1925 VFL season#Round 17
{{Short description|29th season of the Victorian Football League (VFL)}}
{{Use Australian English|date=December 2017}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2021}}
{{Infobox VFL season
| year = 1925
| image = Geelong fc 1925.jpg
| imagesize = 258px
| caption = {{AFL Gee}} 1925 VFL premiership team
| date = 2 May—10 October 1925
| teams = 12
| premiers = {{AFL Gee}}
| premcount = 1
| runnersup = {{AFL Col}}
| rucount = 8
| minorpremiers = {{AFL Gee}}
| mpcount = 3
| brownlowmedal = Colin Watson ({{AFL StK}})
| votes = 9
| leadinggoalkicker = Lloyd Hagger ({{AFL Gee}})
| goals = 70
| matches = 106
| attendance = 1,871,336
| highattendha = 38,000 (round 6, {{AFL Ric}} v {{AFL Mel}})
| highattendfinals = 64,288 (grand final, {{AFL Gee}} v {{AFL Col}})
| prevseason = {{coloured link|white|1924 VFL season|1924}}
| nextseason = {{coloured link|white|1926 VFL season|1926}}
}}
The 1925 VFL season was the 29th season of the Victorian Football League (VFL), the highest-level senior Australian rules football competition in Victoria. The season featured twelve clubs and ran from 2 May to 10 October, comprising a 17-match home-and-away season followed by a four-week finals series featuring the top four clubs. Victorian Football Association (VFA) clubs {{AFL Foo}}, {{AFL Haw}} and {{AFL NM}} featured for the first time in 1925.
{{AFL Gee}} won the premiership, defeating {{AFL Col}} by ten points in the 1925 VFL grand final; it was Geelong's first VFL premiership. Geelong also won the minor premiership by finishing atop the home-and-away ladder with a 15–2 win–loss record. {{AFL StK}}'s Colin Watson won the Brownlow Medal as the league's best and fairest player, and Geelong's Lloyd Hagger won the leading goalkicker medal as the league's leading goalkicker.
Background
=Public Service Football Club=
In July 1924, the Public Service Football Club, a club whose players would consist entirely of state and federal public servants rather than being drawn from a geographical recruiting district, was established and applied to join the VFL.{{cite news|newspaper=The Argus|page=22|title=Football – another League club|date=5 July 1924|publication-place=Melbourne}} Melbourne Carnivals Ltd had offered to lease the Public Service club its newly developed venue, the Amateur Sports Ground, for football if it could gain entrance to the league. The venue was centrally located, between Batman Avenue and Swan Street, the site which later became Olympic Park, and was to have been expanded to a capacity of 100,000. The VFL was keen to have control over the venue, and equally keen to prevent the VFA or the local rugby league or soccer associations from controlling such a valuable asset.{{cite news|newspaper=The Argus|publication-place=Melbourne|title=Football – the Tenth Club|page=10|date=23 September 1924|author=Old Boy}}
Since the end of World War I, the VFL had contained nine clubs; and, while the League had taken applications several times for a tenth club, it had each time opted to remain at nine clubs. But, the availability of the Amateur Sports Ground was an important strategic opportunity, and in September 1924, the VFL formally resolved to "draw up a scheme for the inclusion of one or more clubs, and secure the Amateur Sports Ground for the League" before the 1925 season.{{cite news|newspaper=The Argus|publication-place=Melbourne|title=Football – Essendon premiers|page=14|date=29 September 1924|author=Old Boy}}
=Claims of the Footscray Football Club=
While the league reviewed the application of the Public Service, it was also fielding other applications, most notably that of the Footscray Football Club from the VFA. Footscray was widely regarded as the strongest candidate among existing clubs to join the VFL, and had been considered as such for many years. It was the richest VFA club, had a strong corporate backing due to its location in the heart of the industrial district of the western suburbs, and it had dominated the Association since the war, winning four of the previous six premierships and five minor premierships in a row. Its win against VFL premiers Essendon in Dame Nellie Melba's Limbless Soldiers' Appeal match at the end of the 1924 season had affirmed its credentials.{{cite news|newspaper=The Argus|publication-place=Melbourne|title=Football – Footscray champions|page=7|date=6 October 1924|author=Old Boy}}{{cite news|newspaper=The Argus|publication-place=Melbourne|title=Football – the tenth club|page=6|url=https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/2046785?searchTerm=%22Football%20%E2%80%93%20the%20Tenth%20Club%22|date=14 October 1924|author=Old Boy}}
Admitting the Public Service team would have met both of the League's aims, but admitting Footscray would not have secured the Amateur Sports Ground. The League investigated other means of securing the venue without having to admit Public Service, including having {{AFL Ric}} leave the nearby Punt Road Oval to use it as a home venue,{{cite news|newspaper=The Argus|publication-place=Melbourne|title=Football – the tenth club|date=17 October 1924}} having {{AFL Gee}} play all of its away matches at the venue,{{cite news|newspaper=The Argus|publication-place=Melbourne|title=Negotiations with League|page=5|date=19 February 1925}} or scheduling each club to play one or more of its home games at the neutral venue – similar to the way that VFL Park was later used in the 1970s and 1980s.
