1998 VFL season

There were two changes to the membership of the VFL for the 1998 season: the Bendigo Diggers were admitted and the Traralgon Maroons departed. The Preston Knights were excluded from the league in October 1997, but were reinstated the following month. Strategically, the Victorian State Football League desired to fully align the VFL with the statewide under-18s competition (the TAC Cup), with twelve clubs in each competition and one VFL clubs aligned with each TAC Cup club, and the changes were in large part driven by these motivations.

At this time, there were two regional TAC Cup clubs with no VFL affiliate: the Bendigo Pioneers and the Murray Bushrangers. In early 1997, the VSFL granted a licence to the Bendigo Football Club to enter a team from the 1998 season and to be aligned with the Pioneers. The club was newly established, unlike the VFL's other two regional teams – North Ballarat and Traralgon – who had been strong clubs in their local competitions. The club wore blue and gold and took the nickname Diggers.{{cite news|newspaper=Bendigo Advertiser|date=30 March 1998|publication-place=Bendigo, VIC|title=The Winners (Liftout)}}

As a condition of its entry to the VFL in 1996, Traralgon had always intended to allow the members another vote on whether to stay in the VFL or return to the Latrobe Valley Football League after two seasons. In those first two seasons, Traralgon had achieved little on-field success (a win–loss record of 4–31–1); off-field, its average home crowd of 1,200 was among the best in the league,{{cite news|newspaper=Sunday Herald Sun (Sports liftout)|date=9 November 1997|page=2|title=Back to the drawing board}} but its finances were stretched due to extra travel and difficulties attracting the necessary sponsorship.{{cite news|newspaper=Herald Sun|page=102|publication-place=Melbourne, VIC|title=Traralgon rescues Knights|author=Michael Stevens|date=13 November 1997}} There was division within the Traralgon board, with different news reports indicating the board recommending staying or leaving. Ultimately, when the vote took place at the end of November 1997, the members voted in favour of departing, and the club returned to the LTFL.{{cite news|newspaper=Sunday Herald Sun (Sport liftout)|date=30 November 1997|page=5|author=Gordon Dann|title=People power forces state bid|publication-place=Melbourne, VIC}}

Less than a day after Traralgon's departure was announced, a new group which included some members of the Traralgon board formed a new Gippsland Power senior football club board and applied to join the VFL as a replacement for Traralgon, but this never eventuated and the VFL has since remained without Gippsland representation.

On 21 October 1997, the VSFL announced that it would not grant Preston a VFL licence for the 1998 season. As had been the case with the attempted expulsion of Werribee two years earlier, the decision came from the VSFL's desire to reduce the number of metropolitan teams from nine to eight to align it with the eight TAC Cup clubs from the greater Melbourne and Geelong region. It was intended that the Northern Knights TAC Cup team would be reallocated from Preston to Port Melbourne, and that the Geelong Falcons TAC Cup team would be reallocated from Port Melbourne to Werribee (which at that time had no affiliated TAC Cup team). The VSFL had reportedly debated whether Preston or Coburg would be the eliminated club, with the latter retained largely due to its superior playing facilities.{{cite news|newspaper=Herald Sun|author=Tim Stoney|page=78|date=22 October 1997|title=VFL dumps Knights|publication-place=Melbourne, VIC}}

Preston had been struggling through the 1990s, with no on-field success and difficulty retaining players, and it had courted former VFA club Prahran during the year to consider an administrative merger to help its finances.{{cite news|newspaper=Herald Sun|publication-place=Melbourne, VIC|title=Knights vow to regain licence|date=23 October 1997|author=Tim Stoney}} Nevertheless, it fought to regain its licence, and in a meeting on 8 November it obtained agreement from the VSFL to delay its final decision and allow the club time to campaign for reinstatement.{{cite news|newspaper=Sunday Herald Sun (Sport liftout)|page=5|date=9 November 1997|author=Michael Stevens|title=Knights rally to cry of the fans}} Over the subsequent weeks, the club gained the support of the Darebin Council to upgrade its Preston City Oval facilities.{{cite news|newspaper=Herald Sun|page=93|date=29 November 1997|author=Jack Taylor|title=Knights live to fight in 1998}}

