The 1917 VFL season was the 21st season of the Victorian Football League (VFL), the highest-level senior Australian rules football competition in Victoria. Played during the latter stages of World War I, six of the league's nine clubs featured in 1917, with Geelong and South Melbourne returning after being in recess the previous season. The season ran from 12 May to 22 September, comprising a 15-match home-and-away season followed by a four-week finals series featuring the top four clubs.

1917 VFL premiership season
Collingwood 1917 VFL premiership team
Date12 May—22 September 1917
Teams6
PremiersCollingwood
4th premiership
Minor premiersCollingwood
5th minor premiership
Leading goalkicker medallistDick Lee (Collingwood)
50 goals
Matches played49
← 1916
1918 →

Collingwood won the premiership, defeating Fitzroy by 35 points in the 1917 VFL grand final; it was Collingwood's fourth VFL premiership. Collingwood also won the minor premiership by finishing atop the home-and-away ladder with a 10–4–1 win–loss–draw record. Collingwood's Dick Lee won his sixth leading goalkicker medal as the league's leading goalkicker.

Background

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In 1917, the VFL competition consisted of six 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.

Each of the six teams played each other three times in a 15 match home-and-away season (Geelong, Richmond, and South Melbourne each hosting eight games, while Carlton, Collingwood, and Fitzroy each hosted seven).

Once the 15 round home-and-away season had finished, the 1917 VFL Premiers were determined by the specific format and conventions of the amended "Argus system".

Round 1

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Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Date
Collingwood 11.11 (77) Richmond 4.4 (28) Victoria Park 12 May 1917
South Melbourne 9.18 (72) Geelong 4.14 (38) Lake Oval 12 May 1917
Fitzroy 6.9 (45) Carlton 6.9 (45) Brunswick Street Oval 12 May 1917

Round 2

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Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Date
Richmond 6.16 (52) South Melbourne 8.16 (64) Punt Road Oval 19 May 1917
Carlton 13.7 (85) Collingwood 8.6 (54) Princes Park 19 May 1917
Geelong 6.10 (46) Fitzroy 8.16 (64) Corio Oval 19 May 1917

Round 3

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Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Date
Richmond 14.6 (90) Geelong 6.16 (52) Punt Road Oval 26 May 1917
Fitzroy 8.14 (62) Collingwood 11.12 (78) Brunswick Street Oval 26 May 1917
South Melbourne 5.16 (46) Carlton 3.13 (31) Lake Oval 26 May 1917

Round 4

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Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Date
Collingwood 8.18 (66) South Melbourne 6.9 (45) Victoria Park 2 June 1917
Fitzroy 6.13 (49) Richmond 5.8 (38) Brunswick Street Oval 4 June 1917
Carlton 5.12 (42) Geelong 6.7 (43) Princes Park 4 June 1917

Round 5

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Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Date
Carlton 14.13 (97) Richmond 7.11 (53) Princes Park 9 June 1917
South Melbourne 5.20 (50) Fitzroy 8.7 (55) Lake Oval 9 June 1917
Geelong 6.7 (43) Collingwood 8.9 (57) Corio Oval 9 June 1917

Round 6

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Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Date
Geelong 6.14 (50) South Melbourne 6.11 (47) Corio Oval 16 June 1917
Carlton 4.17 (41) Fitzroy 8.9 (57) Princes Park 16 June 1917
Richmond 7.8 (50) Collingwood 6.14 (50) Punt Road Oval 16 June 1917

Round 7

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Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Date
Fitzroy 8.4 (52) Geelong 9.11 (65) Brunswick Street Oval 23 June 1917
South Melbourne 9.17 (71) Richmond 6.3 (39) Lake Oval 23 June 1917
Collingwood 13.14 (92) Carlton 8.7 (55) Victoria Park 23 June 1917

Round 8

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Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Date
Geelong 11.15 (81) Richmond 5.4 (34) Corio Oval 30 June 1917
Collingwood 11.11 (77) Fitzroy 10.14 (74) Victoria Park 30 June 1917
Carlton 9.11 (65) South Melbourne 7.12 (54) Princes Park 30 June 1917

Round 9

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Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Date
Richmond 13.9 (87) Fitzroy 5.8 (38) Punt Road Oval 7 July 1917
South Melbourne 13.12 (90) Collingwood 10.13 (73) Lake Oval 7 July 1917
Geelong 3.11 (29) Carlton 4.10 (34) Corio Oval 7 July 1917

