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Home , 1898 VFL Grand Final, Canadian football, Free kick, Oldest football clubs, The Footy Show (AFL), Up There Cazaly

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Routledge Handbook of Global

John Nauright, Sarah Zipp

Australian

Publication details https://www.routledgehandbooks.com/doi/10.4324/9781315714264-4 John Nauright Published online on: 23 Jan 2020

How to cite :- John Nauright. 23 Jan 2020, Australian football from: Routledge Handbook of Global Sport Routledge Accessed on: 30 Sep 2021 https://www.routledgehandbooks.com/doi/10.4324/9781315714264-4

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The publisher does not give any warranty express or implied or make any representation that the contents will be complete or accurate or up to date. The publisher shall not be liable for an loss, actions, claims, proceedings, demand or costs or damages whatsoever or howsoever caused arising directly or indirectly in connection with or arising out of the use of this material. Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 22:40 30 Sep 2021; For: 9781315714264, chapter3, 10.4324/9781315714264-4 cleanly intheairwere allowed afree . Players couldalsoretain possessionoftheballwhile appeared. At theoutset, aprovision was madethatplayers whocaught(or “marked”) aball Rugby Schoolgame, andhackingwas banned. Distinctive aspectsof Australian footballrapidly ofthe anopponent)rules tant tocommitthetackling andhacking(kickingortripping 2008; Hesset al., 2008). the dominantrugbyunionfootballthatemergedthere (Blainey, 2003; Collins, 2018; deMoore, ascompared toNew South Wales very andNew different Zealandledto asport from years after Australian football)andwhethertheover-abundance meninsouthern ofCambridge Australian leisure practices, related toGaelicfootball(whichwas onlycodifiedin1884many debate over was theyears astowhetherthesport descendedfrom observations of Aboriginal standard. Several works have explored thefoundationsof Australian football as there was much imposednolimitonthenumber ofplayers,rules thoughinthe1880s, 20menperteambecame to kick it. In 1866H.C.A. (1836–1929), Harrison a cousin of Wills, rewrote the rules. These row, andRugby. Players were allowed thannecessary farther tohandletheballbut nottorun were acompromise between thoseofseveral Englishpublic schools, notably Winchester, Har- of theoldest football clubs in the world. to by agreed the committeeon 17 MayThe rules andGeelongfootballclubswerebourne established in1858and1859, respectively, andare two standardized football codes at that time, appointed a committee to devise a set of rules. The Mel- winter. with Clubagreed The Wills’s suggestionand, asthere were no in football but educated at Rugby School in England – where team and excelled he captainedthe cricket off- fitness, cricketer the 19th century,ment during summer sport. about emerged as the primary Concerned cricket toplaylocal menwithasport intheoffseasonofcricket. settle - As withotherareas ofBritish known as football,Australian rules orsimply appeared first in1858andprovided“Aussie rules”) inthecolonyoccurred of in Australia from the1840s. Australian football(commonly wasofan1850sgoldrush. acitybuiltMelbourne ontheriches offootballplaying Forms Origins Concerned about the possibility of injury on the hard about the possibility of injury Concerned Australian grounds, players were reluc- – believed to keep his teammates fit during that a football club should be formed Thomas Wentworth Wills (1835–1980), in who was born Australia Australian football John Nauright 1859, 3 29 Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 22:40 30 Sep 2021; For: 9781315714264, chapter3, 10.4324/9781315714264-4 as well asin Australia were ofitsmission. part trol ofthe VFL. As thecouncil’s namesuggests, tokeep efforts thegamealive inNew Zealand player movement anddevelop contestsonthenationallevel, thoughitremained underthecon- A per sideto18. With economic improvement, VFL clubswere