1947 WANFL season
| 1947 WAFL season | |
|---|---|
| Teams | 8 |
| Premiers |
South Fremantle (3rd premiership) |
| Minor premiers |
South Fremantle (3rd minor premiership) |
| Matches played | 80 |
| Bernie Naylor Medallist | Bernie Naylor (South Fremantle) |
| Sandover Medallist | Clive Lewington (South Fremantle) |
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← 1946
1948 →
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The 1947 WANFL season was the 63rd season of senior football in Perth, Western Australia. With the background of war completely removed, 1947 saw the WANFL begin a golden age of growth dominated by the two Fremantle clubs, West Perth and Perth, who made the league for the following nine seasons a de facto hierarchy led by South Fremantle and West Perth, who respectively won 128 and 121 of their 159 home-and-away matches between 1947 and 1954.Zones with vastly different populations and large unzoned areas allowed these more successful and financially secure clubs to monopolise the leading player talent.
The red and whites won their first premiership for thirty seasons – ironically under the leadership of former Cardinal captain-coach Ross Hutchinson who transferred for this season. Perth, in the doldrums with only three finals appearances and three seasons with more wins than losses since 1918, began thirty years of prominence during which they won six premierships. In contrast, Subiaco, after two promising postwar seasons were beset by poor recruiting and conflicts over coaching, so that they lost their first eleven games and fell from third to last. The Maroons were not to again win more than five matches in a season until 1956, nor finish above any rival except Swan Districts until 1957. East Fremantle, after their record undefeated season in 1946, fell to fourth place. Old Easts toured Sydney and Canberra in August during the Hobart Carnival, defeating a Canberra team by 77 points at Manuka Oval on 9 August, and a New South Wales state team by 23 points on 10 August.
For the first time the WANFL allowed payments to players in the form of a "Provident Fund" accessed after each player’s retirement and totalling 15 shillings per match – increased to 30 shillings in 1956.
South Fremantle’s brilliant win over West Perth stakes their claim to challenge Old Easts and remained their biggest victory over the Cardinals until 1979.
A WANFL record home-and-away crowd who paid £973 saw South Fremantle inflict East’s first defeat since 21 July 1945, ending a WANFL record run of thirty-five straight victories.
East Perth lodged a protest against Subiaco for playing Bill Ralph, who had resided in East Perth’s district before moving to Goomalling, but the protest has no effect because the Maroons lose their eighth consecutive match.
Ten goals by Naylor allows South Fremantle to retain their undefeated record in a brilliant match in front of another huge crowd after West Perth looked like winning during the last quarter.
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