The 1929 WAFL season was the 45th season of the
West Australian Football League in its various incarnations.
East Fremantle proved the outstanding team, and won the second of what would become seven successive minor premierships and four successive flags. Subiaco denied a Perth club bolstered by the return as coach of
Jack Leckie
Jack Villiers Leckie (born 3 May 1887) was a Scottish communist activist.Jack Villiers Leckie in ''Connecticut, Federal Naturalization Records, 1790–1996''
Early life
Leckie was born in Maybole, Ayrshire, Scotland, into an Irish family.Graham S ...
– who had masterminded their pre-war successes including their only premiership to that point – its first finals appearance since
1920
Events January
* January 1
** Polish–Soviet War in 1920: The Russian Red Army increases its troops along the Polish border from 4 divisions to 20.
** Kauniainen, completely surrounded by the city of Espoo, secedes from Espoo as its own ma ...
with a convincing last round win. Claremont-Cottesloe won more games than in its first three seasons combined and a brilliant mid-season burst looked to assure it of a finals berth before a September fade-out – but the
Great Depression
The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...
and the financial power of several wealthy
VFL clubs prevented the Tigers sustaining this improvement.
Following the death in a truck accident of champion coach
Phil Matson, an upheaval off the field during the summer, and the retirement of numerous top players of their 1920s dynasty such as
Bonny Campbell, Val Sparrow (who took to coaching the club), “Paddy” Hebbard,
Joe O'Meara
Daniel Joseph "Brum" O'Meara (16 September 1908 – 7 November 1985) was an Australian rules footballer who played for Fitzroy and South Melbourne in the VFL during the 1930s.
Football
O'Meara played as a centreman and half forward and debute ...
and Jack Walsh, former powerhouse East Perth suffered its first wooden spoon since
1913
Events January
* January 5 – First Balkan War: Battle of Lemnos (1913), Battle of Lemnos – Greek admiral Pavlos Kountouriotis forces the Turkish fleet to retreat to its base within the Dardanelles, from which it will not ven ...
and lost a club record fifteen consecutive matches. The Royals were also affected by injuries to remaining key players Owens and Fletcher,
[‘An Inglorious Exhibition: Perth’s Runaway Win’; ''The West Australian'', 15 July 1929, p. 16] who missed several games and were never fully fit.
Sol Lawn of South Fremantle beat the record of
Bonny Campbell for most goals in a WAFL season, finishing with ninety-six.
[Devaney, John; ''Full Points Footy’s WA Football Companion''; p. 201 ]
Home-and-away season
Round 1
Round 2
Round 3
Round 4
Round 5
Round 6
Round 7 (Foundation Day)
Round 8
Round 9
Round 10
Round 11
Round 12
Round 13
Round 14
Round 15
Round 16
Round 17
Round 18
Round 19
Round 20
Round 21
Ladder
Finals
First semi-final
Second semi-final
Grand Final
Notes
Awarded retrospectively in 1997 after losing on casting vote.
The other competing clubs’ first 20-goal scores were: Perth – 25.24 (174) v Subiaco in 1904; East Fremantle – 21.11 (137) v Midland Junction in 1905; Subiaco – 20.15 (135) v West Perth in 1913; South Fremantle – 22.15 (147) v Midland Junction in 1916; East Perth – 21.8 (134) v West Perth in 1926. North Fremantle kicked its only 20-goal score of 25.24 (174) against Subiaco as early as 1902, whilst West Perth was to score its first in 1933.
References
External links
Official WAFL websiteWest Australian Football League (WAFL) 1929
{{WAFL seasons
West Australian Football League seasons
WAFL