Aussie Rules Pot Pourri Trivia Quiz

Answer: Cricket

The game that came to be known as Australian Rules Football (or Aussie Rules) began to evolve in Melbourne during the middle of the nineteenth century. There were a number of variants being played in the region and the inspiration for these were drawn from the Gaelic football game, ball games played in British parklands and an Aboriginal game known as marngrook. The latter involved kicking a ball, made of an animal skin stuffed with charcoal or feathers, high into the air.

Nothing was formalized or codified until 1858 when a group of cricketers got together to try and find a way to maintain their fitness after the cricket season had ended. This led to a series of games being played between the students from Scotch College and Melbourne Grammar School and these would be recorded by the AFL, the Australian Football League, as the sport's first competitive games.

The following is an extract from the journals of cricketer Tom Wills: "Now that cricket has been put aside for some few months to come, and cricketers have assumed some-what of the chrysalis nature (for a time only 'tis true), but at length will again burst forth in all their varied hues, rather than allow this state of torpor to creep over them, and stifle their new supple limbs, why can they not, I say, form a foot-ball club, and form a committee of three or more to draw up a code of laws." (19 July 1858). Almost a year later Tom, along with six other members of the Melbourne Cricket Club, would establish the first formal rules for the game.

Answer: There was no time limit

In the early incarnations of the game the match was deemed to be completed when one of the teams kicked two goals. This led to some long-winded contests. It was reported that in 1858 one game went into its third day. When it got dark, and no further goals had been scored, the game was called a draw. A time limit of 100 minutes was introduced in 1869. This was later reduced to 80 minutes of "actual" playing time, with time-on being added for stoppages.

Since the introduction of time limits there has been only one occasion that a game has lasted more than a single day. This occurred in 1996 in a match between St. Kilda and Essendon. The lights in the stadium went out half-way through the game, forcing the players to return the following day to complete the match.

Answer: Ireland

This initiative by the Australian Football League had two purposes; (a) to try and extend their game internationally or, more to the point, obtain some internationally competition for their players and (b) to continue fostering Ireland as a recruiting ground.

To achieve this competition required a comprise in the rules. Most of the rules that apply to Australian Rules were maintained, however, the rectangular shape of the field and the round ball that are features of the Gaelic game were introduced. Disregarding a one-off game that was played in 1967 as part of an Australian Football World Tour, this series commenced in 1984 and is played biannually in November. Each series is over two tests and the final result is determined by the aggregate of the two games.

Answer: No

In the initial drawing up of the rules it was specifically stipulated that "throwing" of the ball was banned. To be caught out in this act would mean surrender of possession to the opposition who were then awarded a free kick. The aim here was to separate the game from rugby. As a further degree of separation, the rules also specified that the ball had to be kicked through the goals rather than carried.

There are two legal methods of disposing of the ball in Aussie Rules. One is kicking the ball and the other is to "hand-ball" it. The latter involves punching the ball with a closed fist. It can be tapped forward with an open hand however, should there be any upward movement of the ball as a result of the tap-on the umpire is likely to call it a throw. This does create debate between Aussie Rules footballers and rugby players as to which sport of the two is the more skillful.

Answer: 99 weeks

Do a minor infringement in a game of football and you will suffer a consequence on-field. Usually, this will mean the loss of possession or the loss of territory gained. However, do something serious, like strike another player, and you may find yourself missing games of football. In 1910 two Carlton players, Doug Fraser and Alex Lang, blighted the game by accepting bribes to help fix a match during the end-of-season finals series. Both were found guilty and suspended for 99 games which, essentially amounted to a five year ban. Fraser would not play again and passed away in 1919. Lang would return to play for Carlton in 1916, register his 100th game for the club during that season and he'd retire the following year.

The only suspension that came near to rivaling that during the twentieth century was that of North Melbourne player Fred Rutley in 1925. However, in his case, he fronted the tribunal for six offences arising from the one game - two of kicking, three of striking and one of causing a melee. The penalty arising from all six charges totaled 89 weeks.
(Maxwell Smart was agent 86 and his co-worker, played by Barbara Feldon, was agent 99)

Answer: Victorian Football League (VFL)

The Victorian Football Association (VFA) was formed in 1877 but a dispute over profit allocations and gate receipts saw six of its stronger clubs (Collingwood, Essendon, Fitzroy, Geelong, Melbourne and South Melbourne) secede and form the rival Victorian Football League (VFL) in 1897. Carlton and St. Kilda were then invited to become an eight team competition. The new league thrived and by 1925 had expanded to twelve teams with the inclusions of Richmond (in 1908) and Footscray, Hawthorn and North Melbourne in 1925.

