The 1972 VFL season was the 76th season of the Victorian Football League (VFL), the highest level senior Australian rules football competition in Victoria. The season featured twelve clubs, ran from 1 April until 7 October, and comprised a 22-game home-and-away season followed by a finals series featuring the top five clubs – an increase from the four clubs which had contested the finals in previous years.
In 1972, the VFL competition consisted of twelve teams of 18 on-the-field players each, plus two substitute players, known as the 19th man and the 20th man. A player could be substituted for any reason; however, once substituted, a player could not return to the field of play under any circumstances.
Teams played each other in a home-and-away season of 22 rounds; matches 12 to 22 were the "home-and-way reverse" of matches 1 to 11.
Once the 22 round home-and-away season had finished, the 1972 VFL Premiers were determined by the specific format and conventions of the McIntyre final five system.
The Page–McIntyre system for determining the VFL premiership team, that had been centered on a final four, and had operated from 1931 to 1971, was replaced by the McIntyre final five system in 1972 (the new finals system operated from 1972 until the 1991 AFL season, when it was replaced by the first McIntyre final six system).
In Round 1, Hawthorn full-forward Peter Hudson kicked 8 goals at Glenferrie Oval before he sustained a knee injury that kept him out until Round 21 of the following season.
In Round 10, the VFL changed a tradition: the field umpire, rather than team captains, tossed the coin at the start of the match, in order to reduce gamesmanship.
In Round 14, Collingwood half-forward John Greening was felled by St Kilda back-man Jim O'Dea 70 metres behind play. Greening was comatose for some time and was extremely lucky not to have died. After a VFL investigation, O'Dea received a 10-week suspension, which was seen by some as unsatisfactory.
In the second quarter of Carlton's Round 16 match against Essendon, Alex Jesaulenko kicked six goals in eleven minutes. Carlton kicked 11 goals straight in that second quarter.
In August, the VFL announced that it would grant a free transfer to any player who had played 10 years with a single club.
The "10-year rule" was introduced in order to render the VFL immune from the sorts of "restraint of trade" difficulties that were being experienced, at the time, in New South Wales in relation to Rugby League footballers.
Although twenty-two VFL players were eligible to do so, only six players, George Bisset (Footscray to Collingwood), Barry Davis (Essendon to North Melbourne), Carl Ditterich (St Kilda to Melbourne), Adrian Gallagher (Carlton to Footscray), John Rantall (South Melbourne to North Melbourne), and Doug Wade (Geelong to North Melbourne) took advantage of the new rule. The rule was rescinded in May 1973.
In Round 20, Geelong's Ken Newland kicked a behind after the siren to win the match against Collingwood.
In the Round 21 match between Fitzroy and Essendon at the Junction Oval, bespectacled Essendon full-forward Geoff Blethyn kicked his 100th goal. A mounted policeman galloped out to protect Blethyn from spectators, and Blethyn was temporarily rendered sightless when the policeman's horse slobbered all over his glasses.
The 16 September First semi-final between Richmond and Carlton was tied at 8.13 (61) each. Angry fans invaded VFL Park immediately after the siren and field umpire Ian Coates was assaulted.
The Grand Final between Carlton and Richmond featured an aggregate score of 50.27 (327), setting the record for the highest aggregate score in any game, final or otherwise. The previous record of 48.25 (313) had stood since 1942, and the record would last until 1978.
North Melbourne took the "wooden spoon" in 1972. The club would not "win" another wooden spoon again until 2021, forty-nine years later.
The reserves premiership was won by Hawthorn. Hawthorn 13.10 (88) defeated Melbourne 12.12 (84) in the grand final, held as a curtain-raiser to the seniors Grand Final at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on 7 October.[1]
Referencesedit
^Jim Robb (9 October 1972). "Flag No. 2 to Hawks". The Age. Melbourne. p. 27.