able topay mostplayers by 1899. allowed openpayment ofplayers andreduced onthefieldfrom thenumber ofcompetitors 20 Carlton, the andSt Kilda–cametogether toform Football League(VFL).Victorian The VFL Melbourne, Essendon, , Collingwood (Stremski, 1987), SouthMelbourne, Fitzroy, wanted more control over thegame, opposedthescheme. In1896thoseeightleadingclubs – the VFA proposed arevenue-sharing clubs. schemetoassiststruggling Leadingclubs, which inMelbourne. solidify thesport couldgotoalloftheirteam’sfans gamesinany given seasonatlittleexpenseandthishelped However, because road gamesbetween teamswere away,Victorian oftenonlyatramride many teaminthemain ofaninterstate participation competitiondid notoccuruntil1982.Victorian regular competition between clubs from different areas was not possible, and indeed the first in . favoured by the1890s. A similar process inQueenslandandacross occurred the Tasman Sea gameinSydneyfirst tookplacein1877,rugby but union, connections, withitsimperial was of successes, parts Australia. togainafootholdinthenortheastern thegamestruggled The in 1885the Western Australian Football Association was established inPerth. Despitethese tralian Football in Association was formed . accepted VFA in1882, rules and admission. of matcheswas developed; additionalgroundswere enclosed; and VFA clubswere able tocharge bourne, andanother60seniorclubswere established elsewhere in Victoria. A regular schedule the bourne, Essendon, Geelong, Hotham, Melbourne, andSt Kildafootballclubsmettoform regular competition. On7May 1877, representatives ofthe Park,Albert Carlton, EastMel- were attendingmatchesbetween leadingclubs(Hess &Stewart, 1998; Hesset al., 2008). game atthegroundattracted5,000spectators. Bythemid-1880scrowds approaching 34,000 in 1876onlandleasedby University. Carltonfrom Melbourne Carlton–Melbourne The first of grounds foreaseofplay. facility built specificallyfor The first Australianfootballuseappeared watched forfree. oftenspilled ontotheplaying Spectators surface, andthisledtotheenclosure andCarltonfootballclubsattractedasmany as10,000spectators,Melbourne whoatthattime waving aflagtosignalgoalbegan in Tasmania in1884and was adopted in in1886. Victoria umpires were mentionedin1874accountsofthegame. first Thepracticeofthegoalumpire’s play afteragoalwas institutedin1891andalsoremains uniqueto Australian football. by two shorter “behind” posts. The centre bounceusedby gamesandtorestart umpires tostart (Hess & Stewart, 1998). theballbetweenscored goalpostsbut by scored carrying by kickingtheballthrough them each teamwere play. locatedbehindandinfront oftheballduring By1874players nolonger unique compared otherfootballsports, there was nooffsiderule, whichmeantthatplayers from bounce itofftheturfatleastevery 10metres. Mostcrucial, andwhatmakes Australian football running, but after some dispute it was in 1865 that the player agreed with the had or John Nauright 30 national body, the The depression of 1893–1895 caused attendance at games in Melbourne todecline,The depression of1893–1895 caused attendanceatgamesinMelbourne and The gamecontinued tospread throughout the Australian colonies. In1877theSouth Aus- With clubs appearing across the region of southern across ofsouthern With theregion clubsappearing Victoria, aleaguewas neededtoensure the1870sand1880s.The gameexpandedrapidlyduring Inthe1870s, matchesbetween the Australian footballalsodeveloped auniquesetofgoalpostswithtwo largegoalpostsflanked Victorian Football Victorian Association (VFA). the1870sover During 125clubsappeared inMel-

The great distancesthatseparatedcoloniesandthecapitalcitiesmeant The great Australasian Football Council, in 1906 to regulate was interstate formed

Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 22:40 30 Sep 2021; For: 9781315714264, chapter3, 10.4324/9781315714264-4 in theLeague. GrandFinal The first was won by the AdelaideCrows. tion forwomen linked toexistingmen’s teambrands. By2020, clubswillhave fourteen teams a competition.sponsoring In February tion ofthis, the anationalstudyofthegamein2013withview ofpossiblyAFL undertook preseason matcheshave beenplayed inCanada, New Zealand, andSouth Africa. afieldasDenmark,in leaguesasfar England, theNetherlands, andtheUnitedStates, and AFL 2001, the AFL beganthemillenniumitsstrongest ever. Australian footballisalsobeingplayed Australia, and, withchampionshipshaving beenwon by West Coast, Adelaide, by andBrisbane on Melbourne. Despitetheseproblems, in Australian footballisthemostpopularspectatorsport teamsarguingthattheleagueisstilltoofocused ofinterstate threat totheirclubsandsupporters (Suns) in2011and Western (Greater Western Sydney Giants)in2012. Eagles, and Western (Footscray) Bulldogs. Two additionalteamswere addedontheGoldCoast Power, Richmond Tigers, St KildaSaints, , West Coast(Perth, WesternHawks, Kangaroos, Melbourne) (North Demons,Australia) Melbourne () Magpies, EssendonBombers, Fremantle () Dockers, GeelongCats, Hawthorn Adelaide (South Australia) Crows, () Lions, Brisbane Carlton Blues, Collingwood ball League(AFL)toreflect itsnew nationalfocus. In2005the 16 teams: AFL comprised the the mid-1980stolate1990s. In1990the VFL changeditsnametothe Australian Foot- national expansion, foundingteamsinQueensland, Western Australia andSouth Australia from competition in (Hess &Stewart,Victoria 1998; Hess al., et 2008). Melbourne,North the league 12 teams and solidified the giving VFLas the premier football nearly asstrong intothe1920s. In1925the VFL added VFA clubsFootscray, Hawthorn, and was held at the Cricket was (MCG), held at the Melbourne home of the spiritual Aussie Rules. It tunes. audiences. Bythe1930seachteamhadthemesongs, somederived from popular American whoattendmatches,of femalesupporters andby one-third 1900women ormore of formed members. Uniqueamongfootball sports, Australian footballhasalways hadalargenumber 5 percentofaclub. that year, the AFL amendeditsconstitutiontobanany oneinterest from controlling more than 1980s failed. In1995, inorder toprevent hostiletakeovers, inrugbyleague whichhadoccurred baseintwofan citiesratherthanseeFitzroy die. withprivate flirtation inthe ownership A brief clubFitzroy tocreateMelbourne-based astrong chosetomergewithBrisbane andsustainable were in1989and1995, respectively, were members able tosave theirclubsfrom amalgamation. control theirclub. When clubshave beenthreatened withmergers, asFootscray andHawthorn clubsratherthanprivate franchises,membership-based ostensibly whichmeansthatmembers electorates. Unlike professional franchises, sports American AFL teamsare (andalways have been) remained state-based, insuburban areas thatmatchedparliamentary withclubslargelyforming the rugby zonesinstatesofNew South Wales andQueensland. Until1983competitions Australian footballiswoven of deeplyintothefabric Australian society, outside particularly Football anditsfans Women have ofplaying alonghistory Australian football(Lenkic &Hess, 2016). Inrecogni- National expansionhasnotbeeneasy, asa clubsseenby withlarge interstate Melbournians footballclubrelocated toSydneyAfter SouthMelbourne in1982, the VFL soughtfurther While the VFL moved astheleadingcompetition, intothe20thcentury the VFA remained The league’s championship, known asthe GrandFinal, in 1904 beganin1898andstarting Early VFL teamsdeveloped loyal fans, known as “barrackers”, many ofwhomwere club 2017 the Australian Football League began a competi - Australian football 31 Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 22:40 30 Sep 2021; For: 9781315714264, chapter3, 10.4324/9781315714264-4 to win the first titleinMarchto winthefirst 2017. vised as well attracting anational TV audience estimated at 896,000. Adelaide defeated Brisbane watched by acapacitycrowd away. of24,568withmany turned spectators The gamewas tele- match The first Parkwas played in Melbourne. 