Round 10

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Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Date
Fitzroy 9.10 (64) South Melbourne 8.9 (57) Brunswick Street Oval 14 July 1917
Collingwood 10.19 (79) Geelong 2.11 (23) Victoria Park 14 July 1917
Richmond 6.10 (46) Carlton 7.9 (51) Punt Road Oval 14 July 1917

Round 11

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Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Date
Collingwood 11.19 (85) Richmond 7.7 (49) Victoria Park 21 July 1917
South Melbourne 14.14 (98) Geelong 6.13 (49) Lake Oval 21 July 1917
Fitzroy 5.15 (45) Carlton 8.11 (59) Brunswick Street Oval 21 July 1917

Round 12

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Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Date
Richmond 5.11 (41) South Melbourne 7.14 (56) Punt Road Oval 28 July 1917
Carlton 4.13 (37) Collingwood 3.8 (26) Princes Park 28 July 1917
Geelong 10.3 (63) Fitzroy 12.10 (82) Corio Oval 28 July 1917

Round 13

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Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Date
Richmond 5.12 (42) Geelong 7.8 (50) Punt Road Oval 11 August 1917
Fitzroy 7.3 (45) Collingwood 14.17 (101) Brunswick Street Oval 11 August 1917
South Melbourne 8.7 (55) Carlton 6.14 (50) Lake Oval 11 August 1917

Round 14

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Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Date
Collingwood 6.16 (52) South Melbourne 2.9 (21) Victoria Park 18 August 1917
Richmond 10.11 (71) Fitzroy 7.11 (53) Punt Road Oval 18 August 1917
Geelong 5.8 (38) Carlton 10.11 (71) Corio Oval 18 August 1917

Round 15

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Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Date
Carlton 12.8 (80) Richmond 4.17 (41) Princes Park 25 August 1917
South Melbourne 12.13 (85) Fitzroy 7.5 (47) Lake Oval 25 August 1917
Geelong 8.17 (65) Collingwood 9.9 (63) Corio Oval 25 August 1917

Ladder

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(P) Premiers
Qualified for finals
# Team P W L D PF PA % Pts
1 Collingwood (P) 15 10 4 1 1030 772 133.4 42
2 Carlton 15 9 5 1 843 724 116.4 38
3 South Melbourne 15 9 6 0 911 772 118.0 36
4 Fitzroy 15 6 8 1 832 963 86.4 26
5 Geelong 15 6 9 0 735 927 79.3 24
6 Richmond 15 3 11 1 761 954 79.8 14

Rules for classification: 1. premiership points; 2. percentage; 3. points for
Average score: 56.8
Source: AFL Tables

Finals series

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Semi-finals

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Home team Score Away team Score Venue Attendance Date
Carlton 6.8 (44) Fitzroy 6.17 (53) MCG 15,605 Saturday, 1 September
Collingwood 13.17 (95) South Melbourne 3.17 (35) MCG 16,505 Saturday, 8 September

Preliminary final

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Home team Score Away team Score Venue Attendance Date
Collingwood 7.10 (52) Fitzroy 8.10 (58) MCG 22,786 Saturday, 15 September

Grand final

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Home team Score Away team Score Venue Attendance Date
Collingwood 9.20 (74) Fitzroy 5.9 (39) MCG 28,512 Saturday, 22 September

Season notes

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  • Geelong and South Melbourne, having refused to compete in 1916 on "patriotic grounds" returned to the VFL competition, having concluded that the drop in the number of recruits in 1916 indicated that the VFL competition had no effect on military recruitment. The Geelong players met their own expenses and played as amateurs, with the club donating all of its 1917 profits to war funds.
  • On 12 May 1917, recruiting officers visiting VFL grounds were heckled by spectators.[1] On another occasion a Fitzroy crowd attacked a recruiting sergeant.[1]
  • On 4 August, the entire thirteenth round was put back a week, at the request of the State War Council, so that recruiting meetings could be held at each VFL ground.

Awards

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References

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  1. ^ a b Ross, John (1996). 100 Years of Australian Football. Ringwood, Australia: Viking Books. p. 382. ISBN 9781854714343.
  • Rogers, S. & Brown, A., Every Game Ever Played: VFL/AFL Results 1897–1997 (Sixth Edition), Viking Books, (Ringwood), 1998. ISBN 0-670-90809-6

Sources

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