Hogan, P., The Tigers of Old, The Richmond Football Club, (Richmond), 1996. ISBN0-646-18748-1
Maplestone, M., Flying Higher: History of the Essendon Football Club 1872–1996, Essendon Football Club, (Melbourne), 1996. ISBN0-9591740-2-8
Rogers, S. & Brown, A., Every Game Ever Played: VFL/AFL Results 1897–1997 (Sixth Edition), Viking Books, (Ringwood), 1998. ISBN0-670-90809-6
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. ISBN0-670-86814-0
Sourcesedit
1972 VFL season at AFL Tables
1972 VFL season at Australian Football
December 04, 2023
1972, season, 76th, season, victorian, football, league, highest, level, senior, australian, rules, football, competition, victoria, season, featured, twelve, clubs, from, april, until, october, comprised, game, home, away, season, followed, finals, series, fe. The 1972 VFL season was the 76th season of the Victorian Football League VFL the highest level senior Australian rules football competition in Victoria The season featured twelve clubs ran from 1 April until 7 October and comprised a 22 game home and away season followed by a finals series featuring the top five clubs an increase from the four clubs which had contested the finals in previous years 1972 VFL premiership seasonTeams12PremiersCarlton11th premiershipMinor premiersCarlton12th minor premiershipBrownlow MedallistLen Thompson Collingwood Coleman MedallistPeter McKenna Collingwood AttendanceMatches played139Total attendance3 526 848 25 373 per match Highest112 393 19711973 The premiership was won by the Carlton Football Club for the eleventh time after it defeated Richmond by 27 points in the 1972 VFL Grand Final Contents 1 Background 2 Home and away season 2 1 Round 1 2 2 Round 2 2 3 Round 3 2 4 Round 4 2 5 Round 5 2 6 Round 6 2 7 Round 7 2 8 Round 8 2 9 Round 9 2 10 Round 10 2 11 Round 11 2 12 Round 12 2 13 Round 13 2 14 Round 14 2 15 Round 15 2 16 Round 16 2 17 Round 17 2 18 Round 18 2 19 Round 19 2 20 Round 20 2 21 Round 21 2 22 Round 22 3 Ladder 4 Finals series 4 1 Finals week 1 4 2 Finals week 2 4 3 Preliminary final 4 4 Grand final 5 Season notes 6 Awards 7 References 8 SourcesBackground editIn 1972 the VFL competition consisted of twelve teams of 18 on the field players each plus two substitute players known as the 19th man and the 20th man A player could be substituted for any reason however once substituted a player could not return to the field of play under any circumstances Teams played each other in a home and away season of 22 rounds matches 12 to 22 were the home and way reverse of matches 1 to 11 Once the 22 round home and away season had finished the 1972 VFL Premiers were determined by the specific format and conventions of the McIntyre final five system Home and away season editRound 1 edit Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Crowd DateHawthorn 15 14 104 Melbourne 10 15 75 Glenferrie Oval 26 000 1 April 1972Carlton 11 15 81 Fitzroy 10 10 70 Princes Park 32 500 1 April 1972St Kilda 20 14 134 North Melbourne 11 10 76 Moorabbin Oval 24 000 1 April 1972South Melbourne 10 13 73 Geelong 9 7 61 Lake Oval 18 654 3 April 1972Footscray 9 13 67 Essendon 18 20 128 Western Oval 28 935 3 April 1972Richmond 16 9 105 Collingwood 14 17 101 MCG 72 714 3 April 1972Round 2 edit Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Crowd DateGeelong 10 3 63 Richmond 22 17 149 Kardinia Park 18 494 8 April 1972Fitzroy 12 16 88 St Kilda 12 8 80 Junction Oval 20 000 8 April 1972Essendon 16 11 107 South Melbourne 7 18 60 Windy Hill 22 611 8 April 1972North Melbourne 11 10 76 Hawthorn 19 24 138 Arden Street Oval 10 200 8 April 1972Melbourne 11 18 84 Footscray 15 15 105 MCG 21 452 8 April 1972Collingwood 10 15 75 Carlton 11 9 75 Victoria Park 37 070 8 April 1972Round 3 edit Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Crowd DateCollingwood 17 11 113 Melbourne 6 12 48 Victoria Park 25 172 15 April 