There were two other significant problems with admitting Footscray – or indeed any other club from the VFA:
- Firstly, in 1915 the VFL had introduced district-based recruiting; and {{AFL Ess}} and {{AFL SM}}, the two clubs set to lose parts of their district to Footscray, would have opposed any change. The Public Service team did not have this issue, as its recruitment would have been profession-based, not district-based.{{cite news|newspaper=The Argus|publication-place=Melbourne|title=Football – Tenth Club proposal|page=12|date=2 October 1924}}
- Secondly, since 1923 there had been a five-year agreement in place between the VFA and VFL in which the two bodies were required to recognise the validity of the other's transfer clearances; ergo a player could not transfer from a VFA club to a VFL club without the VFA's permission. The VFA would almost certainly have refused to grant clearances for the entire Footscray playing list to transfer to the VFL, and the agreement gave the VFA legal recourse to seek an injunction against the move. The newly established Public Service team would not have had this issue. The implications of this transfer agreement were discussed so frequently during the off-season that it became simply known as the agreement.{{cite news|newspaper=The Australasian|publication-place=Melbourne|title=Football – more league teams|page=144|date=17 January 1925|author=Old Boy}}
After having waited many months without response since first applying to the VFL in July 1924, the Public Service withdrew its application on 3 November and submitted an application to join the VFA;{{cite news|newspaper=The Argus|publication-place=Melbourne|title=Public Service Club – admittance to league|page=17|date=4 November 1924}} and in December, the VFA provisionally accepted the application.{{cite news|newspaper=The Argus|publication-place=Melbourne|title=Association Football – Two new clubs|page=13|date=16 December 1924}} However, Melbourne Carnivals withdrew its offer to the Public Service to use the Amateur Sports Ground (now known as the Motordrome, with a motorcycling arena having been installed in November){{cite news|newspaper=The Argus|publication-place=Melbourne|title=Motorcycle racing – record speeds at Motordrome|page=16|date=24 November 1924}} in the meantime.{{cite news|newspaper=The Argus|publication-place=Melbourne|title=League Football – Three New Clubs|page=6|date=23 January 1925}} Public Service was unable to secure a replacement, so withdrew from the VFA without playing a game.{{cite news|newspaper=The Argus|publication-place=Melbourne|title=Football – Position of Association|page=18|date=3 March 1925}}
=Breaking the agreement=
With the Public Service club no longer available, and 'the agreement' all but preventing the VFL from admitting a VFA club, it looked likely that the VFL would remain at nine teams.{{cite news|newspaper=The Argus|publication-place=Melbourne|url=https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/2033399?searchTerm=League%20Football%20%E2%80%93%20Three%20New%20Clubs|via=National Library of Australia|title=League Football – Three New Clubs|page=5|date=29 January 1925}} But, in December 1924, the VFA admitted the Coburg Football Club, from the VFL seconds competition, into its senior ranks. The VFL contended that 'the agreement' was valid specifically between the two bodies as they were constituted at the time it was signed; and that by admitting a new club, the constitution of the VFA had changed and the agreement was voided.{{cite news|newspaper=The Argus|publication-place=Melbourne|title=Football League – admitting more teams|page=13|date=13 January 1925|author=Old Boy}} This gave the VFL the opportunity to admit VFA clubs. The VFA considered its legal position, but decided not to proceed, the result being that both competitions considered the agreement broken.{{cite news|newspaper=The Argus|publication-place=Melbourne|title=Football – Broken agreement|page=7|date=5 May 1925}}
=Admission of new VFL clubs=
With 'the agreement' no longer an impediment, the VFL set about admitting a tenth club. {{AFL Foo}} and {{AFL NM}} were both discussed, but both were rejected by the clubs set to lose sections of their recruiting districts. It was then proposed to admit three clubs instead of one; the VFL delegates agreed, and {{AFL Foo}}, {{AFL Haw}} and {{AFL NM}} were admitted. This league saw two specific benefits with this scheme:
- Firstly, the loss of recruiting districts would be spread more evenly across the existing clubs.
