| 1974 WAFL season | |
|---|---|
| Teams | 8 |
| Premiers | East Fremantle 24th premiership |
| Minor premiers | East Fremantle 29th minor premiership |
| Sandover Medallist | Graham Melrose (East Fremantle) |
| Bernie Naylor Medallist | Max George (Swan Districts) |
| Matches played | 88 |
The 1974 WAFL season was the 90th season of the various incarnations of senior football in Perth and the forty-fourth as the "Western Australian National Football League". It continued the fluctuating fortunes of clubs that had been part and parcel of the league since 1970, with East Perth, the most consistent player in the competition for eight years, missing finals participation for the only time in seventeen seasons between 1966 and 1982 due largely to injuries to key defenders Gary Malarkey, who missed the second half of the season, and Ken McAullay who did not play at all. [1] West Perth fell from runners-up (after being flag favourites before the Grand Final) to their worst season since 1939, largely owing to the loss of 1973 leading goalkicker Phil Smith which left a gaping hole in their attack.
On the other hand, Swan Districts, with full-forward Max George and big Bob Beecroft prominent, won the Rodriguez Shield for the second time and played finals for the first time since 1965 after eight bleak years that had seen them a kick away from a winless season six seasons previously, whilst East Fremantle made a similar if less abrupt recovery to win their first premiership for nine years and first minor premiership for a decade.
| Round 1 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday, 6 April | East Perth 23.15 (153) | def. | South Fremantle 16.11 (107) | Perth Oval (crowd: 10896) | |
| Saturday, 6 April | Subiaco 11.12 (78) | def. | Perth 7.21 (63) | Subiaco Oval (crowd: 9960) | |
| Saturday, 6 April | Claremont 9.12 (66) | def. | Swan Districts 8.11 (59) | Claremont Oval (crowd: 9310) | |
| Saturday, 6 April | East Fremantle 9.22 (76) | def. by | West Perth 12.8 (80) | East Fremantle Oval (crowd: 10237) | |
| |||||
| Round 2 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday, 13 April | Swan Districts 9.12 (66) | def. | Subiaco 6.13 (49) | Bassendean Oval (crowd: 9850) | |
| Saturday, 13 April | South Fremantle 10.13 (73) | def. by | East Fremantle 13.14 (92) | Fremantle Oval (crowd: 13378) | |
| Monday, 15 April | West Perth 12.15 (87) | def. by | East Perth 13.15 (93) | Leederville Oval (crowd: 16922) | |
| Monday, 15 April | Perth 21.13 (139) | def. | Claremont 14.8 (92) | Lathlain Park (crowd: 9841) | |
| |||||
| Round 3 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday, 20 April | Subiaco 12.13 (85) | def. by | South Fremantle 19.15 (129) | Subiaco Oval (crowd: 8742) | |
| Saturday, 20 April | Perth 10.14 (74) | def. by | East Perth 16.14 (110) | Lathlain Park (crowd: 9825) | |
| Saturday, 20 April | West Perth 9.25 (79) | def. | Claremont 9.11 (65) | Leederville Oval (crowd: 11624) | |
| Saturday, 20 April | East Fremantle 11.14 (80) | drew with | Swan Districts 11.14 (80) | East Fremantle Oval (crowd: 9733) | |
| |||||
| Round 4 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thursday, 25 April | Subiaco 14.15 (99) | def. | East Perth 11.11 (77) | Subiaco Oval (crowd: 15522) | |
| Saturday, 27 April | South Fremantle 19.18 (132) | def. | Swan Districts 14.15 (99) | Fremantle Oval (crowd: 10648) | |