1972St Kilda 22 7 139 Footscray 12 9 81 Moorabbin Oval 20 068 15 April 1972North Melbourne 12 14 86 Fitzroy 16 13 109 Arden Street Oval 10 383 15 April 1972Richmond 16 15 111 Essendon 19 17 131 MCG 55 823 15 April 1972South Melbourne 14 10 94 Carlton 18 18 126 Lake Oval 20 499 15 April 1972Geelong 9 11 65 Hawthorn 15 17 107 VFL Park 16 347 15 April 1972Round 4 edit Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Crowd DateMelbourne 18 19 127 South Melbourne 8 8 56 MCG 18 594 22 April 1972Footscray 15 10 100 North Melbourne 12 14 86 Western Oval 12 827 22 April 1972Fitzroy 11 17 83 Hawthorn 9 10 64 Junction Oval 16 937 22 April 1972Essendon 17 27 129 Geelong 12 14 86 Windy Hill 15 000 22 April 1972Carlton 15 14 104 Richmond 15 19 109 Princes Park 28 536 22 April 1972Collingwood 9 13 67 St Kilda 12 15 87 VFL Park 40 201 22 April 1972Round 5 edit Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Crowd DateRichmond 13 11 89 Melbourne 12 12 84 MCG 38 154 25 April 1972Essendon 10 13 73 Carlton 13 10 88 VFL Park 50 502 25 April 1972South Melbourne 5 17 47 St Kilda 9 16 70 Lake Oval 19 724 29 April 1972Hawthorn 14 20 104 Footscray 11 10 76 Glenferrie Oval 15 355 29 April 1972Geelong 11 9 75 Fitzroy 19 13 127 Kardinia Park 16 343 29 April 1972North Melbourne 8 14 62 Collingwood 22 8 140 Arden Street Oval 17 414 29 April 1972Round 6 edit Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Crowd DateCollingwood 14 12 96 Hawthorn 15 11 101 Victoria Park 29 885 6 May 1972Carlton 22 15 147 Geelong 14 14 98 Princes Park 19 073 6 May 1972St Kilda 24 21 165 Richmond 10 16 76 Moorabbin Oval 34 055 6 May 1972Footscray 16 16 112 Fitzroy 13 12 90 Western Oval 18 466 6 May 1972Melbourne 16 13 109 Essendon 12 13 85 MCG 41 537 6 May 1972South Melbourne 14 22 106 North Melbourne 13 13 91 VFL Park 9 099 6 May 1972Round 7 edit Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Crowd DateHawthorn 13 14 92 South Melbourne 9 20 74 Glenferrie Oval 13 742 13 May 1972Essendon 18 15 123 St Kilda 10 22 82 Windy Hill 27 875 13 May 1972Richmond 17 19 121 North Melbourne 13 16 94 MCG 17 331 13 May 1972Geelong 15 18 108 Footscray 16 15 111 Kardinia Park 16 836 13 May 1972Fitzroy 10 15 75 Collingwood 15 10 100 Junction Oval 26 766 13 May 1972Carlton 10 15 75 Melbourne 5 8 38 VFL Park 30 249 13 May 1972Round 8 edit Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Crowd DateCollingwood 7 14 56 Footscray 11 14 80 Victoria Park 25 986 20 May 1972Melbourne 20 14 134 Geelong 14 17 101 MCG 19 023 20 May 1972South Melbourne 9 7 61 Fitzroy 18 11 119 Lake Oval 12 421 20 May 1972North Melbourne 8 13 61 Essendon 14 12 96 Arden Street Oval 14 091 20 May 1972St Kilda 10 12 72 Carlton 14 15 99 Moorabbin Oval 31 547 20 May 1972Richmond 11 25 91 Hawthorn 13 6 84 VFL Park 25 845 20 May 1972Round 9 edit Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Crowd DateFootscray 12 9 81 South Melbourne 9 10 64 Western Oval 15 891 27 May 1972Fitzroy 12 25 97 Richmond 16 9 105 Junction Oval 21 753 27 May 1972Essendon 15 17 107 Hawthorn 14 21 105 Windy Hill 28 187 27 May 1972Collingwood 28 16 184 Geelong 16 13 109 Victoria Park 20 771 27 May 1972Carlton 16 13 109 North Melbourne 6 11 47 Princes Park 15 664 27 May 1972Melbourne 5 6 36 St Kilda 9 19 73 VFL Park 23 507 27 May 1972Round 10 edit Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Crowd DateGeelong 9 11 65 St Kilda 11 15 81 Kardinia Park 15 835 3 June 1972North Melbourne 6 11 47 Melbourne 23 17 155 Arden Street Oval 8 063 3 June 1972Richmond 15 14 104 Footscray 12 14 86 MCG 36 985 3 June 1972South Melbourne 8 11 59 Collingwood 19 14 128 Lake Oval 18 085 3 June 1972Hawthorn 11 22 88 Carlton 13 7 85 Glenferrie Oval 26 665 3 June 1972Essendon 14 17 101 Fitzroy 15 9 99 VFL Park 26 790 3 June 1972Round 11 edit Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Crowd DateRichmond 14 11 95 South Melbourne 2 