- Secondly, now that 'the agreement' was broken, the VFA clubs would be free to spend as much money as was required to entice high quality VFL players into the VFA, the cessation of which had been the motivation for the VFL to sign the agreement in the first place; but, by admitting three of the VFA's strongest clubs, it would so significantly strengthen the position of the VFL compared to the VFA that it would reduce the VFA's bargaining power.
One impediment to admitting North Melbourne was that the State Government had prevented the VFL from moving into the Arden Street Oval in 1921, after protest from the VFA that it would lose its most central venue. The VFL wrote to the Minister for Lands and obtained the necessary permission from the minister to use the venue before it was able to admit North Melbourne.{{cite news|newspaper=The Australasian|title=Football – More league clubs|date=24 January 1925|page=193|publication-place=Melbourne}} It is thought that Prahran would have been the twelfth team, had this permission not been obtained.
Through all of this, the VFL failed to secure use of the Motordrome, and the VFA began using it for finals matches, but it never became one of its regularly used venues. It never was expanded to become the 100,000 capacity, strategically critical, centrally located venue once imagined.
=Format=
In 1925, the VFL competition consisted of twelve teams of 18 on-the-field players each, with no "reserves", although any of the 18 players who had left the playing field for any reason could later resume their place on the field at any time during the match. Teams played each other in a home-and-away season of 17 rounds; matches 12 to 17 were the "home-and-away reverse" of matches 1 to 6. Once the 17 round home-and-away season had finished, the 1925 VFL Premiers were determined by the specific format and conventions of the amended "Argus system".
Home-and-away season
=Round 1=
{{s-start}}
|- bgcolor="#CCCCFF"
| Home team
| Home team score
| Away team
| Away team score
| Venue
| Crowd
| Date
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Mel}}
| 9.19 (73)
| {{AFL StK}}
| 3.8 (26)
| MCG
| 15,267
| 2 May 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Haw}}
| 5.8 (38)
| {{AFL Ric}}
| 11.11 (77)
| 20,000
| 2 May 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Gee}}
| 8.11 (59)
| {{AFL NM}}
| 9.13 (67)
| 12,500
| 2 May 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Fit}}
| 8.15 (63)
| {{AFL Foo}}
| 8.6 (54)
| 28,000
| 2 May 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Ess}}
| 14.14 (98)
| {{AFL Col}}
| 10.13 (73)
| 22,000
| 2 May 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL SM}}
| 9.14 (68)
| {{AFL Car}}
| 4.6 (30)
| 25,000
| 2 May 1925
{{s-end}}
=Round 2=
{{s-start}}
|- bgcolor="#CCCCFF"
| Home team
| Home team score
| Away team
| Away team score
| Venue
| Crowd
| Date
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Foo}}
| 10.10 (70)
| {{AFL SM}}
| 8.12 (60)
| 25,000
| 9 May 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Col}}
| 10.11 (71)
| {{AFL Mel}}
| 7.12 (54)
| 15,000
| 9 May 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Car}}
| 7.14 (56)
| {{AFL Ess}}
| 14.17 (101)
| 25,000
| 9 May 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL StK}}
| 17.12 (114)
| {{AFL Haw}}
| 8.12 (60)
| 12,000
| 9 May 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Ric}}
| 9.5 (59)
| {{AFL Gee}}
| 13.14 (92)
| 20,000
| 9 May 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL NM}}
| 6.3 (39)
| {{AFL Fit}}
| 8.16 (64)
| 18,000
| 9 May 1925
{{s-end}}
=Round 3=
{{s-start}}
|- bgcolor="#CCCCFF"