| Saturday, 27 April | West Perth 11.19 (85) | def. by | Perth 18.10 (118) | Leederville Oval (crowd: 10620) | |
| Saturday, 27 April | Claremont 11.12 (78) | def. by | East Fremantle 23.12 (150) | Claremont Oval (crowd: 8902) | |
Peter Featherby produces an amazing 46 kicks and nine handballs to win Subiaco a game it was originally thought they would forfeit as they did not want to play on Anzac Day. [12] | |||||
| Round 5 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday, 4 May | Subiaco 10.11 (71) | def. | West Perth 8.15 (63) | Subiaco Oval (crowd: 7553) | |
| Saturday, 4 May | Swan Districts 13.14 (92) | def. | East Perth 8.15 (63) | Bassendean Oval (crowd: 7216) | |
| Saturday, 4 May | South Fremantle 14.19 (103) | def. | Claremont 6.18 (54) | Fremantle Oval (crowd: 5447) | |
| Saturday, 4 May | Perth 10.8 (68) | def. by | East Fremantle 11.15 (81) | Lathlain Park (crowd: 6896) | |
| Round 6 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday, 11 May | West Perth 9.14 (68) | def. by | Swan Districts 14.10 (94) | Leederville Oval (crowd: 8118) | |
| Saturday, 11 May | Perth 13.13 (91) | def. by | South Fremantle 22.15 (147) | Lathlain Park (crowd: 7489) | |
| Saturday, 11 May | Claremont 7.19 (61) | def. | East Perth 8.10 (58) | Claremont Oval (crowd: 5158) | |
| Saturday, 11 May | East Fremantle 10.9 (69) | def. | Subiaco 7.4 (46) | East Fremantle Oval (crowd: 9272) | |
| |||||
| Round 7 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday, 18 May | South Fremantle 17.16 (118) | def. | West Perth 13.13 (91) | Fremantle Oval (crowd: 8508) | |
| Saturday, 18 May | Swan Districts 10.11 (71) | def. by | Perth 21.15 (141) | Bassendean Oval (crowd: 8020) | |
| Saturday, 18 May | Subiaco 6.16 (52) | def. by | Claremont 22.20 (152) | Subiaco Oval (crowd: 7421) | |
| Saturday, 18 May | East Perth 14.17 (101) | def. | East Fremantle 13.19 (97) | Perth Oval (crowd: 8899) | |
With Blethyn kicking eight goals and giving away another three, and their rovers demolishing a Lions team who had Austin Robertson in the reserves after his groin injury, Claremont record the biggest win in the WANFL for two years and their biggest since 1964. [15] | |||||
| Round 8 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday, 25 May | Subiaco 12.25 (97) | def. | Swan Districts 8.14 (62) | Subiaco Oval (crowd: 6978) | |
| Saturday, 25 May | East Perth 10.15 (75) | def. by | West Perth 20.9 (129) | Perth Oval (crowd: 6777) | |
| Saturday, 25 May | Claremont 11.13 (79) | def. by | Perth 16.19 (115) | Claremont Oval (crowd: 6377) | |
| Saturday, 25 May | East Fremantle 6.10 (46) | def. by | South Fremantle 13.17 (95) | East Fremantle Oval (crowd: 16110) | |
| |||||
| Round 9 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday, 1 June | Swan Districts 8.7 (55) | def. by | Claremont 10.18 (78) | Bassendean Oval (crowd: 6150) | |
| Saturday, 1 June | West Perth 13.15 (93) | def. by | East Fremantle 20.19 (139) | Leederville Oval (crowd: 8492) | |
| Monday, 3 June | South Fremantle 12.20 (92) | def. | East Perth 9.18 (72) | Fremantle Oval (crowd: 12940) | |
| Monday, 3 June | Perth 17.12 (114) | def. | Subiaco 12.10 (82) | Lathlain Park (crowd: 10868) | |
| Round 10 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday, 8 June | South Fremantle 10.5 (65) | def. by | Subiaco 23.17 (155) | Fremantle Oval (crowd: 112020) | |