19 31 MCG 18 692 10 June 1972St Kilda 17 8 110 Hawthorn 7 14 56 Moorabbin Oval 24 000 10 June 1972Footscray 7 9 51 Carlton 7 15 57 Western Oval 23 948 10 June 1972Fitzroy 12 17 89 Melbourne 13 10 88 Junction Oval 23 103 12 June 1972Collingwood 23 10 148 Essendon 13 15 93 Victoria Park 42 206 12 June 1972North Melbourne 14 11 95 Geelong 14 20 104 VFL Park 13 945 12 June 1972Round 12 edit Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Crowd DateNorth Melbourne 7 8 50 St Kilda 12 19 91 Arden Street Oval 10 681 17 June 1972Collingwood 11 24 90 Richmond 12 13 85 Victoria Park 28 188 17 June 1972Melbourne 11 10 76 Hawthorn 11 9 75 MCG 31 314 17 June 1972Geelong 15 14 104 South Melbourne 10 13 73 Kardinia Park 14 426 24 June 1972Essendon 14 15 99 Footscray 19 19 133 Windy Hill 23 903 24 June 1972Fitzroy 8 7 55 Carlton 13 13 91 VFL Park 29 380 24 June 1972Round 13 edit Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Crowd DateHawthorn 21 14 140 North Melbourne 10 16 76 Glenferrie Oval 8 201 1 July 1972Carlton 10 10 70 Collingwood 9 8 62 Princes Park 36 133 1 July 1972Richmond 14 8 92 Geelong 25 18 168 MCG 22 595 1 July 1972St Kilda 13 10 88 Fitzroy 6 17 53 Moorabbin Oval 18 355 1 July 1972South Melbourne 12 12 84 Essendon 13 9 87 Lake Oval 12 984 1 July 1972Footscray 11 8 74 Melbourne 16 15 111 VFL Park 14 180 1 July 1972Round 14 edit Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Crowd DateSouth Melbourne 10 9 69 Melbourne 14 9 93 Lake Oval 10 405 8 July 1972North Melbourne 8 15 63 Footscray 14 15 99 Arden Street Oval 9 302 8 July 1972Geelong 10 10 70 Essendon 9 6 60 Kardinia Park 23 873 8 July 1972St Kilda 4 13 37 Collingwood 9 13 67 Moorabbin Oval 30 451 8 July 1972Richmond 17 17 119 Carlton 13 10 88 MCG 46 471 8 July 1972Hawthorn 19 19 133 Fitzroy 12 8 80 VFL Park 12 425 8 July 1972Round 15 edit Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Crowd DateFootscray 14 7 91 St Kilda 9 11 65 Western Oval 18 655 15 July 1972Fitzroy 16 14 110 North Melbourne 9 12 66 Junction Oval 7 007 15 July 1972Essendon 13 12 90 Richmond 17 9 111 Windy Hill 22 251 15 July 1972Carlton 20 8 128 South Melbourne 8 15 63 Princes Park 14 465 15 July 1972Hawthorn 19 14 128 Geelong 15 8 98 Glenferrie Oval 12 425 15 July 1972Melbourne 8 10 58 Collingwood 10 13 73 VFL Park 30 883 15 July 1972Round 16 edit Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Crowd DateMelbourne 11 18 84 Richmond 19 9 123 MCG 32 416 22 July 1972Footscray 13 11 89 Hawthorn 19 16 130 Western Oval 18 400 22 July 1972Fitzroy 10 9 69 Geelong 12 13 85 Junction Oval 11 046 22 July 1972Collingwood 17 6 108 North Melbourne 11 14 80 Victoria Park 18 049 22 July 1972Carlton 20 13 133 Essendon 17 15 117 Princes Park 26 206 22 July 1972St Kilda 14 11 95 South Melbourne 9 5 59 VFL Park 13 184 22 July 1972Round 17 edit Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Crowd DateRichmond 23 15 153 St Kilda 11 15 81 MCG 44 348 29 July 1972North Melbourne 12 15 87 South Melbourne 11 12 78 Arden Street Oval 6 191 29 July 1972Essendon 21 14 140 Melbourne 14 11 95 Windy Hill 16 318 29 July 1972Hawthorn 11 16 82 Collingwood 19 13 127 Glenferrie Oval 24 135 29 July 1972Geelong 9 13 67 Carlton 17 17 119 Kardinia Park 24 797 29 July 1972Fitzroy 15 12 102 Footscray 11 15 81 VFL Park 9 750 29 July 1972Round 18 edit Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Crowd DateFootscray 9 19 73 Geelong 10 9 69 Western Oval 14 699 5 August 1972Collingwood 19 15 129 Fitzroy 12 13 85 Victoria Park 25 007 5 August 1972South Melbourne 13 11 89 Hawthorn 23 10 148 Lake Oval 9 207 5 August 1972St Kilda 12 9 81 Essendon 12 16 88 Moorabbin Oval 29 062 5 August 1972Melbourne 8 18 66 Carlton 11 11 77 MCG 33 364 5 August 1972North Melbourne 6 14 50 Richmond 13 20 98 VFL Park 11 393 5 August 1972Round 19 edit Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Crowd DateHawthorn 15 12 