| Home team
| Home team score
| Away team
| Away team score
| Venue
| Crowd
| Date
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Gee}}
| 9.8 (62)
| {{AFL StK}}
| 3.12 (30)
| 12,500
| 16 May 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Fit}}
| 17.11 (113)
| {{AFL Ric}}
| 8.11 (59)
| 20,000
| 16 May 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Ess}}
| 16.15 (111)
| {{AFL Foo}}
| 9.9 (63)
| 32,000
| 16 May 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL SM}}
| 12.10 (82)
| {{AFL NM}}
| 8.13 (61)
| 17,000
| 16 May 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Haw}}
| 9.11 (65)
| {{AFL Col}}
| 11.16 (82)
| 13,000
| 16 May 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Mel}}
| 12.12 (84)
| {{AFL Car}}
| 4.14 (38)
| MCG
| 16,570
| 16 May 1925
{{s-end}}
=Round 4=
{{s-start}}
|- bgcolor="#CCCCFF"
| Home team
| Home team score
| Away team
| Away team score
| Venue
| Crowd
| Date
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Ric}}
| 11.9 (75)
| {{AFL SM}}
| 10.10 (70)
| 22,000
| 23 May 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Foo}}
| 6.6 (42)
| {{AFL Mel}}
| 9.16 (70)
| 12,000
| 23 May 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Col}}
| 13.9 (87)
| {{AFL Gee}}
| 13.12 (90)
| 16,000
| 23 May 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Car}}
| 10.10 (70)
| {{AFL Haw}}
| 6.13 (49)
| 10,000
| 23 May 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL StK}}
| 5.8 (38)
| {{AFL Fit}}
| 12.12 (84)
| 17,000
| 23 May 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL NM}}
| 5.17 (47)
| {{AFL Ess}}
| 13.10 (88)
| 15,000
| 23 May 1925
{{s-end}}
=Round 5=
{{s-start}}
|- bgcolor="#CCCCFF"
| Home team
| Home team score
| Away team
| Away team score
| Venue
| Crowd
| Date
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Mel}}
| 12.13 (85)
| {{AFL NM}}
| 10.5 (65)
| MCG
| 11,954
| 30 May 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Ess}}
| 10.7 (67)
| {{AFL Ric}}
| 8.13 (61)
| 20,000
| 30 May 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL SM}}
| 16.9 (105)
| {{AFL StK}}
| 10.13 (73)
| 18,000
| 30 May 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Haw}}
| 10.14 (74)
| {{AFL Foo}}
| 8.10 (58)
| 10,000
| 30 May 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Fit}}
| 6.11 (47)
| {{AFL Col}}
| 7.10 (52)
| 25,000
| 30 May 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Gee}}
| 22.12 (144)
| {{AFL Car}}
| 10.12 (72)
| 12,500
| 30 May 1925
{{s-end}}
=Round 6=
{{s-start}}
|- bgcolor="#CCCCFF"
| Home team
| Home team score
| Away team
| Away team score
| Venue
| Crowd
| Date
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Foo}}
| 9.8 (62)
| {{AFL Gee}}
| 12.11 (83)
| 14,000
| 6 June 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Ric}}
| 9.16 (70)
| {{AFL Mel}}
| 10.10 (70)
| 38,000
| 6 June 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL NM}}
| 8.13 (61)
| {{AFL Haw}}
| 8.9 (57)
| 7,000
| 6 June 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Col}}
| 13.14 (92)
| {{AFL SM}}
| 7.11 (53)
| 26,000
| 8 June 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Car}}
| 9.7 (61)
| {{AFL Fit}}
| 11.13 (79)
| 30,000
| 8 June 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL StK}}
| 13.14 (92)
| {{AFL Ess}}
| 8.12 (60)
| 30,000
| 8 June 1925
{{s-end}}
=Round 7=
{{s-start}}
|- bgcolor="#CCCCFF"
| Home team
| Home team score
| Away team
| Away team score
| Venue
| Crowd
| Date
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Gee}}
| 15.11 (101)
| {{AFL Haw}}
| 7.7 (49)
| 11,000
| 13 June 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Foo}}
