Victorian Junior Football Association


The Victorian Junior Football Association was an open age Australian rules football competition and administrative body. It was the first successful junior football competition in Melbourne, and was in existence from 1883 until 1932.
For most of its history, the VJFA was a competition of independent junior level clubs, before it eventually transitioned to become the second eighteens competition for the senior Victorian Football Association.

History

During the 1870s in Victoria, junior football – which was the term used at the time for open age football of a lower standard than senior football, rather than for under age football – was mostly administered on an ad hoc basis. Several short-lived junior associations had been attempted, but none were successful until the Victorian Junior Football Association was established on 26 April 1883. Eleven clubs –,,,,,,,,, and – were represented at the inaugural meeting.
The VJFA, in addition to serving as an administrative body for junior football, ran the junior premiership. At its peak in the early 1890s when it was the only top junior football competition, more than twenty-five clubs competed, and from 1892 until 1894 the competition ran in two divisions to manage its numbers. The establishment of other junior football competitions – including the Victorian Second-Rate, Third-Rate and Fourth-Rate Junior Football Associations and the Metropolitan Junior Football Association – saw numbers in the VJFA premiership decline rapidly through the 1890s, and by 1899 only seven clubs competed in the VJFA. Eight to twelve teams typically contested the premiership thereafter.
At the 1895 VJFA AGM, the competition was reduced from 20 teams to 12 teams. Those who survived were Albert-park, Albion United, Austral, Brighton, Brunswick, Collingwood Juniors, Essendon District, Fitzroy Juniors, Hawthorn, Preston, Richmond City, and West Melbourne Juniors. Some of these clubs, including Camberwell, were later readmitted to the competition.
The competition typically featured smaller clubs from districts already represented in senior football, or the top clubs from other districts. Four successful VJFA clubs from growing districts – West [Melbourne Football Club|West Melbourne], Preston, Northcote and Yarraville – ultimately went on to play senior football in the Victorian Football Association. In 1905, John Wren donated a silver shield to serve as a semi-perpetual trophy for the VJFA premiers; like many trophies of the era, it was held temporarily by the reigning premiers, then won permanently by the first team to win it three times. A total of five Wren Shields were awarded during the trophy's history.

1912 grand final

The 1912 grand final was especially controversial. Port Melbourne Railway United won the match by three points, but Yarraville successfully protested one of Railway United's second quarter goals on the grounds of goal umpire error, and the match was reversed to a three-point Yarraville victory.
Although they had the right to challenge, Railway United refused to play as its own act of protest. At a special meeting of the VJFA, it was proposed that "the club, office bearers and registered players for 1912 be disqualified for life". Although Yarraville offered to play a substitute team, it was decided that no match would be held, and Yarraville retained the 1912 premiership.
Railway United was ultimately not expelled from the VJFA, and went on to win the VJFA premiership the following season, defeating Yarraville in the 1913 grand final.

Transition to VFA seconds

The VJFA had ties to the VFA from early on, with many clubs serving as the reserves team for a senior VFA club. In 1912, a rule was in place mandating that clubs align themselves to a VFA club, although that requirement was dropped in 1913.
The VJFA eventually formally transitioned to become the VFA Second Eighteens during the 1920s. This began in 1924, when the competition expanded from twelve teams to eighteen in two divisions – one division set aside for clubs who played on the same grounds as their senior VFA counterparts, and one for clubs with their own grounds. All Melbourne-based senior VFA clubs were required to affiliate with a junior team in the VJFA, and an agreement was put in place to lift some restrictions on in-season player movements between the senior or junior clubs, making the affiliated junior clubs functionally closer to seconds teams.
The divisions were called Division 1 and Division 2 in 1924, but from 1925 onwards they were known as the VJFA Section and the VFA Section.
In 1926, after the 1924 player transfer agreement ended, the VFA moved to convert its affiliated junior clubs into genuine second eighteens controlled by the senior clubs; and, starting from 1928, all other clubs were excluded and the VJFA served wholly as a VFA seconds competition, with free player interchanges between senior and junior level permitted until 1 August each year.
The VJFA can be considered to have ceased to exist, replaced by the VFA Second Eighteens, starting from the 1928 season; however, the VJFA name and the Wren Shield as a premiership trophy were both retained until the end of 1932. It was only at this point that competition was formally renamed the VFA Second Eighteens and the Wren Shield was discontinued. The VFA Second Eighteens and its successors, continued to operate until the end of the 2017 season.