| Saturday, 8 June | East Perth 15.14 (104) | def. by | Perth 18.14 (122) | Perth Oval (crowd: 100590) | |
| Saturday, 8 June | Claremont 14.14 (98) | def. | West Perth 11.5 (71) | Claremont Oval (crowd: 86980) | |
| Saturday, 8 June | Swan Districts 19.17 (131) | def. | East Fremantle 15.16 (106) | Bassendean Oval (crowd: 8650) | |
The return of captain-coach Smith provides the impetus for the finest team display of the season as Subiaco end South Fremantle’s seven-game winning streak with Mike Fitzpatrick unstoppable and half-forward Neil Randall gaining thirty kicks. [18] | |||||
| Round 11 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday, 15 June | Swan Districts 12.16 (88) | def. by | South Fremantle 16.14 (110) | Bassendean Oval (crowd: 10250) | |
| Saturday, 15 June | Perth 12.13 (85) | def. | West Perth 12.6 (78) | Lathlain Park (crowd: 8088) | |
| Saturday, 15 June | Subiaco 11.12 (78) | def. by | East Perth 20.18 (138) | Subiaco Oval (crowd: 10212) | |
| Saturday, 15 June | East Fremantle 25.13 (163) | def. | Claremont 11.17 (83) | East Fremantle Oval (crowd: 9539) | |
| Round 12 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday, 22 June | West Perth 9.14 (68) | def. by | Subiaco 10.10 (70) | Leederville Oval (crowd: 6778) | |
| Saturday, 22 June | East Perth 12.15 (87) | def. by | Swan Districts 19.14 (128) | Perth Oval (crowd: 7821) | |
| Saturday, 22 June | Claremont 20.7 (127) | def. | South Fremantle 15.17 (107) | Claremont Oval (crowd: 7514) | |
| Saturday, 22 June | East Fremantle 16.14 (110) | def. | Perth 9.15 (69) | East Fremantle Oval (crowd: 8220) | |
| Round 13 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday, 29 June | Swan Districts 27.13 (175) | def. | West Perth 13.10 (88) | Bassendean Oval (crowd: 9350) | |
| Saturday, 29 June | South Fremantle 16.11 (107) | def. by | Perth 16.17 (113) | Fremantle Oval (crowd: 9373) | |
| Saturday, 29 June | East Perth 17.11 (113) | def. | Claremont 8.10 (58) | Perth Oval (crowd: 9071) | |
| Saturday, 29 June | Subiaco 11.12 (78) | def. by | East Fremantle 16.14 (110) | Subiaco Oval (crowd: 9530) | |
| |||||
| Round 14 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday, 6 July | West Perth 8.4 (52) | def. by | South Fremantle 15.15 (105) | Leederville Oval (crowd: 7701) | |
| Saturday, 6 July | Perth 19.13 (127) | def. | Swan Districts 12.19 (91) | Lathlain Park (crowd: 11703) | |
| Saturday, 6 July | Claremont 10.11 (71) | def. by | Subiaco 12.8 (80) | Claremont Oval (crowd: 7520) | |
| Saturday, 6 July | East Fremantle 11.17 (83) | def. by | East Perth 16.9 (105) | East Fremantle Oval (crowd: 9591) | |
The return of eighteen-year-old prodigy Peter Spencer from a broken jaw gives East Perth ascendancy over the powerful East Fremantle centreline and an unexpected victory to enter the four. [21] | |||||
| Round 15 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday, 20 July | East Perth 25.6 (156) | def. | South Fremantle 12.11 (83) | Perth Oval (crowd: 8812) | |
| Saturday, 20 July | Subiaco 18.6 (114) | def. | Perth 14.12 (96) | Subiaco Oval (crowd: 7925) | |
| Saturday, 20 July | Claremont 12.10 (82) | def. by | Swan Districts 16.10 (106) | Claremont Oval (crowd: 7218) | |
| Saturday, 20 July | East Fremantle 21.12 (138) | def. | West Perth 14.8 (92) | East Fremantle Oval (crowd: 6153) | |
As a percentage, East Perth’s score was their most accurate until 1980. [22] Archie Duda kicked nine goals. | |||||