| 7.12 (54)
| {{AFL NM}}
| 11.12 (78)
| 15,000
| 13 June 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Ess}}
| 9.11 (65)
| {{AFL SM}}
| 8.9 (57)
| 18,000
| 13 June 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Car}}
| 9.12 (66)
| {{AFL Ric}}
| 5.13 (43)
| 25,000
| 13 June 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Mel}}
| 12.11 (83)
| {{AFL Fit}}
| 6.9 (45)
| MCG
| 23,601
| 13 June 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL StK}}
| 11.10 (76)
| {{AFL Col}}
| 5.10 (40)
| 24,500
| 13 June 1925
{{s-end}}
=Round 8=
{{s-start}}
|- bgcolor="#CCCCFF"
| Home team
| Home team score
| Away team
| Away team score
| Venue
| Crowd
| Date
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL NM}}
| 9.9 (63)
| {{AFL StK}}
| 10.8 (68)
| 15,000
| 20 June 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Fit}}
| 7.15 (57)
| {{AFL Gee}}
| 9.15 (69)
| 25,000
| 20 June 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL SM}}
| 7.12 (54)
| {{AFL Mel}}
| 14.16 (100)
| 16,000
| 20 June 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Ric}}
| 9.21 (75)
| {{AFL Foo}}
| 12.9 (81)
| 12,000
| 20 June 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Haw}}
| 9.7 (61)
| {{AFL Ess}}
| 10.14 (74)
| 10,000
| 20 June 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Col}}
| 11.12 (78)
| {{AFL Car}}
| 9.10 (64)
| 17,000
| 20 June 1925
{{s-end}}
=Round 9=
{{s-start}}
|- bgcolor="#CCCCFF"
| Home team
| Home team score
| Away team
| Away team score
| Venue
| Crowd
| Date
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Gee}}
| 15.9 (99)
| {{AFL Mel}}
| 10.15 (75)
| 19,500
| 27 June 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Ess}}
| 9.7 (61)
| {{AFL Fit}}
| 8.9 (57)
| 22,000
| 27 June 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Col}}
| 11.14 (80)
| {{AFL Ric}}
| 8.12 (60)
| 15,000
| 27 June 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Car}}
| 14.11 (95)
| {{AFL NM}}
| 10.7 (67)
| 15,000
| 27 June 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL SM}}
| 15.14 (104)
| {{AFL Haw}}
| 5.7 (37)
| 10,000
| 27 June 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL StK}}
| 18.24 (132)
| {{AFL Foo}}
| 13.6 (84)
| 21,000
| 27 June 1925
{{s-end}}
=Round 10=
{{s-start}}
|- bgcolor="#CCCCFF"
| Home team
| Home team score
| Away team
| Away team score
| Venue
| Crowd
| Date
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL NM}}
| 7.9 (51)
| {{AFL Ric}}
| 10.9 (69)
| 7,000
| 11 July 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Gee}}
| 18.13 (121)
| {{AFL SM}}
| 3.10 (28)
| 11,000
| 11 July 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Fit}}
| 19.11 (125)
| {{AFL Haw}}
| 5.11 (41)
| 8,000
| 11 July 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Mel}}
| 8.7 (55)
| {{AFL Ess}}
| 5.8 (38)
| MCG
| 22,872
| 11 July 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Foo}}
| 9.8 (62)
| {{AFL Col}}
| 15.16 (106)
| 9,000
| 11 July 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL StK}}
| 8.17 (65)
| {{AFL Car}}
| 5.10 (40)
| 15,000
| 11 July 1925
{{s-end}}
=Round 11=
{{s-start}}
|- bgcolor="#CCCCFF"
| Home team
| Home team score
| Away team
| Away team score
| Venue
| Crowd
| Date
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Ric}}
| 8.14 (62)
| {{AFL StK}}
| 6.9 (45)
| 20,000
| 18 July 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Haw}}
| 6.10 (46)
| {{AFL Mel}}
| 14.18 (102)
| 6,000
| 18 July 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Ess}}
| 9.11 (65)
| {{AFL Gee}}
| 11.10 (76)
| 30,000
| 18 July 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Col}}
| 16.17 (113)