Clubs

Over 100 clubs are believed to have competed in the VJFA.
ClubColoursMonikerEst.SeasonsPremiershipsYears of premiershipsCurrent league--------
ClubColoursMonikerEst.SeasonsPremiershipsYears of premiershipsCurrent leagueAlbert ParkParkites18951895−1???21896, 1897Folded
Albion United18831883−1890s0Folded--------
Ascot Vale18??18??−1???;
1916−19??		0--------
Austral1890s−1890s0Folded--------
Brighton18851889−18950Folded
1964		--------
BritanniaBrits18771883−18910--------
Brunswick District19150--------
Brunswick secondsBrickfielders186519??−193221931, 1932Folded
1991		--------
CamberwellTricolours18861888−94;
1913−14;
1916−19		0Folded
1995		--------
Cambridge Star18??18??−1???0--------
Carnegie1920s1923−192?0Folded
c. 2000		--------
Northcote Football Club|City of Northcote]19151915−16;
1918		0Folded
1918		--------
Clifton18??18??−1???0--------
Coast18??18??−1???0--------
Coburg (original)18??18??−1???0--------
Coburg18911891−19120VFL--------
Coburg seconds18911925−193231928, 1929, 1930In recess--------
Districts190619180Merged
1938 with 		--------
Collingwood JuniorsMagpies18931893−19050VFL
as Collingwood reserves		--------
East Richmond18??18??−1???0--------
Electric Telegraph18??18??−1???0--------
Essendon DistrictDons1890s−1900s0--------
Essendon JuniorsDreadnoughts19210Folded
1921		--------
Fairfield1???1916−19??0--------
Fernside18??18??−1???0--------
Fitzroy Crecent18??18??−1???0--------
Fitzroy Imperials18??18??−1???0--------
Fitzroy JuniorsMaroons188321894, 1911VAFA
as Fitzroy reserves		--------
Footscray JuniorsBulldogs18771883−192421907, 1915, 1918VFL
as Footscray reserves		--------
Hawthorn (original)18931893−18980Folded
1899		--------
Hawthorn JuniorsMayblooms190219240In recess--------
KewBears18761889−96;
1920−26		0VAFA--------
Kingsville1900s−192711927--------
Marylebone18831883−1890s11891--------
Melbourne JuniorsRedlegs18581885−192411922In recess--------
Moonee Ponds18??18??−1???0--------
Montague18??18??−1???0--------
Napier Imperial1880s−189511893--------
North Carlton18??18??−1???0--------
North Melbourne JuniorsShinboners18581890s−1???11899VFL
as North Melbourne reserves		--------
North Park18831883−1???51886, 1887, 1888, 1889, 1890--------
North Williamstown11892--------
NorthcoteCotes18691880s−190721904, 1906Folded
1987		--------
Northcote DiggersDiggers19??1921−19??0--------
Parkside18??18??−1???0--------
Pembroke1???19??−1???0--------
Port Melbourne Railway UnitedPortsmen, Ways19021907−1915;
1917−1927		31910, 1913, 1914Folded
c. 1939		--------
Prahran JuniorsTwo Blues18991920−19??0--------
PrestonTonners1882
1912−25		51900, 1901, 1902, 1921, 1923VFL
as Northern Bullants		--------
Preston Districts19051907−19150Merged
1915 with Preston		--------
Preston Star18??18??−1???0--------
Richmond CityRichmondites1880s1883−19010Merged
1902 with West Richmond 		--------
Richmond JuniorsTigers19021902−1920s0VFL
as Richmond reserves		--------
Rose of Northcote19041904−19080--------
South Brunswick18??18??−1???0--------
South Melbourne DistrictsBloods19121914−192611924VAFA--------
South Melbourne JuniorsSoutherers19001901−19??11903--------
South Park18??18??−1???0--------
South [St Kilda Football Club|South St Kilda]1883−18??0Folded
1899		--------
St Kilda Esplanade18??18??−1???0--------
St Kilda Grosvenor18??18??−1???0--------
Star of Brunswick18??18??−1???0--------
Star of Carlton18751883−190711884--------
Union Jack18??18??−1???0--------
Waverley18831883−1???11883--------
Werribee1???1909−19??0--------
West MelbourneWesteners18741880s−190811898Folded
1908		--------
West RichmondRichmondites1???−19010Merged
1902 with Richmond City 		--------
Williamstown seconds
Seagulls, Town18641885−1???;
192?−1932		41885, 1916, 1917, 1919In recess--------
YarravilleEagles19031903−193271905, 1908, 1909, 1912, 1920, 1925, 1926--------

Premiers

The premiers of the VJFA from 1883 until the discontinuation of the Wren Shield in 1932 are given below. Premierships between 1928 and 1932 are included, but overlap with the commonly recognised VFA seconds premierships.
GFPremiership decided by a grand final where a challenge was not needed
Premiership decided by a grand final replay, after the scheduled grand final was drawn
Premiership decided based on the minor premiers, with no grand final required as the ladder leader was at least two wins ahead of the second-placed club
Premiership decided by a challenge final under the Argus system
Premiership decided by a grand final which was contested by the premiers of each division/section
W/LPremiership decided by full season win–loss record
GF Premiership decided by a game that could have been challenged by the runner-up, but wasn't

VFA Section premiers

From 1924 until the end of the 1927 season, the winner of the Division 2/VFA Section grand final played the Division 1/VJFA Section winner in the overall VJFA grand final.
YearPremiersRunners-upScoreVenueDateReport
1924Hawthorn Juniors North Melbourne Juniors
1925Port Melbourne Railway United
1926Port Melbourne Railway United
1927Coburg seconds

Wren Shield permanent winners

Notable events

  • Preston's W. Eades kicked a VJFA record of 21 goals during a 1917 match against Ascot Vale, with Preston winning 32.16 to 2.2. Ascot Vale were three men short with only 14 players on the field.
  • Following the end of the 1922 home-and-away season, Kew player C. Coomber was suspended for 12 months after striking North Melbourne Juniors player A. Gregory.