Ultimately, it was Traralgon's departure at the end of November that had the most significant part to play in Preston's licence being reinstated. With no Gippsland-based team to serve as Gippsland Power's affiliate, the VSFL was faced with the prospect of having to align the Power with a metropolitan club, which would remove the need to eliminate the ninth metropolitan club. In moves which took place before 1999, Gippsland Power was allocated to Springvale;{{cite web|url=http://www.parliament.vic.gov.au/images/stories/committees/rrc/footy/cf_report.pdf|page=217|date=December 2004|title=Inquiry into country football|author=Rural and regional services development committee|access-date=30 July 2016|archive-date=9 October 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161009213355/http://www.parliament.vic.gov.au/images/stories/committees/rrc/footy/cf_report.pdf|url-status=live}} the Oakleigh Chargers were reallocated from Springvale to Port Melbourne;{{cite web|url=http://www.portmelbournefc.com.au/borough-continue-to-build-on-oakleigh-chargers-relationship/|title=Borough Continue To Build On Oakleigh Chargers Relationship|date=23 February 2016|access-date=30 July 2016|publisher=Port Melbourne Football Club|archive-date=17 August 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160817075423/http://www.portmelbournefc.com.au/borough-continue-to-build-on-oakleigh-chargers-relationship/|url-status=dead}} and the Geelong Falcons were reallocated from Port Melbourne to Werribee. Preston then remained in the league as the Northern Knights' affiliate.

{{#invoke:Sports table|main|style=WDL

|show_limit=5

|title=1998 VFL season

|section=Ladder

|loss_before_draw=true|for_against_style=points|use_goal_percentage=y

|winpoints=4|drawpoints=2

|team1=WER|name_WER=Werribee

|team2=FRA|name_FRA=Frankston

|team3=SPR|name_SPR=Springvale

|team4=NBR|name_NBR=North Ballarat

|team5=NBU|name_NBU=Preston

|team6=SAN|name_SAN=Sandringham

|team7=WIL|name_WIL=Williamstown

|team8=PMB|name_PMB=Port Melbourne

|team9=BOX|name_BOX=Box Hill

|team10=BEN|name_BEN=Bendigo

|team11=COB|name_COB=Coburg

|win_WER=16|loss_WER=2|draw_WER=0|pf_WER=1938|pa_WER=1182

|win_FRA=16|loss_FRA=2|draw_FRA=0|pf_FRA=1826|pa_FRA=1292

|win_SPR=11|loss_SPR=7|draw_SPR=0|pf_SPR=1795|pa_SPR=1177|status_SPR=P

|win_NBR=10|loss_NBR=7|draw_NBR=1|pf_NBR=1389|pa_NBR=1324

|win_NBU=10|loss_NBU=8|draw_NBU=0|pf_NBU=1346|pa_NBU=1443

|win_SAN=9|loss_SAN=9|draw_SAN=0|pf_SAN=1294|pa_SAN=1387

|win_WIL=8|loss_WIL=10|draw_WIL=0|pf_WIL=1446|pa_WIL=1557

|win_PMB=7|loss_PMB=10|draw_PMB=1|pf_PMB=1450|pa_PMB=1395

|win_BOX=5|loss_BOX=13|draw_BOX=0|pf_BOX=1404|pa_BOX=1746

|win_BEN=4|loss_BEN=14|draw_BEN=0|pf_BEN=1333|pa_BEN=1808

|win_COB=2|loss_COB=16|draw_COB=0|pf_COB=995|pa_COB=1905

|col_QF=#CCFFCC|text_QF=Finals

|result1=QF|result2=QF|result3=QF|result4=QF|result5=QF|result6=QF

|class_rules = 1) points; 2) percentage; 3) number of points for.

|status_text_P = Premiers

|update=complete|source=

}}

{{AFLGameHeader|title=Qualifying final}}

{{AFLGame|Saturday, 29 August
(2:00 pm)|Werribee|17.16 (118)|H|Frankston|13.13 (91)|North Port Oval|}}

{{AFLGameFooter}}

{{AFLGameHeader|title=First Elimination final}}

{{AFLGame|Sunday, 30 August
(2:00 pm)|North Ballarat|13.9 (87)|H|Preston|8.11 (59)|Northern Oval|}}

