melbourne Rec. Reserve (1899–1906) East Melbourne Cricket Ground (1907) |
West Melbourne Football Club was an Australian rules football club which played in the Victorian Football Association (VFA).
History
After it was the premier junior level club in the VFA in 1877,[1] West Melbourne began competing in the VFA as a senior club in 1878.[2] and played there until the end of the 1880 season. The club returned to junior level in 1881, then returned to senior level in 1899, and had a longer stint at senior level. The club won its first and only senior premiership in 1906 by defeating Footscray in the Grand Final 7.8 (50) to 5.9 (39).
As juniors, the club played at the West Melbourne Recreation reserve, but it was not up to Association standards; so, upon rejoining the VFA in 1899, the club became based at the North Melbourne Cricket Ground, sharing it with the North Melbourne Football Club.[3] In 1907, the club moved to the East Melbourne Cricket Ground, sharing it with the VFL's Essendon Football Club.[4]
At the end of 1907, West Melbourne merged with the North Melbourne Football Club in the hope of joining the VFL;[5] their application was rejected by the VFL, and the VFA expelled both clubs for their disloyalty and the merger never formally took place. North Melbourne and West Melbourne both disbanded, but North Melbourne was revived under a new committee shortly afterwards,[6] and wore a red sash on a blue and white guernsey in 1908 to reflect the colours of both North and West Melbourne.[7]
At the end of the 1908 season, an independent West Melbourne club was revived under the new name "City of Melbourne";[8] it applied for, but was not granted admission to the VFA, and it disbanded. North Melbourne was upset by the move.[9] The red sash representing West Melbourne's history was later dropped from North Melbourne's guernsey.
VFA premierships
- 1906
Notable players
- Lou Armstrong (Essendon)
- George Holden (Fitzroy)
- Bill S. Johnson (Essendon)
- Bert Ryan (Essendon)
- Jimmy Smith (St Kilda)
References
- ↑ Peter Pindar (20 October 1877). "The Football Season of 1877 – Part 2". The Australasian. XXIII (603) (Melbourne, VIC). p. 492.
- ↑ Peter Pindar (11 May 1878). "Football Gossip". The Australasian (Melbourne, VIC). p. 588.
- ↑ Half-Forward (15 April 1899). "Football Notes". Independent (Footscray, VIC). p. 3.
- ↑ "Football – Victorian League – Question of Grounds". The Argus (Melbourne, VIC). 28 March 1907. p. 4.
- ↑ "Football". The Mercury (Hobart, TAS). 12 October 1907. p. 9.
- ↑ "North Melbourne club". The Argus (Melbourne, VIC). 4 April 1908. p. 15.
- ↑ "Football – the Victorian Association". The Argus (Melbourne, VIC). 18 April 1908. p. 6.
- ↑ "A new club". The Argus (Melbourne, VIC). 24 September 1908. p. 9.
- ↑ "Football – City of Melbourne Club". The Argus (Melbourne, VIC). 3 November 1908. p. 7.