By the 1980s the competition had grown to be the biggest league in Australia. Local teams began poaching the best players from around the country. This was fine for the strongest clubs but some, in an effort to keep up, were nearly sent into bankruptcy. There were efforts made to bring some of the stronger clubs in the West Australian and South Australian competitions. These moves would have decimated the interstate competitions. As a result, in 1986, The WAFL and the Queensland Australian Football League were granted licences to join the VFL, which became the first steps to create a truly national football competition.

Note -- The South Australian league is known the South Australian National Football League (SANFL) not, as listed above, the South Australian Football League (SAFL). The word National was deliberately omitted to not provide a mis-leading answer option.

Answer: They also won the wooden spoon

This season occurred in the midst of World War I and most of the teams in the competition were unable to field sides as their players were involved in the war. The competition, in 1916, managed to field only four teams instead of the usual nine. As the finals series was to be played by the sides finishing in the top four, this meant that the team finishing fourth was last at the end of the home and away season (hence wooden spooners) but was also eligible to contest the finals.

Fitzroy's home and away season was poor, securing only two victories from their twelve games. However, this totally turned around once the finals started as they won all three games of the series to secure the premiership. In light of them winning the flag some dispute their claim to the wooden spoon and claim that Richmond, who were declared to be last after the finals series, should be the holders of that title. The consensus, though, is that the wooden spoon is declared at the end of the home and away season, not the finals. At this point the rankings of those not playing finals cannot change. The only reason it differs in this year is that all teams played finals.

Answer: True

It is unusual for a game of Australian Rules to be stopped though there have been occasions when something extraordinary has occurred to do so. Some examples that do stand out include -- the 1982 Grand Final between Carlton and Richmond when spectator Helen D'Amico ran onto the ground wearing nothing but a Carlton team scarf. Play was held up while the young lady was escorted from the field. Almost forty years later in 2021, with only twenty minutes of a game remaining between Melbourne and the West Coast Eagles, players were forced off the ground thanks to an electrical storm. The game resumed some forty minutes later.

The most comical though occurred in 1993 in a match between the Sydney Swans and St. Kilda. Some wag smuggled a piglet into the ground with the word "Pluga" painted on one side and "No 4" on the other. The pig was let loose onto the ground during the second quarter and play was held up while officials tried to catch the young swine. Eventually it was tackled by Sydney Swans player Darren Holmes, removed from the ground and the game resumed.
(Tony Lockett, nicknamed Pluga, played for the Swans)

Answer: Red and White

Australia is more readily associated with the Black swan, hence it seems incongruous that Sydney Swans should be attired in red and white. Hopefully, the mention of Bloodstained (red) Angels (white) helped you out.

To understand Sydney's colours, one must look deeper into its history. The club was inaugurated in June of 1874 as the Cecil Football Club but changed its name a month later to the South Melbourne Football Club. Their colours at that point were blue and white. Six years later they amalgamated with the Albert Park Football Club. The compromise in the amalgamation is that they retained the name of South Melbourne but adopted the Albert Park colours of red and white. This soon led to them being dubbed the "Bloods" and the abovenamed epithet.

The clubs had enjoyed only minor successes over the years winning flags in 1909 and 1919. They endured a long finals drought which was finally broken in 1932, winning their next flag in 1933. To achieve this they'd recruited a number of players from other states. After their flag win in 1933, respected journalist Hec de Lacy, from the Sporting Globe, dubbed them the Swans in reference to the large number of West Australians they had in their side - the Black swan being the emblem of that state. The following year the club chose to adopt that as their official emblem.

Now you probably have another question running through your mind - how come they're called the Sydney Swans when they're actually the South Melbourne Football Club? No, South Melbourne is not a suburb of Sydney. At the dawn of the 1980s the club was in financial difficulties and looked likely to fold. In an effort to make itself viable the club relocated to Sydney in 1982. The name was changed to Sydney in 1983, however, the initials SMFC (South Melbourne Football Club) remain printed on the back of their guernseys as a reminder to their roots.

Answer: Gordon Coventry

Considered one of the greatest forward line players of all time, Coventry was afforded "Legend" status in the Australian Rules Hall of Fame. Not only was he the first player to reach the 1,000 goal mark he was also the first to kick 100 goals in a season and the first player to play 300 games.

He debuted for Collingwood as an eighteen year old in 1920 and, by the end of his career, had booted a total of 1,299 goals. This figure was surpassed by Tony Lockett, who finished up with 1360 goals when he retired in 2002.

At that time, three others had kicked more than 1,000 career goals: Doug Wade (1961-1975), Gary Ablett Sr (1982-1997) and Jason Dunstall (1985-1998). [ aka only five players had kicked more than 1,00 career goals ]