| Round 16 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday, 27 July | Swan Districts 12.15 (87) | def. | Subiaco 12.11 (83) | Bassendean Oval (crowd: 10757) | |
| Saturday, 27 July | West Perth 13.16 (94) | def. | East Perth 12.15 (87) | Leederville Oval (crowd: 8462) | |
| Saturday, 27 July | Perth 18.17 (125) | def. | Claremont 14.8 (92) | Lathlain Park (crowd: 6790) | |
| Saturday, 27 July | South Fremantle 20.10 (130) | def. | East Fremantle 13.17 (95) | Fremantle Oval (crowd: 13130) | |
| |||||
| Round 17 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday, 3 August | Subiaco 6.8 (44) | def. | South Fremantle 5.7 (37) | Subiaco Oval (crowd: 7156) | |
| Saturday, 3 August | Perth 9.13 (67) | def. | East Perth 6.7 (43) | Lathlain Park (crowd: 6769) | |
| Saturday, 3 August | West Perth 9.13 (67) | def. by | Claremont 11.10 (76) | Leederville Oval (crowd: 4502) | |
| Saturday, 3 August | East Fremantle 20.14 (134) | def. | Swan Districts 14.15 (99) | East Fremantle Oval (crowd: 7329) | |
East Fremantle’s small-man strength wins decisively over a bigger and taller Swan Districts outfit to leave that club needing three wins from four games for a finals berth. [25] | |||||
| Round 18 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday, 10 August | South Fremantle 12.12 (84) | def. by | Swan Districts 15.19 (109) | Fremantle Oval (crowd: 8905) | |
| Saturday, 10 August | West Perth 20.13 (133) | def. | Perth 14.13 (97) | Leederville Oval (crowd: 6056) | |
| Saturday, 10 August | East Perth 10.15 (75) | def. by | Subiaco 12.16 (88) | Perth Oval (crowd: 11325) | |
| Saturday, 10 August | Claremont 13.11 (89) | def. by | East Fremantle 13.16 (94) | Claremont Oval (crowd: 6934) | |
Despite kicking only 3.4 (22) to 9.7 (61) between half-time and time-on in the last quarter, East Fremantle get a critical victory because during the second quarter David Hollins kicks a goal simultaneously with forward Kerry Williams being interfered with off the ball, so Old Easts got another kick and two goals without a centre bounce. [26] | |||||
| Round 19 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday, 17 August | Subiaco 12.11 (83) | def. | West Perth 7.11 (53) | Subiaco Oval (crowd: 7654) | |
| Saturday, 17 August | Swan Districts 11.19 (85) | def. | East Perth 6.10 (46) | Bassendean Oval (crowd: 8320) | |
| Saturday, 17 August | South Fremantle 15.15 (105) | def. | Claremont 10.12 (72) | Fremantle Oval (crowd: 6255) | |
| Saturday, 17 August | Perth 13.5 (83) | def. by | East Fremantle 12.15 (87) | Lathlain Park (crowd: 7841) | |
East Fremantle gain a second successive lucky win, coming back from 23 points down with seven goals, including one where Perth fullback John Quartermaine was disallowed an apparently fair mark. [27] | |||||
| Round 20 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday, 24 August | West Perth 13.14 (92) | def. by | Swan Districts 14.13 (97) | Leederville Oval (crowd: 9711) | |
| Saturday, 24 August | Perth 16.16 (112) | def. | South Fremantle 13.9 (87) | Lathlain Park (crowd: 11032) | |
| Saturday, 24 August | Claremont 14.13 (97) | def. by | East Perth 21.10 (136) | Claremont Oval (crowd: 5092) | |
| Saturday, 24 August | East Fremantle 13.12 (90) | def. | Subiaco 11.6 (72) | East Fremantle Oval (crowd: 11814) | |
| Round 21 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday, 31 August | South Fremantle 9.20 (74) | def. by | West Perth 14.11 (95) | Fremantle Oval (crowd: 9558) | |
