List of Australian Football League wooden spoons

Last updated

The wooden spoon is the imaginary and ironic "award" which is said to be won by the team finishing in last place in the Australian Football League. No physical wooden spoon award exists, other than those brought by opposition fans to taunt struggling teams, nor is such an award officially sanctioned by the VFL/AFL. However, most betting agencies will take wagers on the wooden spoon.

A wooden spoon is an award that is given to an individual or team who/which has come last in a competition. Examples range from the academic to sporting and more frivolous events. The term is of British origin and has spread to other Commonwealth countries outside North America.

Australian Football League Australian rules football competition

The Australian Football League (AFL) is the pre-eminent professional competition of Australian rules football. Through the AFL Commission, the AFL also serves as the sport's governing body, and is responsible for controlling the laws of the game. The league was founded as the Victorian Football League (VFL) as a breakaway from the previous Victorian Football Association (VFA), with its inaugural season commencing in 1897. Originally comprising only teams based in the Australian state of Victoria, the competition's name was changed to the Australian Football League for the 1990 season, after expanding to other states throughout the 1980s.

Contents

Criteria

The team which finishes on the bottom of the ladder wins the wooden spoon. This is determined by:

No countback exists if teams finish equal on points but with a different number of wins.

1901–1907

From 1901–1907, the VFL season was set up such that each team played fourteen regular season games: two games against each opponent. Based upon regular season ladder positions, teams were divided into pools A (1st, 3rd, 5th and 7th) and B (2nd, 4th, 6th and 8th), and each team played the opponents from its pool once each in the "sectional round."

Following the sectional round, the results of these matches were added to the ladder to give a final ladder based on seventeen matches per team. As such, the wooden spooner is considered to be the team which finishes last after all seventeen matches.

The three sectional games changed the outcome of the wooden spoon twice in the seven seasons of this format: in 1905, St Kilda beat Geelong in their last game, relegating Melbourne to last, and in 1907, Fitzroy won all three of their games, relegating Essendon to last.

1916

In the war-time season of 1916, only four teams (Carlton, Collingwood, Fitzroy and Richmond) competed. Fitzroy finished last after the home-and-away season with a record of 2–9–1 (10 pts), and Richmond finished third with a record of 5–7–0 (20 pts).

All four teams competed in the finals under the amended Argus system in place at the time. Richmond lost their Semi-Final and finished in overall last place as the lowest placed Semi-Final loser, while Fitzroy won their Semi-Final, the Final and the Grand Final to claim the premiership.

There is hence some uncertainty regarding which team should lay claim to the wooden spoon in that season; by analogy with the minor and major premierships, it could be said that Fitzroy won the "minor wooden spoon" and Richmond won the "major wooden spoon".

A minor premiership is the name of the title given to the team which finishes a sporting competition first in the league standings after the regular season but prior to commencement of the playoffs in several Australian sports leagues.

AFL Grand Final Australian rules football match to decide the premier of a Victorian Football League or Australian Football League season

The AFL Grand Final is an annual Australian rules football match, traditionally held on the final Saturday in September at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in Melbourne, Australia, to determine the Australian Football League (AFL) premiers for that year. The game has become significant to Australian culture, spawning a number of traditions and surrounding activities which have grown in popularity since the interstate expansion of the Victorian Football League in the 1980s and the subsequent creation of the national AFL competition in the 1990s. The 2006 Sweeney Sports Report concluded that the AFL Grand Final has become Australia's most important sporting event, with the largest attendance, metropolitan television audience and overall interest of any annual Australian sporting event.

The official AFL season guide recognises Richmond as the wooden spooners for the 1916 VFL season.

Records

Carlton Football Club Australian rules football club

The Carlton Football Club, nicknamed the Blues, is a professional Australian rules football club based in Melbourne, Victoria. Founded in 1864 in Carlton, an inner suburb of Melbourne, the club competes in the Australian Football League, and was one of the competition's eight founding member clubs in 1897.

