1961 VFA season
| 1961 VFA Premiership season | |
|---|---|
| Division 1 | |
| Teams | 10 |
| Premiers |
Yarraville (2nd premiership) |
| Minor premiers |
Moorabbin (1st minor premiership) |
| Division 2 | |
| Teams | 8 |
| Premiers |
Northcote (1st D2 premiership) |
| Minor premiers |
Northcote (1st D2 minor premiership) |
|
← 1960
1962 →
|
|
The 1961 Victorian Football Association season was the 80th season of the Australian rules football competition. The season saw a significant change in the structure of the Association, with the competition split into two divisions, with promotion and relegation between them, a system which remained in place until 1988.
The Division 1 premiership was won by the Yarraville Football Club, after it defeated Williamstown in the Grand Final on 30 September by 63 points; it was Yarraville's second and final VFA premiership, and its first since 1935. The inaugural Division 2 premiership was won by Northcote; it was the club's first premiership in either division since 1936.
Since 1956, the Association had been attempting to expand from fourteen to twenty clubs, and part of the plan to manage this was to operate in two divisions of ten clubs each. There had been two structures proposed for this: the first would see the clubs divided geographically into Northern and Southern divisions, based on their position relative to the Yarra River, and the premiers from each division would play off for the Association-wide premiership at the end of the season; the second would see a top division and a second division with promotion and relegation between them. A partial approach to geographical divisions had been trialled since 1958, with all teams competing in a single division but fixtured to play most games against teams in their geographical section. However, it was becoming recognised that difference in class between the strongest clubs and the weakest clubs was widening, resulting in a lot of very one-sided matches; it was thought that dividing into a top and second division would allow teams in both divisions to play more competitive matches, and therefore attract greater public interest.
The matter of division was discussed on 2 December 1960. The motion to change required a three-quarters majority to pass, and passed by exactly that margin, 27–9; and, in fact, the motion would have been defeated had Mordialloc, one of the five clubs to oppose the change, sent both of its delegates to the meeting; its second delegate, Jack Danckert, was unavailable as his wife was expecting to give birth, and Mordialloc did not have time to arrange for his proxy to attend, leaving it with only one of its two votes. The five clubs to vote against the motion were Mordialloc, which was destined for Division 1, and Camberwell, Dandenong, Preston and Sunshine, which were all destined for Division 2.Yarraville and Northcote had been expected to oppose the change, but both ultimately voted for it. Clubs opposed to the change were concerned that the prestige and popularity of Division 2 would be significantly diminished, such that it would become seen as little more than a junior competition, and that local councils may withdraw their support for lower division teams.
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