102 Richmond 17 11 113 Glenferrie Oval 18 103 12 August 1972Geelong 11 19 85 Melbourne 21 16 142 Kardinia Park 12 716 12 August 1972Fitzroy 14 14 98 South Melbourne 6 17 53 Junction Oval 7 451 12 August 1972Essendon 21 14 140 North Melbourne 14 11 95 Windy Hill 14 454 12 August 1972Carlton 13 16 94 St Kilda 10 11 71 Princes Park 22 109 12 August 1972Footscray 7 13 55 Collingwood 15 12 102 VFL Park 21 540 12 August 1972Round 20 edit Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Crowd DateSt Kilda 13 12 90 Melbourne 13 11 89 Moorabbin Oval 18 836 19 August 1972South Melbourne 9 12 66 Footscray 11 13 79 Lake Oval 9 154 19 August 1972Richmond 20 17 137 Fitzroy 13 22 100 MCG 27 651 19 August 1972Geelong 17 10 112 Collingwood 17 9 111 Kardinia Park 23 108 19 August 1972North Melbourne 8 12 60 Carlton 23 11 149 Arden Street Oval 11 271 19 August 1972Hawthorn 15 16 106 Essendon 12 15 87 VFL Park 36 749 19 August 1972Round 21 edit Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Crowd DateMelbourne 17 22 124 North Melbourne 14 7 91 MCG 11 241 26 August 1972Footscray 17 21 123 Richmond 18 17 125 Western Oval 18 117 26 August 1972Collingwood 22 17 149 South Melbourne 11 6 72 Victoria Park 19 934 26 August 1972Carlton 24 12 156 Hawthorn 11 22 88 Princes Park 32 048 26 August 1972Fitzroy 14 20 104 Essendon 18 11 119 Junction Oval 17 252 26 August 1972St Kilda 11 10 76 Geelong 8 13 61 VFL Park 25 663 26 August 1972Round 22 edit Home team Home team score Away team Away team score Venue Crowd DateHawthorn 15 12 102 St Kilda 18 13 121 Glenferrie Oval 22 855 2 September 1972Geelong 20 20 140 North Melbourne 13 11 89 Kardinia Park 12 267 2 September 1972Carlton 13 8 86 Footscray 11 17 83 Princes Park 24 619 2 September 1972Melbourne 18 19 127 Fitzroy 14 11 95 MCG 21 653 2 September 1972Essendon 17 15 117 Collingwood 17 10 112 Windy Hill 35 030 2 September 1972South Melbourne 12 10 82 Richmond 23 20 158 VFL Park 16 541 2 September 1972Ladder edit P PremiersQualified for finals Team P W L D PF PA Pts1 Carlton P 22 18 3 1 2237 1666 134 3 742 Richmond 22 18 4 0 2469 2098 117 7 723 Collingwood 22 14 7 1 2338 1747 133 8 584 St Kilda 22 14 8 0 1989 1721 115 6 565 Essendon 22 14 8 0 2317 2140 108 3 566 Hawthorn 22 13 9 0 2277 2050 111 1 527 Footscray 22 11 11 0 1930 2038 94 7 448 Melbourne 22 10 12 0 2043 1929 105 9 409 Fitzroy 22 9 13 0 1997 2062 96 8 3610 Geelong 22 7 15 0 1994 2369 84 2 2811 South Melbourne 22 2 20 0 1513 2323 65 1 812 North Melbourne 22 1 21 0 1628 2589 62 9 4Rules for classification 1 premiership points 2 percentage 3 points forAverage score 93 7Source AFL TablesFinals series editQualifying and elimination finalsSemi finalsPreliminary finalGrand final16 September VFL Park 23 September Melbourne Cricket Ground7 October Melbourne Cricket Ground1Carlton8 13 61 9 15 69 Richmond22 18 150 9 September Melbourne Cricket GroundRichmond8 13 61 15 20 110 30 September Melbourne Cricket GroundCarlton28 9 177 2Richmond25 14 164 Carlton16 13 109 3Collingwood18 12 120 16 September Melbourne Cricket GroundSt Kilda13 15 93 Collingwood8 17 65 9 September VFL ParkSt Kilda11 17 83 4St Kilda18 16 124 5Essendon10 11 71 Finals week 1 edit Home team Score Away team Score Venue Crowd DateSt Kilda 18 16 124 Essendon 10 11 71 VFL Park 52 499 9 SeptemberRichmond 25 14 164 Collingwood 18 12 120 MCG 91 900 9 SeptemberFinals week 2 edit Home team Score Away team Score Venue Crowd DateCollingwood 8 17 65 St Kilda 11 17 83 MCG 91 857 16 SeptemberCarlton 8 13 61 Richmond 8 13 61 VFL Park 54 338 16 SeptemberCarlton 9 15 69 Richmond 15 20 110 MCG 92 670 23 SeptemberPreliminary final edit Home team Score Away team Score Venue Crowd DateCarlton 16 13 109 St Kilda 13 15 93 MCG 96 272 30 SeptemberGrand final edit Main article 1972 VFL Grand FinalSeason notes editThe Page McIntyre system for determining the VFL premiership team that had been