| Saturday, 31 August | Swan Districts 8.10 (58) | def. by | Perth 18.19 (127) | Bassendean Oval (crowd: 17520) | |
| Saturday, 31 August | Subiaco 13.21 (99) | def. | Claremont 8.8 (56) | Subiaco Oval (crowd: 6850) | |
| Saturday, 31 August | East Perth 20.13 (133) | def. | East Fremantle 18.16 (124) | Perth Oval (crowd: 6701) | |
Mel Whinnen becomes the first to play 300 WANFL matches as his Cardinals drive South Fremantle, at one point the pacesetters, out of the top four. | |||||
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | D | PF | PA | PP | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | East Fremantle (P) | 21 | 13 | 7 | 1 | 2164 | 1878 | 115.2 | 54 |
| 2 | Perth | 21 | 13 | 8 | 0 | 2146 | 1929 | 111.2 | 52 |
| 3 | Subiaco | 21 | 12 | 9 | 0 | 1703 | 1741 | 97.8 | 48 |
| 4 | Swan Districts | 21 | 11 | 9 | 1 | 1932 | 1940 | 99.6 | 46 |
| 5 | South Fremantle | 21 | 11 | 10 | 0 | 2090 | 2001 | 104.4 | 44 |
| 6 | East Perth | 21 | 10 | 11 | 0 | 2025 | 1945 | 104.1 | 40 |
| 7 | Claremont | 21 | 7 | 14 | 0 | 1726 | 2076 | 83.1 | 28 |
| 8 | West Perth | 21 | 6 | 15 | 0 | 1758 | 2034 | 86.4 | 24 |
| First semi-final | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday, 7 September | Subiaco 11.10 (76) | def. by | Swan Districts 13.21 (99) | Subiaco Oval (crowd: 25,570) | |
This was the last match for record-setting goalkicker Austin Robertson, Jr. and Subiaco’s last final until 1985. | |||||
| Second semi-final | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday, 14 September | East Fremantle 17.15 (117) | def. | Perth 13.16 (94) | Subiaco Oval (crowd: 26,079) | |
| Preliminary final | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday, 21 September | Perth 12.12 (84) | def. | Swan Districts 9.15 (69) | Subiaco Oval (crowd: 27,426) | |
A strong first half with a 37-point lead is enough to see a jaded and sore Perth team make its first Grand Final for four seasons. [28] | |||||
| 1974 WANFL Grand Final | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday, 28 September | East Fremantle | def. | Perth | Subiaco Oval (crowd: 40,758) | [29] |
| 2.5 (17) 7.11 (53) 11.13 (79) 17.20 (122) | Q1 Q2 Q3 Final | 4.3 (27) 7.4 (46) 12.9 (81) 15.10 (100) | Umpires: Ross Capes Simpson Medal: Gary Gibellini (East Fremantle) David Pretty (Perth) (tied) | ||
| Nicholls 4, Avery 3, Durnthaler 2, Melrose 2, Hollins, McHenry, Reid, Becu, Buhagiar, Peake | Goals | Wiley 6, Doherty 5, Farrant 2, Rosbender, McPhee | |||
| Peake, Gibellini, Becu, Ferguson, Hollins, Nicholls, Melrose | Best | Wiley, Pretty, McPhee, Lofts, Doherty, Currie, Inman | |||
East Fremantle win their first flag for nine years after a period in the doldrums, more convicingly than the scores indicated due to inaccuracy and a let-up in the final few minutes. [30] | |||||
The 1986 WAFL season was the 102nd season of the various incarnations of the West Australian Football League. It was the last season before the introduction of the West Coast Eagles in the VFL which would relegate the WAFL to a second-level league from 1987, and already all WAFL clubs were in severe financial difficulties as attendances were stagnant at best since 1970 and the financial power of wealthy VFL clubs drew most top players away and left below-market transfer fees as WAFL clubs' inadequate main income source.
