Northcote Football Club
Northcote Football Club, nicknamed The Dragons, was an Australian rules football club which played in the VFA from 1908 until 1987. The club's colours were green and yellow and it was based in the Melbourne suburb of Northcote.
History
Northcote joined the VFA from the Victorian Junior Football Association in 1908.[1] Prior to the 1912 season, Northcote and neighbouring northern suburban club Preston, who were both struggling on-field, amalgamated; the merged club played in Northcote, and competed for a few years under the name Northcote-Preston, before reverting to Northcote.[2][3] Prior to 1915, the Association forced the club to move its playing base to Northcote Park from its preferred home ground at Croxton Park, because the latter had been notorious for more than a decade for the unruly conduct of its patrons;[4][5] Northcote Park was shared with the Northcote Cricket Club, and it served as the club's home ground for the remainder of its time in the VFA.
For its first two decades in the VFA, Northcote failed to have a significant impact. This changed in 1929, when the club won its first premiership and began the most prolific period in its history. The club won five premierships, five minor premierships, and finished runners-up on a further two occasions in eight seasons from 1929 until 1936. The club did not win another top division premiership in its time in the Association.
As the Association expanded through the 1950s, Northcote became one of the weakest clubs in the Association. The club had a low supporter base, and could only offer lower match payments than most other clubs, to the point when the club was fully amateur from 1953 until 1955,[6][7] then again in 1958.[8] This weakness was reflected in generally poor onfield performances – with the notable exception of a preliminary final appearance in 1954 when the club was fully amateur.[9]
After the Association split into two divisions, Northcote won the inaugural Division 2 premiership in 1961, and won another in 1982. The club dropped out of the VFA following the 1987 season.
Northcote was originally nicknamed the Brickfielders because of the local brickworks. For a time in the late 1930s and 1940s, the team was known as the Rosellas,[10][11] Their nickname in the latter half of the 20th century was Dragons.
VFA Premierships
First Division
- 1929
- 1932
- 1933
- 1934
- 1936
Second Division
- 1961
- 1982
Coaches
- Percy Ogden 1922
- Maurie Sheehy 1923
- F. Moore 1924
- Gus Dobrigh 1925
- H. Dimmick 1926
- Bill Adams 1927-1928
- Percy Rowe 1929-1934
- Ralph Goullet & Alec Gray 1935
- Harold Rumney & Jack Lyngcoln 1936
- Ernie Hart & Jack Lyncoln 1937-1938
- Billy Libbis 1939-1941
In recess – WWII 1942-1944
- Tom Wallis 1945
- Jack Barker 1946
- Douglas Nicholls 1947
- Bill Faul 1948
- Jack O'Keefe 1950
- Bill Deans 1951-1952
- Bill Faul 1953-1956
- Jack Gervasoni 1957-1958
- Neil Doolan 1961
- Peter O'Donohue 1962
Notable players
- Carlton – Frank Seymour
- Collingwood – Peter McKenna, Ian McOrist, Jack Regan
- Essendon – Greg Stockdale
- Fitzroy – Len Pye, Douglas Nicholls
- Footscray – Bill Downie
- Melbourne – Bob C. Johnson
- Richmond – Stan Judkins
References
- ^ "Victorian Junior Association". The Argus. Melbourne, VIC. 14 March 1908. p. 17.
- ^ "Preston's weak team". The Argus. Melbourne, VIC. 16 September 1911. p. 17.
- ^ "Football – Northcote and Preston Club". The Argus. Melbourne, VIC. 14 March 1913. p. 9.
- ^ "Ground disqualified". The Argus. Melbourne, VIC. 17 July 1903. p. 6.
- ^ "Who's the delegate – Football Association dilemma". The Argus. Melbourne, VIC. 13 October 1914. p. 10.
- ^ Jack Dunn (17 July 1953). "Third VFA team to play as amateurs". The Sun News-Pictorial. Melbourne, VIC. p. 28.
- ^ "Northcote gets rise". The Sun News-Pictorial. Melbourne, VIC. 8 March 1956. p. 36.
- ^ Noel Carrick (11 June 1958). "Club stops its "pay for play" but...". The Sun News-Pictorial. Melbourne, VIC. p. 50.
- ^ Dave Andersen (6 September 1954). "Triumph for "amateurs"; Northcote wins way to V.F.A. four". The Argus. Melbourne, VIC. p. 19.
- ^ "'Town's triumph in close game". Williamstown Chronicle. Williamstown, VIC. 23 September 1939. p. 3.
- ^ "Seagulls beat Rosellas". Williamstown Chronicle. Williamstown, VIC. 8 June 1945. p. 2.