centered on a final four and had operated from 1931 to 1971 was replaced by the McIntyre final five system in 1972 the new finals system operated from 1972 until the 1991 AFL season when it was replaced by the first McIntyre final six system In Round 1 Hawthorn full forward Peter Hudson kicked 8 goals at Glenferrie Oval before he sustained a knee injury that kept him out until Round 21 of the following season In Round 10 the VFL changed a tradition the field umpire rather than team captains tossed the coin at the start of the match in order to reduce gamesmanship In Round 14 Collingwood half forward John Greening was felled by St Kilda back man Jim O Dea 70 metres behind play Greening was comatose for some time and was extremely lucky not to have died After a VFL investigation O Dea received a 10 week suspension which was seen by some as unsatisfactory In the second quarter of Carlton s Round 16 match against Essendon Alex Jesaulenko kicked six goals in eleven minutes Carlton kicked 11 goals straight in that second quarter In August the VFL announced that it would grant a free transfer to any player who had played 10 years with a single club The 10 year rule was introduced in order to render the VFL immune from the sorts of restraint of trade difficulties that were being experienced at the time in New South Wales in relation to Rugby League footballers Although twenty two VFL players were eligible to do so only six players George Bisset Footscray to Collingwood Barry Davis Essendon to North Melbourne Carl Ditterich St Kilda to Melbourne Adrian Gallagher Carlton to Footscray John Rantall South Melbourne to North Melbourne and Doug Wade Geelong to North Melbourne took advantage of the new rule The rule was rescinded in May 1973 In September North Melbourne Football Club appointed Ron Barassi as its 1973 coach In Round 20 Geelong s Ken Newland kicked a behind after the siren to win the match against Collingwood In the Round 21 match between Fitzroy and Essendon at the Junction Oval bespectacled Essendon full forward Geoff Blethyn kicked his 100th goal A mounted policeman galloped out to protect Blethyn from spectators and Blethyn was temporarily rendered sightless when the policeman s horse slobbered all over his glasses The 16 September First semi final between Richmond and Carlton was tied at 8 13 61 each Angry fans invaded VFL Park immediately after the siren and field umpire Ian Coates was assaulted The Grand Final between Carlton and Richmond featured an aggregate score of 50 27 327 setting the record for the highest aggregate score in any game final or otherwise The previous record of 48 25 313 had stood since 1942 and the record would last until 1978 Awards editThe 1972 VFL Premiership team was Carlton The VFL s leading goalkicker was Peter McKenna of Collingwood who kicked 130 goals The winner of the 1972 Brownlow Medal was Len Thompson of Collingwood with 25 votes North Melbourne took the wooden spoon in 1972 The club would not win another wooden spoon again until 2021 forty nine years later The reserves premiership was won by Hawthorn Hawthorn 13 10 88 defeated Melbourne 12 12 84 in the grand final held as a curtain raiser to the seniors Grand Final at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on 7 October 1 References edit Jim Robb 9 October 1972 Flag No 2 to Hawks The Age Melbourne p 27 Hogan P The Tigers of Old The Richmond Football Club Richmond 1996 ISBN 0 646 18748 1 Maplestone M Flying Higher History of the Essendon Football Club 1872 1996 Essendon Football Club Melbourne 1996 ISBN 0 9591740 2 8 Rogers S amp 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 0Sources edit1972 VFL season at AFL Tables 1972 VFL season at Australian Football Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title 1972 VFL season amp oldid 1164659113, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