The 1987 WAFL season was the 103rd season of the West Australian Football League in its various iterations. This season saw a Western Australia-based team, West Coast, was one of two interstate teams to make their debut in the Victorian Football League (VFL), which had profound effects on the WAFL competition. The Eagles took away thirty-five of the competition's best players, severely reducing attendances and club revenue, the latter of which was further affected by the payment of the Eagles’ licence fee to the VFL. The WAFL budgeted for a 30 percent decline in attendances, but the observed decline was over fifty percent, and they were also hit by Channel Seven telecasting the Round 17 Hawthorn versus Footscray match, breaching agreements to not telecast non-Eagles VFL matches to Perth.
The 1985 WAFL season was the 101st season of the West Australian Football League and its various incarnations. The season opened on 30 March and concluded on 21 September with the 1985 WAFL Grand Final contested between East Fremantle and Subiaco.
The 1984 WAFL season was the 100th season of the West Australian Football League and its various incarnations. The season opened on 31 March and concluded on 22 September with the 1984 WAFL Grand Final contested between East Fremantle and Swan Districts.
The 1983 WAFL season was the 99th season of the West Australian Football League in its various incarnations. The season opened on 31 March and concluded on 17 September with the 1983 WAFL Grand Final contested between Claremont and Swan Districts.
The 1982 WAFL season was the 98th season of the West Australian Football League and its various incarnations. The season opened on 27 March 1982 and concluded on 18 September 1982 with the 1982 WAFL Grand Final contested between Claremont and Swan Districts. Under the coaching of John Todd, Swans won the 1982, 1983 and 1984 premierships before the financial lure of the VFL deprived it one by one of the stars of this period. The black and whites’ win was marred a little, however, by their decision to play a virtual reserve grade lineup against Richmond in an Escort Cup quarter-final after the game was postponed twice[a] and the VFL Tigers refused to play the match at Subiaco Oval on a Monday afternoon – Richmond won 33.16 (214) to 4.4 (28) and Swan Districts were suspended from the competition until 1985, despite the WAFL approving of their decision after Todd argued it was normal practice among VFL clubs to play reserves players in the Escort Cup.
The 1981 WAFL season was the 97th season of the West Australian Football League in its various incarnations. The season opened on 11 April and concluded on 3 October with the 1981 WAFL Grand Final between Claremont and South Fremantle. It was the last WAFL season to begin in April and end in October; from 1982 the league shifted the schedule of the season forward by a week and in later years by another.
The 1980 WAFL season was the 96th season of the West Australian Football League in its various incarnations.
The 1979 WANFL season was the 95th season of the West Australian National Football League in its various incarnations, and the last of forty-nine under that moniker.
The 1996 WAFL season was the 112th season of the West Australian Football League in its various incarnations.
The 1978 WANFL season was the 94th season of the Western Australian National Football League in its various incarnations, and the second-last under that moniker.
The 1999 Westar Rules season was the 115th season of the various incarnations of the West Australian Football League and the third as “Westar Rules”. It is most notable for the first winless season in open-age Western Australian football since Midland Junction in their final 1917 season lost all twelve of their games, although South Fremantle in the under-19 1944 competition lost all nineteen of their games. Peel Thunder, who at the completion of the season had won only two of their first sixty Westar Rules matches, achieved the equal second-longest winless season in a major Australian Rules league behind SANFL club Sturt in 1995.[a] Although beforehand most critics thought the Thunder would improve on what they did in their first two seasons, late in the season none of the major Westar Rules writers gave them a chance to win even against second-last East Perth at Rushton Park.
The 1976 WANFL season was the 92nd season of the Western Australian National Football League in its various incarnations.