1907 VFL season

The 1907 Victorian Football League season was the 11th season of the elite Australian rules football competition.

1908 VFL season

The 1908 Victorian Football League season was the 12th season of the elite Australian rules football competition.

Wooden spoons by season

SeasonWooden spoonWinsLossesDrawsPercentagePoints
1897 St Kilda 014029.10
1898 St Kilda 014033.50
1899 St Kilda 014028.00
1900 St Kilda 113039.14
1901 St Kilda 11604
1902 St Kilda 01700
1903 South Melbourne 21508
1904 St Kilda 314012
1905 Melbourne 314012
1906 Melbourne 11604
1907 Essendon 512020
1908 Geelong 21608
1909 St Kilda 215059.38
1910 St Kilda 117062.34
1911 University 117052.14
1912 University 117057.04
1913 University 018057.60
1914 University 018047.00
1915 Geelong 313068.012
1916 Minor
1916 Major
Fitzroy
Richmond
2
5
9
7
1
0
81.6
89.9
10
20
1917 Richmond 311114
1918 Essendon 311064.212
1919 Melbourne 016043.00
1920 St Kilda 214057.28
1921 Essendon 311280.816
1922 South Melbourne 411191.318
1923 Melbourne 313080.412
1924 St Kilda 412075.716
1925 Hawthorn 314066.112
1926 North Melbourne 017173.72
1927 Hawthorn 117063.14
1928 Hawthorn 018061.60
1929 North Melbourne 117060.24
1930 North Melbourne 117051.84
1931 North Melbourne 018050.80
1932 Hawthorn 315064.112
1933 Essendon 216077.112
1934 North Melbourne 018066.40
1935 North Melbourne 117065.14
1936 Fitzroy 216068.98
1937 North Melbourne 315064.212
1938 South Melbourne 216071.88
1939 South Melbourne 315070.812
1940 North Melbourne 414075.116
1941 Hawthorn 315068.212
1942 Hawthorn 114065.68
1943 St Kilda 18173.910
1944 Geelong 117058.64
1945 St Kilda 218062.28
1946 Hawthorn 316070.512
1947 St Kilda 117158.76
1948 St Kilda 217059.98
1949 Hawthorn 316061.112
1950 Hawthorn 018049.80
1951 Melbourne 117070.54
1952 St Kilda 217068.18
1953 Hawthorn 315068.512
1954 St Kilda 413172.718
1955 St Kilda 117045.44
1956 North Melbourne 316069.512
1957 Geelong 512188.222
1958 Geelong 414073.816
1959 Footscray 315073.312
1960 Richmond 214265.112
1961 North Melbourne 413179.118
1962 South Melbourne 315074.412
1963 Fitzroy 117057.54
1964 Fitzroy 018059.70
1965 Hawthorn 414068.916
1966 Fitzroy 117053.84
1967 Footscray 414071.816
1968 North Melbourne 317074.312
1969 Melbourne 317083.112
1970 North Melbourne 418079.116
1971 South Melbourne 319069.912
1972 North Melbourne 121062.94
1973 South Melbourne 418079.016
1974 Melbourne 319077.112
1975 South Melbourne 220075.08
1976 Collingwood 616086.424
1977 St Kilda 317273.516
1978 Melbourne 517069.120
1979 St Kilda 319065.012
1980 Fitzroy 417186.018
1981 Melbourne 121063.54
1982 Footscray 319068.112
1983 St Kilda 51707920
1984 St Kilda 51707620
1985 St Kilda 319064.712
1986 St Kilda 220071.98
1987 Richmond 51708320
1988 St Kilda 41808216
1989 Richmond 51707120
1990 Brisbane Bears 41807116
1991 Brisbane Bears 31907012
1992 Sydney 31817414
1993 Sydney 1190634
1994 Sydney 41807816
1995 Fitzroy 220058.28
1996 Fitzroy 121049.54
1997 Melbourne 418060.816
1998 Brisbane Lions 51617522
1999 Collingwood 418084.816
2000 St Kilda 219170.510
2001 Fremantle 220072.08
2002 Carlton 319073.112
2003 Western Bulldogs 318174.814
2004 Richmond 418069.216
2005 Carlton 417175.518
2006 Carlton 318174.214
2007 Richmond 318177.214
2008 Melbourne 319062.612
2009 Melbourne 418074.716
2010 West Coast 418077.116
2011 Gold Coast 319056.2712
2012 Greater Western Sydney 220046.178
2013 Greater Western Sydney 121050.974
2014 St Kilda 418060.816
2015 Carlton 418064.816
2016 Essendon 31906112
2017 Brisbane Lions 517074.320
2018 Carlton 220059.38