{{AFLGameFooter}}

{{AFLGameHeader|title=Second Elimination final}}

{{AFLGame|Sunday, 30 August
(2:00 pm)|Springvale|15.16 (106)|H|Sandringham|5.8 (38)|North Port Oval|}}

{{AFLGameFooter}}

{{AFLGameHeader|title=First semi-final}}

{{AFLGame|Sunday, 6 September
(2:00pm)|North Ballarat|19.6 (120)|H|Frankston|17.13 (115)|North Port Oval|}}

{{AFLGameFooter}}

{{AFLGameHeader|title=Second semi-final}}

{{AFLGame|Saturday, 5 September
(2:00pm)|Werribee|19.13 (127)|H|Springvale|7.14 (56)|North Port Oval|}}

{{AFLGameFooter}}

{{AFLGameHeader|title=Preliminary Final}}

{{AFLGame|Sunday, 13 September
(2:00pm)|Springvale|9.10 (64)|H|North Ballarat|9.8 (62)|North Port Oval|}}

{{AFLGameFooter}}

{{AFLGameDetailed

|title = 1998 VFL Grand Final

|date = Sunday 20 September

(2:00 pm)

|home team = Werribee

|home Q1 = 1.4 (10)

|home Q2 = 2.8 (20)

|home Q3 = 5.12 (42)

|home final = 5.15 (45)

|winner = A

|away team = Springvale

|away Q1 = 2.7 (19)

|away Q2 = 6.9 (45)

|away Q3 = 9.10 (64)

|away final = 11.17 (83)

|venue = North Port Oval

|crowd = 8,672

|report ={{cite news|newspaper=Herald Sun|publication-place=Melbourne, VIC|title=Old hands give Vales timely winning edge|author=Jeremy Kelly|page=68|date=21 September 1998}}

|umpires =James, Kelsey, Rowe

|BOG award = Norm Goss Memorial Medal

|BOG winner = Ben Delarue (Springvale)

|home goals = Camilleri, Frost, C. Gowans, Satterley, Whitnall

|away goals = Smith 3, Caples 2, Knight 2, O'Brien, O'Donnell, Shipp, Taylor

|home best =

|away best =

|home injuries =

|away injuries =

|home reports =

|away reports =

|broadcast =

|notes=

}}

• The leading goalkicker for the season for the second consecutive season was Shayne Smith (Springvale), who kicked 78 goals.
• The J. J. Liston Trophy was won by Michael Frost (Werribee). Frost polled 32 votes, which as of 2019 holds the record for the most votes since the modern voting method was adopted in 1982.{{cite web|url=http://www.foxsportspulse.com/assoc_page.cgi?c=1-118-0-0-0&sID=60264&news_task=DETAIL&articleID=15627433|title=Ex-VFL AFL All Stars|date=29 June 2011|author=Anthony Stanguts|publisher=Fox Sports Pulse|access-date=30 July 2016|archive-date=7 August 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160807142910/http://www.foxsportspulse.com/assoc_page.cgi?c=1-118-0-0-0&sID=60264&news_task=DETAIL&articleID=15627433|url-status=live}}
• The Fothergill–Round Medal was won by Andrew Shipp (Springvale).{{cite web|url=http://www.foxsportspulse.com/assoc_page.cgi?client=0-118-0-0-0&sID=54554&&news_task=DETAIL&articleID=4834467|title=Fothergill–Round Medallists|access-date=20 December 2014|date=29 October 2014|publisher=Sportingpulse|archive-date=20 December 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141220041931/http://www.foxsportspulse.com/assoc_page.cgi?client=0-118-0-0-0&sID=54554&&news_task=DETAIL&articleID=4834467|url-status=live}}
• North Ballarat won the reserves premiership. North Ballarat 14.9 (93) defeated Frankston 6.4 (40) in the Grand Final, held as a curtain-raiser to the Seniors Grand Final on 20 September.{{cite news|newspaper=Geelong Advertiser Sport Extra|date=21 September 1998|page=6|title=Springvale upsets Werribee|publication-place=Geelong, VIC}}

• List of VFA/VFL premiers
• Australian rules football
• Victorian Football League
• Australian Football League

{{Reflist}}

{{VFA/VFL seasons}}

Category:Victorian Football League seasons

VFL