The 1975 WANFL season was the 91st season of senior Australian rules football in Perth and the forty-fifth as the “Western Australian National Football League”. The season saw West Perth, after unexpectedly falling to last in 1974, rise under former Fitzroy coach Graham Campbell to a remarkable premiership win over South Fremantle by a record 104 points in front of what was then the biggest WANFL crowd on record and has since been only exceeded by the 1979 Grand Final. The Bulldogs, apart from Claremont the least successful WANFL club between 1957 and 1974, rose with arrival of Aboriginal stars Stephen Michael and Maurice Rioli to their first finals appearance in five years and began their greatest era since their golden days of the middle 1950s. With East Perth, revitalised after injuries affected their 1974 campaign, and the inconsistent but at times incomparable Swan Districts, they comprised a top four that remained unchanged for the final fourteen rounds.
The 1973 WANFL season was the 89th season of the Western Australian National Football League. It is most famous for Subiaco breaking the longest premiership drought in the history of the competition, winning for the first time since 1924 after having been a chopping block for most of the middle third of the century. Under the coaching of former St Kilda champion Ross Smith, the Lions, as they became christened in July, bounced back from two disappointing seasons to lose only two of their final sixteen home-and-away games for their first minor premiership since 1935, then in a low-scoring Grand Final comfortably defeated a much more hardened West Perth team.
The 1972 WANFL season was the 88th season of the various incarnations of the Western Australian National Football League. It saw East Perth, after five Grand Final losses in six seasons and a frustrating seven since their last premiership in 1959, break the drought against a Claremont team that had achieved its first minor premiership since Johnny Leonard’s days, despite kicking into the wind after winning the toss.
The 1971 WANFL season was the 87th season of the various incarnations of the Western Australian National Football League, and the forty-first under that moniker.
The 1969 WANFL season was the 85th season of the Western Australian National Football League. It saw continued dominance by the three Perth clubs and Subiaco, who occupied the top half of the ladder constantly from the fourth round onwards, and finished four games clear of the other four clubs, who were all in a “rebuilding” mode with varying success – late in the season both Swan Districts and Claremont fielded some of the youngest teams in the competition's history, whilst the Tigers, who fielded thirteen first-year players including Graham Moss, Russell Reynolds and Bruce Duperouzel, began disastrously but four wins in five games paved the way to impressive record from 1970 to 1972. Among the top four, Perth failed to achieve a fourth consecutive premiership[a] that at one point looked very much in their grasp due to the overwork of Barry Cable which robbed him of some brilliance, early-season injuries to key players Iseger and Page and a couple of surprising losses to lower clubs, whilst East Perth, who won consistently without being impressive for most of the season, failed for the fourth time in as many seasons in the Grand Final, this time to West Perth and in a much more decisive manner than any of their Perth defeats.
The 1968 WANFL season was the 84th season of senior football in Perth, Western Australia. It saw Perth, after having won only two premierships in its first sixty-six seasons, win its third consecutive flag under captain-coach Mal Atwell and champion rover Barry Cable – all three Grand Finals having been won against East Perth with Cable taking the Simpson Medal.
The 1967 WANFL season was the 83rd season of the various incarnations of the Western Australian National Football League. Its most salient feature was the decline of East Fremantle, the league's most successful club, to its worst season since its inaugural 1898 season. Old Easts – having during the first two-thirds of the century never won fewer than ten matches in a season – won only seven and finished second-last after looking set for a still-worse record during the first fifteen rounds. Their appointed captain-coach Bert Thornley resigned after twelve matches due to the club's bad form and his desire to play for Carlton in 1968. The blue and whites suffered severely from a bad run of injuries and form lapses amongst senior players like Sorrell, Spriggs, Rogers and Casserly, plus a serious weakness in attack due to the loss of Bob Johnson. Despite regaining Austin Robertson and acquiring Johnson, Subiaco continued their disastrous form of late 1966 for their worst season since 1953, as the loss of Slater and injuries to Brian Sarre left them decrepit in the ruck and defence.