| {{AFL NM}}
| 11.4 (70)
| 9,000
| 18 July 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Car}}
| 9.12 (66)
| {{AFL Foo}}
| 7.11 (53)
| 12,000
| 18 July 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL SM}}
| 6.11 (47)
| {{AFL Fit}}
| 12.12 (84)
| 15,000
| 18 July 1925
{{s-end}}
=Round 12=
{{s-start}}
|- bgcolor="#CCCCFF"
| Home team
| Home team score
| Away team
| Away team score
| Venue
| Crowd
| Date
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Col}}
| 15.19 (109)
| {{AFL Ess}}
| 4.5 (29)
| 25,000
| 1 August 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Car}}
| 9.9 (63)
| {{AFL SM}}
| 9.20 (74)
| 12,000
| 1 August 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL StK}}
| 7.9 (51)
| {{AFL Mel}}
| 10.10 (70)
| 20,000
| 1 August 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Ric}}
| 6.11 (47)
| {{AFL Haw}}
| 3.11 (29)
| 10,000
| 1 August 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL NM}}
| 9.5 (59)
| {{AFL Gee}}
| 22.22 (154)
| 10,000
| 1 August 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Foo}}
| 13.13 (91)
| {{AFL Fit}}
| 7.8 (50)
| 10,000
| 1 August 1925
{{s-end}}
=Round 13=
{{s-start}}
|- bgcolor="#CCCCFF"
| Home team
| Home team score
| Away team
| Away team score
| Venue
| Crowd
| Date
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Haw}}
| 8.11 (59)
| {{AFL StK}}
| 8.8 (56)
| 10,000
| 8 August 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Gee}}
| 11.20 (86)
| {{AFL Ric}}
| 4.8 (32)
| 13,500
| 8 August 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Fit}}
| 17.18 (120)
| {{AFL NM}}
| 11.8 (74)
| 7,000
| 8 August 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL SM}}
| 13.14 (92)
| {{AFL Foo}}
| 12.15 (87)
| 15,000
| 8 August 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Mel}}
| 7.10 (52)
| {{AFL Col}}
| 9.11 (65)
| MCG
| 33,642
| 8 August 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Ess}}
| 15.11 (101)
| {{AFL Car}}
| 8.14 (62)
| 10,000
| 8 August 1925
{{s-end}}
=Round 14=
{{s-start}}
|- bgcolor="#CCCCFF"
| Home team
| Home team score
| Away team
| Away team score
| Venue
| Crowd
| Date
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL NM}}
| 12.8 (80)
| {{AFL SM}}
| 7.16 (58)
| 5,000
| 22 August 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Col}}
| 11.18 (84)
| {{AFL Haw}}
| 8.12 (60)
| 6,000
| 22 August 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Car}}
| 6.9 (45)
| {{AFL Mel}}
| 18.14 (122)
| 7,000
| 22 August 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL StK}}
| 9.8 (62)
| {{AFL Gee}}
| 7.9 (51)
| 15,000
| 22 August 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Ric}}
| 8.7 (55)
| {{AFL Fit}}
| 9.7 (61)
| 9,000
| 22 August 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Foo}}
| 5.13 (43)
| {{AFL Ess}}
| 9.15 (69)
| 12,000
| 22 August 1925
{{s-end}}
=Round 15=
{{s-start}}
|- bgcolor="#CCCCFF"
| Home team
| Home team score
| Away team
| Away team score
| Venue
| Crowd
| Date
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Fit}}
| 11.12 (78)
| {{AFL StK}}
| 8.7 (55)
| 20,000
| 29 August 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Ess}}
| 14.19 (103)
| {{AFL NM}}
| 6.9 (45)
| 14,000
| 29 August 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL SM}}
| 6.9 (45)
| {{AFL Ric}}
| 9.9 (63)
| 12,000
| 29 August 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Mel}}
| 10.9 (69)
| {{AFL Foo}}
| 9.13 (67)
| MCG
| 11,264
| 29 August 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Gee}}
| 11.8 (74)
| {{AFL Col}}
| 8.17 (65)
| 26,025
| 29 August 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Haw}}
| 7.10 (52)