Wooden spoon tally

ClubTotal
Wooden
Spoons
Years of Wooden Spoon
St Kilda
27
1897, 1898, 1899, 1900, 1901, 1902, 1904, 1909, 1910, 1920, 1924, 1943, 1945, 1947, 1948, 1952, 1954, 1955, 1977, 1979, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1988, 2000, 2014
North Melbourne
13
1926, 1929, 1930, 1931, 1934, 1935, 1937, 1940, 1956, 1961, 1968, 1970, 1972
Melbourne
12
1905, 1906, 1919, 1923, 1951, 1969, 1974, 1978, 1981, 1997, 2008, 2009
Hawthorn
11
1925, 1927, 1928, 1932, 1941, 1942, 1946, 1949, 1950, 1953, 1965
South Melbourne/ Sydney
11
1903, 1922, 1938, 1939, 1962, 1971, 1973, 1975, 1992, 1993, 1994
Fitzroy
8*
1916*, 1936, 1963, 1964, 1966, 1980, 1995, 1996
Richmond
7*
1916*, 1917, 1960, 1987, 1989, 2004, 2007
Carlton
5
2002, 2005, 2006, 2015, 2018
Essendon
5
1907, 1918, 1921, 1933, 2016
Geelong
5
1908, 1915, 1944, 1957, 1958
University
4
1911, 1912, 1913, 1914
Footscray/ Western Bulldogs
4
1959, 1967, 1982, 2003
Brisbane Bears
2
1990, 1991
Brisbane Lions
2
1998, 2017
Collingwood
2
1976, 1999
Greater Western Sydney
2
2012, 2013
Fremantle
1
2001
West Coast Eagles
1
2010
Gold Coast
1
2011
Port Adelaide
0
N/A
Adelaide
0
N/A

current clubs are shown in bold

* See 1916 explanation above

Longest wooden spoon droughts

ClubTime periodYears
Carlton 1897–2002105
Essendon 1933–201683
Collingwood 1897–197679
Geelong 1958–present60
Hawthorn 1965–present53
North Melbourne 1972–present46
Richmond 1917–196043
Fitzroy 1897–1936139
Footscray 1925–195934

1 See discussion on 1916 wooden spoon.

Active wooden spoon droughts

ClubLast wonYears since
Geelong 195860
Hawthorn 196553
North Melbourne 197246
Adelaide never [lower-alpha 1] 27
Sydney 199424
Port Adelaide never [lower-alpha 2] 21
Collingwood 199919
Fremantle 200117
Western Bulldogs 200315
Richmond 200711
Melbourne 20099
West Coast 20108
Gold Coast 20117
Greater Western Sydney 20135
St Kilda 20144
Essendon 20162
Brisbane Lions 20171
Carlton 20180

Droughts are as of end of the 2018 season.

AFL Women's

SeasonWooden spoonWinsLossesDrawsPercentagePoints
2017 Greater Western Sydney 15151.86
2018 Carlton 25054.18

References and Notes

    1. Joined competition in 1991
    2. Joined competition in 1997

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