The 1952

Victorian Football Association The Victorian Football League (VFL) is an Australian rules football league in Australia serving as one of the second-tier regional semi-professional competitions which sit underneath the fully professional Australian Football League (AFL). It ...

season was the 71st season of the

Australian rules football Australian football, also called Australian rules football or Aussie rules, or more simply football or footy, is a contact sport played between two teams of 18 players on an oval field, often a modified cricket ground. Points are scored by k ...

competition. The premiership was won by the

Oakleigh Football Club Oakleigh Football Club, nicknamed the Devils, was an Australian rules football club from Oakleigh which played in the VFA from 1929 until 1994. Oakleigh wore purple guernseys with a gold monogram thus giving them their original nickname the P ...

, after it defeated Port Melbourne by 21 points in the Grand Final on 4 October. It was Oakleigh's fourth VFA premiership.

Premiership

The home-and-home season was played over twenty matches, before the top four clubs contested a finals series under the

Page–McIntyre system The McIntyre System, or systems as there have been five of them, is a playoff system that gives an advantage to teams or competitors qualifying higher. The systems were developed by Ken McIntyre, an Australian lawyer, historian and English lect ...

to determine the premiers for the season.

Ladder

Finals

Awards

* The leading goalkicker for the season was Johnny Walker ( Williamstown), who kicked 103 goals in the home-and-home season and did not participate in finals. * The

J. J. Liston Trophy The J. J. Liston Trophy is awarded annually to the best and fairest senior player in the Victorian Football League (formerly the Victorian Football Association). It is named after J.J. Liston, a businessman, civic leader and sports administrato ...

was won by Frank Johnson ( Port Melbourne), who polled 47 votes. Jim Bohan (

Camberwell Camberwell () is a district of South London, England, in the London Borough of Southwark, southeast of Charing Cross. Camberwell was first a village associated with the church of St Giles and a common of which Goose Green is a remnant. This e ...

) was second with 45 votes, and Bill Morris ( Box Hill) was third with 23 votes. *

Yarraville Yarraville is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, west of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Maribyrnong local government area. Yarraville recorded a population of 15,636 at the . Yarraville i ...

won the seconds premiership. Yarraville 14.13 (97) defeated

Moorabbin Moorabbin is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 15 km south-east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Kingston local government area. Moorabbin recorded a population of 6,287 at the . Most of the ea ...

12.15 (87) in the Grand Final, played as a curtain raiser to the firsts Grand Final on 4 October.

Notable events

* The Association's Thirds competition, contested by players under the age of 19, was established in 1952. Most clubs already operated Thirds teams, but they were fielded in local leagues rather than a dedicated Association-operated competition. * In its first match of the season on 19 April, Oakleigh 14.10 (94) comfortably defeated Brunswick 4.9 (33). However, two of Oakleigh's new recruits –

Eric Guy Eric Arthur Guy (18 August 1932 – 3 May 1991) was an Australian rules footballer who played with St Kilda in the VFL. Family The youngest of the nine children of Willie Guy (1886-1946), and Ruby May Guy (1889-1960), née Sawyer, Eric Arthu ...

and Bill Botten, both from the Carrum Football Club – were played before their clearances from the Mornington Peninsula Football League were formally lodged with the Association; as a result, on 5 May the Association awarded the match and the four premiership points to Brunswick, and Oakleigh was fined £10. Oakleigh argued that the paperwork error was made by the Permit Committee, not the club; but the Association found that the onus was on Oakleigh to ensure the paperwork was lodged correctly. In August, the club took the Association to the

Supreme Court of Victoria The Supreme Court of Victoria is the highest court in the Australian state of Victoria. Founded in 1852, it is a superior court of common law and equity, with unlimited and inherent jurisdiction within the state. The Supreme Court comprises ...

, seeking to overturn the penalties and injunct the Association from staging the finals if the penalty affected Oakleigh's finishing position, but dropped the case prior to the final round of home-and-home matches after the injunction was refused and an unfavourable reserved judgement was delivered. Ultimately, the club's third placing on the ladder was unaffected by the penalty, and it went on to win the premiership. The legal action cost the club an estimated £453. * On 3 May, Box Hill won its first senior match in the Association, defeating

Brighton Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...

12.14 (86) d. 12.12 (84), to end a 22-game winless streak which included one draw.

External links

List of VFA/VFL Premiers This page is a complete chronological listing of the premiers of the Australian rules football competition known as the Victorian Football Association until 1995 and as the Victorian Football League since 1996. The Victorian Football Association ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:1952 Vfa Season Victorian Football League seasons

VFL The Victorian Football League (VFL) is an Australian rules football league in Australia serving as one of the second-tier regional semi-professional competitions which sit underneath the fully professional Australian Football League (AFL). It ...