2017 atPrinces on3 February The matchwas building over onthedramaticgrowth inthesport offemale participation thepasttwo decades. “Carmen”. more inBizet’s highculture tothetuneofmainchorus route withitssongwritten opera Saints GoMarching in.” Demonschose Melbourne “It’s aGrandOleFlag”. Geelongchosea the Notre DameUniversity fightsong. TheSt KildaSaintssongis, notsurprisingly, “When the to USsongspopularinthe1920sand1930s. The Sydney Swans songistothesametuneas US Collegefootball. teamsandtheSydney Many Swans ofthesongsMelbourne show links (Hess & Stewart, 1998; Hesset al., 2008). eventuallywith all games in Melbourne held at two stadiums, the MCG and the Telstra Dome before themid-1960s, between 1965and2001aprocess ofstadiumrationalizationtookplace, abandoned by 2001foranew inner-citystadium. While mostteamsplayed attheirown grounds bourne, which opened as VFL Park in1970. The stadium proved and was unpopular with fans plancalledfor157,000seats)incentralMel- league built a70,000-seatstadium(anoriginal main stadium, the MCG, however, had led the VFL to buy land for its own ground in 1962.The see CarltondefeatCollingwood. over Club’s Concerns Cricket theMelbourne control ofthe and Essendon. Finalattendancepeaked in1970, showed when121,696fans upattheMCGto time was only1.7 million), attendedtheGrandFinalbetween and100,324fans Melbourne more popular(Nauright, 1997). inQueenslandandNew South ofthemorning small hours Wales where rugbycodeshave been streamed online, though formany years thecoverage nightgameswere ofFriday shown inthe broadcasts were allowed. Today all AFL gamescanbeseenviapay or free toairtelevision or ofa game or ondelaythe final quarter as the VFLfelt it attendance if fullgame would hurt stations covered matchesthatseason. For many years television coverage was allowed foronly coverage in1957, radiostationsintensifiedtheirrangeofbroadcasts inorder tocompete. Seven as nearlyallworkers were given Saturday free by afternoons 1946. oftelevisionWith thearrival After theSecond World War, radiocoverage expanded, andlive matchattendancealsoboomed 1946, owing toreluctance officials, ofthecricket whocontrolled theMCG, toallow them. advent ofradiobroadcasts ofmatchesin1925. Live broadcasts ofGrandFinalsbeganonlyin on Victoria’s annual calendar. The league’s continued torise, popularity withthe particularly became, race, Cuphorse aftertheMelbourne andcultural event themostsignificantsporting John Nauright 32 metres (10feet), with each oneplacedatthesideof agoalpostatdistanceof6.4 metres. The each endoftheground. Two posts, shorter calledbehindposts, toaminimum heightof3 rise Two goalpostsnotlessthan6metres (20feet)inheightare at placed 6.4metres (21feet)apart 155 metres (120and170yards) andinlengthbetween 135and185metres (145and 200yards). ground;a uniform-sized itisplayed onanoval fieldthatcaninwidthbetweenvary 110and 720–730 circumference17 ounces)andhasashort of545–555 mm(21.5–22inches)andawideone Australian footballisplayed withanoval ballthatweighs between (16and 450and 480grams Rules ofplay In 2017the AFL launchedawomen’s competition with10clubslinked to AFL men’s clubs feature ofthe A striking AFL isevery teamhasathemeorfightsong reminiscent of In 1957arecord attended 2.5 millionfans VFL matches(Melbourne’s populationatthe mm (28–29inches). that doesnotuse Australian football is oneof the few field sports

Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 22:40 30 Sep 2021; For: 9781315714264, chapter3, 10.4324/9781315714264-4 rugby, or .American A kicks theballintoplay from itsown goalarea. A match consistsoffour20-minute quarters. bounced againatthecentre oftheplaying field. Afterabehindisscored, thescored-upon team of thefieldandplayers leapinginorder toknockitdown toateammate. Afteragoal, theballis umpires oneachside. withthefieldumpire bouncingthefootballincentreThe gamebegins catch theballandreceive theresultant mark. competing players leap, on the back or shoulder of an opponent, sometimes riding in order to behind where hemarked. The game’s finestspectacle is the high mark, inwhichthree or four metres away. The player who makes the mark is allowed a at the goal from anywhere player managestocatchtheballdirectly from thekickofanotherplayer