| {{AFL Car}}
| 11.14 (80)
| 9,000
| 29 August 1925
{{s-end}}
=Round 16=
{{s-start}}
|- bgcolor="#CCCCFF"
| Home team
| Home team score
| Away team
| Away team score
| Venue
| Crowd
| Date
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL StK}}
| 11.9 (75)
| {{AFL SM}}
| 9.8 (62)
| 10,000
| 5 September 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Foo}}
| 15.10 (100)
| {{AFL Haw}}
| 10.10 (70)
| 8,000
| 5 September 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Col}}
| 12.13 (85)
| {{AFL Fit}}
| 14.15 (99)
| 27,000
| 5 September 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Car}}
| 14.10 (94)
| {{AFL Gee}}
| 15.13 (103)
| 10,000
| 5 September 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL NM}}
| 11.7 (73)
| {{AFL Mel}}
| 6.10 (46)
| 5,000
| 5 September 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Ric}}
| 7.8 (50)
| {{AFL Ess}}
| 10.14 (74)
| 18,000
| 5 September 1925
{{s-end}}
=Round 17=
{{s-start}}
|- bgcolor="#CCCCFF"
| Home team
| Home team score
| Away team
| Away team score
| Venue
| Crowd
| Date
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Mel}}
| 9.9 (63)
| {{AFL Ric}}
| 2.12 (24)
| MCG
| 16,989
| 12 September 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Haw}}
| 7.13 (55)
| {{AFL NM}}
| 4.6 (30)
| 8,000
| 12 September 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Ess}}
| 10.7 (67)
| {{AFL StK}}
| 8.10 (58)
| 15,000
| 12 September 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Gee}}
| 14.16 (100)
| {{AFL Foo}}
| 9.7 (61)
| 10,800
| 12 September 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL SM}}
| 4.6 (30)
| {{AFL Col}}
| 14.11 (95)
| 12,000
| 12 September 1925
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Fit}}
| 7.24 (66)
| {{AFL Car}}
| 9.10 (64)
| 20,000
| 12 September 1925
{{s-end}}
Ladder
| class=wikitable
| (P) | Premiers |
| bgcolor=FFFFBB | | Qualified for finals |
{{Australian rules football ladder start}}
|- style=background:#FFFFBB
| 1 || align=left | {{AFL Gee}} (P) || 17 || 15 || 2 || 0 || 1564 || 1024 || 152.7 || 60
|- style=background:#FFFFBB
| 2 || align=left | {{AFL Ess}} || 17 || 13 || 4 || 0 || 1271 || 1065 || 119.3 || 52
|- style=background:#FFFFBB
| 3 || align=left | {{AFL Mel}} || 17 || 12 || 4 || 1 || 1273 || 919 || 138.5 || 50
|- style=background:#FFFFBB
| 4 || align=left | {{AFL Col}} || 17 || 12 || 5 || 0 || 1377 || 1083 || 127.1 || 48
|-
| 5 || align=left | {{AFL Fit}} || 17 || 12 || 5 || 0 || 1292 || 1028 || 125.7 || 48
|-
| 6 || align=left | {{AFL StK}} || 17 || 8 || 9 || 0 || 1116 || 1120 || 99.6 || 32
|-
| 7 || align=left | {{AFL Ric}} || 17 || 6 || 10 || 1 || 981 || 1131 || 86.7 || 26
|-
| 8 || align=left | {{AFL SM}} || 17 || 6 || 11 || 0 || 1089 || 1271 || 85.7 || 24
|-
| 9 || align=left | {{AFL Car}} || 17 || 5 || 12 || 0 || 1066 || 1349 || 79.0 || 20
|-
| 10 || align=left | {{AFL NM}} || 17 || 5 || 12 || 0 || 1030 || 1370 || 75.2 || 20
|-
| 11 || align=left | {{AFL Foo}} || 17 || 4 || 13 || 0 || 1132 || 1368 || 82.7 || 16
|-
| 12 || align=left | {{AFL Haw}} || 17 || 3 || 14 || 0 || 902 || 1365 || 66.1 || 12
|}
Rules for classification: 1. premiership points; 2. percentage; 3. points for
Average score: 69.1
Source: [https://afltables.com/afl/seas/1925.html#lad AFL Tables]
Finals series
All of the 1925 finals were played at the MCG so the home team in the semi-finals and preliminary final is purely the higher ranked team from the ladder but in the Grand Final the home team was the team that won the preliminary final. Geelong lost to Melbourne in the semi-final, but still went on to the grand final because they were minor premiers.