whoisnotlessthan15 the ballisillegal, andthere isnooffsiderule. player holdstheballinonehandandhitsitwithclenchedfistofotherhand. Throwing passtheballtoteammates eitherbyers -kickingitorby handballing, thelatterinwhicha it untilheisheldby anopponent, whenwhichhemust disposeoftheballimmediately. Play- required theballtobebouncedonceevery 10metres. A player may with holdtheballandrun touch itonthegroundatleastonceevery 15metres, achangefrom thesport’s earlyrules, which its behind postiscalledtheline. line between thegoalposts iscalledgoalline, andthisline’s extensionfrom eachgoalpostto izing 1910sand 1920slegendRoy Cazaly, anthemforthesport, becamethemodern originally wrote thescreenplay forGallipoli. In1979, Mike Brady’s song “Up There Cazaly”,- memorial Jack made intoamovie starring Thompson anddirected byBeresford. Bruce Williamson also of thegamehave andhistory also appeared overbooks ontheorigins thepast25 years. hasalsopublished several ofSport oftheHistory onthesport,Journal articles whilekey academic collection. can be found online via the LA 84 Library Many of these articles The International Traditions Sporting 1980s inthejournal , ofthe thejournal History.Australian SocietyforSports South Australia, Western Australia and Tasmania. have articles Somethirty appeared since thelate based in those based in the primary Aussie Rules playingAustralia particularly states of Victoria, There isnow arobust literature from studiesscholars on sports Australian footballprimarily Academic studyandpopularculture by behindsfollowed by totalpoints; forexample, 20.11.131. four posts are distinctive of Australian football. of goalsfollowed in the format Scores are written for agoaltobescored (e.g., whentheballtouchesagoalpost). A behind isworth onepoint. The in any event orwhentheballcrosses thegoallinewithoutmeetingallrequired conditions attacking team; 6points. agoalregisters A “behind” isscored when theballcrosses abehindline offenses are penalizedwiththeoppositiongaining50metres plus afree kick. or tohave withtheballwithoutbouncingortouchingitonground. run Dissentorflagrant defending team when an attacking player is deemed by the umpire to have held the ball too long back are penalizedwithopponentswinningafree kick. Free kicksare alsoawarded tothe 5 metres away. Players whotackleopponentsabove theshoulders, below theknees, orinthe nent by theuseofahip, shoulder, chest, arms, oropenhand, provided theballisnotmore than Australian football entails more body contact than (soccer) but less than Each matchiscontrolled by onefieldumpire, agoalumpire ateachend, andboundary A majordifference from othertypesoffootballis theawarding ofasetkick, or mark, whena A teamconsistsof18players onthefield. Players mayrun withtheball but must bounceor In 1977, David playwright Williamson’s play TheClubwas staged inMelbourne, first later A goalisscored whentheballiskicked clearlythrough thegoalpostsby amemberofthe player may be “shepherded”, or checked, by an oppo- Australian football 33

Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 22:40 30 Sep 2021; For: 9781315714264, chapter3, 10.4324/9781315714264-4 deMoore, G. (2008). Tom Wills: HisSpectacularRiseandFall. Sydney: Allen andUnwin. Collins, T.(2018). United Statesof America. identifiably Australianorgridiron every bitas footballisidentifiedwiththe much as American Australia andIreland. While Australian footballisgrowing globally, itremains uniquelyand has been playedrules of each sport Rules competition which modifies the between teams from years asskillsetsusefulinGaelic footballand Australian footballare similar. An International amateurcompetitioninthesport.international There have beencloselinkstoIreland over the The CupisplayedAustralian Football International every three years andisthepinnacleof world sincethe1980swithcompetitionsaffiliated (Alomes, AFLin20countries 1997). continues toholdastrongfootball andthesport placein Australia, whilegrowing around the change your footyteam. ofidentityinThe clubremains themostsignificantform Australian are two toasuccessfullifethere: rules first, you must have afootyteam; andsecond, you never follow starplayers, incitieslikeAFL fans Melbourne, Adelaide andPerth willtellyou thatthere Unlike today, many sports where identitiesare more andmore malleable and younger often fans & Phillips,sitions attheirannual generalmeeting(Nauright 1997; & Nauright, Phillips 1999). prevented oftheirclubsin1989and1996respectively mergers through voting down thepropo- club decisions. Fangroups ofFootscray (now ) successfully andHawthorne ship driven entitieswhere intheirclubhave thosewhobuy memberships adirect voice inmajor owning more thanafive percentstake inaclub. To 2020, Australianfootballclubs are member- in the1990sasmediainterests invaded ownership structures, the AFL bannedany entityfrom identities.and regional turmoil suchasrugby leagueandrugbyunionfaced When othersports thatdefinessingle sport Australianuniquenessandisa national key componentofcontemporary retains where asmall, thesport countries but committedfollowing. Aussie Rulesremains the challengesandcompetitions.of globalsporting The AFL hassponsored competitionsinother lagsbehindsoccerintotalnationalparticipation,the sport ithasremained resilient intheface League’s competitionisthemostwatched by live andtelevision viewers in Australia. While published in1998. and BobStewart, alsoformer FootballVFA (Victorian Association) and VFL players respectively RobHess ofthesport byhistorians history wideranging game andisalsothetitleoffirst 2000). nalist Eddie Maguire, player former and comedian Trevor (Brooks, Marmalade pies. atthe spectators AFL GrandFinalbetween the West CoastEaglesandtheCollingwood Mag- the songtoaudiencesacross Australia in2018includingalive infront of100,000 performance hiscareer whichendedin1927.taking high-flyingmarksduring Brady was stillperforming theSecond Australian troops during World War andthephrasecaptured Cazaly’s reputation for fortheChannel7television coverage.written “Up There Cazaly” was for alsoabattlecry John Nauright 34 Brooks, K. (2000). “More thanagame”: The Footy Show,- offootballcelebri andtheconstruction fandom Blainey, G. (2003). AGameofOurOwn: of The Origins Australian. Football Melbourne: BlackInc. Alomes, S. (1997). game? Australian football the international The Danish Australian Football League and References Routledge. ties. of the internationalisation Australian football, 1989–1996. Traditions Sporting 13(2), 3–17. Though only a truly nationalcompetitionsincethelater1980s,Though onlyatruly the Australian Football The FootyShowbeganweekly in1994hostedthrough analysisofthesport 2018by jour- Football Studies3(1), 27–48. The FootyShowthemesong “More Than aGame” addedtothemusical lexiconofthe How FootballBegan: ofHowthe A Global History World’s FootballCodes Were. Born London: Downloaded By: 10.3.98.104 At: 22:40 30 Sep 2021; For: 9781315714264, chapter3, 10.4324/9781315714264-4 Hess, R., Nicholson, M., Stewart, B. Hess, R. Phillips, M.G. Nauright, J. Nauright, J. (1997). EarlySaturday morning’s forfootball: morning notagreat Critiquing Australian foot- Lenkic, B. Stremski, R. (1987). KillforCollingwood. Melbourne: Allen & Unwin. bourne: University Melbourne Press. American ownership andmarketingAmerican models. MarketingQuarterly, Sport 6(1), 33–39. 13(2), 171–174. ball coverage inQueenslandandthemarketing ofthe Australian Football League. Traditions Sporting , Echo Publishing. Football. available onlineatwww.la84.com. amalgamation indifferent footballcodesin Australia. Studies, Sports International 17(1), 23–38. Copy & Stewart, B. (1998). More Than aGame: of History An Unauthorised Australian RulesFootball. Mel- & Hess, R. (2016). Play On! The Hidden of History Women’s Australian RulesFootball. Melbourne: & Phillips, M.G. (1997). Usandthem: Australian professional andresistance toNorth sport & Nauright, J. (1999). movements fan Sports tosave suburban-based teamsthreatened with & DeMore, G. (2008). ANationalGame: of The History Australian Rules Australian football 35