=Semi-finals=
=Preliminary final=
{{s-start}}
|- bgcolor="#CCCCFF"
| Home team
| Score
| Away team
| Score
| Venue
| Crowd
| Date
|- bgcolor="#FFFFFF"
| {{AFL Mel}}
| 3.8 (26)
| 8.15 (63)
| MCG
| 49,833
| 3 October
{{s-end}}
=Grand final=
{{Main|1925 VFL Grand Final}}
Season notes
- As a consequence of the controversial situation at the end of the July 1924 match between Geelong and Fitzroy, the laws of the game were altered in 1925 so that only one defending player was allowed to stand on the mark.[http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article144881992 Victorian football League: Amendments and Additions made to Laws of Game, The Yackandandah Times, (Friday, 29 May 1925), p.4.]
- The laws of the game were altered so that the last player to touch the ball before it went out of bounds was penalised by the award of a free kick to the opposing team. This meant that almost all of the play was directed up the centre of the ground along the goal-to-goal line, and very little was directed along the flanks at the sides of the ground. This brought a considerable advantage to full-forwards.
- Geelong commenced a long-standing sponsorship with the Ford Motor Company in 1925. Still active in 2024, it is the longest active sports sponsorship of any sports team in the world, a record recognised by Guinness.{{Cite web |last=admin |date=2022-05-03 |title=The most enduring sponsorships of all time |url=https://elevent.co/the-top-ten-most-enduring-sponsorships-of-all-time/ |access-date=2023-03-27 |website=Elevent |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |title=Longest time to sponsor a sports team |url=https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/longest-time-to-sponsor-a-sports-team |access-date=2023-03-27 |website=Guinness World Records |language=en-gb}}
- At half-time in the spiteful Round 12 match at Arden Street between North Melbourne and Geelong, Fred Rutley of North Melbourne knocked Lloyd Hagger of Geelong to the ground with a round-arm action; Hagger's teammates, Arthur Coghlan and Stan Thomas, then remonstrated with Rutley, and the three exchanged punches, starting an all-in brawl which involved players and team officials. Coghlan was hit in the knee with a missile thrown from the crowd, while Geelong captain Cliff Rankin and teammate Sid Hall were left unconscious and having to be carried from the field on stretchers. Geelong were also threatened and pelted with missiles by angry North Melbourne fans while leaving the field at the end of the match. Six players were reported on a total of seventeen offences:
- Fred Rutley of North Melbourne: Charged with two counts of kicking Sid Hall, striking Lloyd Hagger, striking Arthur Coghlan, striking Stan Thomas, and melee involvement. Suspended for life (Rutley was reinstated by the VFL in 1930, having served 89 matches).
- Stan Thomas of Geelong: Charged with elbowing Bill Russ, striking Fred Rutley and melee involvement. Suspended until 31 December 1926 (26 matches).
- Arthur Coghlan of Geelong: Charged with striking Fred Rutley and melee involvement. Suspended until 31 December 1926 (26 matches).
- Bill Russ of North Melbourne: Charged with striking Cliff Rankin and melee involvement. Suspended until 31 December 1925 (5 matches).
- Tim Trevaskis of North Melbourne: Charged with striking Les Smith and melee involvement. Suspended for 3 matches.
- Harold Johnston of North Melbourne: Charged with striking Stan Thomas and melee involvement. Reprimanded.
Awards
- The 1925 VFL Premiership team was Geelong.
- The VFL's leading goalkicker was Lloyd Hagger of Geelong with 78 goals.
- The winner of the 1925 Brownlow Medal Colin Watson of St Kilda, with 9 votes.
- Hawthorn on debut, took the "wooden spoon" in 1925.
- The seconds premiership was won by {{AFLR ColD}} (main: 1925 VFL seconds season).
References
{{Reflist}}
- Rogers, S. & Brown, A., Every Game Ever Played: VFL/AFL Results 1897–1997 (Sixth Edition), Viking Books, (Ringwood), 1998. {{ISBN|0-670-90809-6}}
- Ross, J. (ed), 100 Years of Australian Football 1897–1996: The Complete Story of the AFL, All the Big Stories, All the Great Pictures, All the Champions, Every AFL Season Reported, Viking, (Ringwood), 1996. {{ISBN|0-670-86814-0}}
Sources
- [https://afltables.com/afl/seas/1925.html 1925 VFL season] at AFL Tables
- [https://www.australianfootball.com/seasons/season/afl/138/premiership%2Bseason/1/1/1925 1925 VFL season] at Australian Football
{{Australian Football League}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:1925 VFL season}}