For the first time since
1929, the membership of the Association changed, expanding from twelve clubs to fourteen. The Association saw itself in a strong enough position to provide the opportunity for top level senior football in the booming outer suburbs which were experiencing strong post-war growth. In August 1950, the Association delegates unanimously voted to admit two new clubs for 1951:[1]
Moorabbin Football Club – nicknamed the Kangaroos,[3] winners of six
Federal District League premierships in the previous seven seasons.[4] Moorabbin played its home games at the Cheltenham Recreation Reserve in 1951, but as a condition of admission and with the support of the city council, it developed the
Moorabbin Oval to use as its home ground from 1952 onwards.[1][5]
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 to determine the premiers for the season.
Port Melbourne won the seconds premiership. Port Melbourne 9.17 (71) defeated
Yarraville 9.10 (64) in the Grand Final, played as a curtain raiser to the firsts Grand Final on 6 October.[10]
Notable events
After increasing factional in-fighting within the Board of Management, former
Brighton president Lewis Page took over the presidency of the Association, after he challenged and defeated incumbent Dr Frank Hartnett, who had served as president since August 1949,[13] at the
annual general meeting in February 1951. After the original vote was tied 16–16, Hartnett stepped aside by giving his
casting vote to Page.[14] Page served as president from 1951 until 1954.[15]
Because the Association had finished last in the top division of the
1950 Brisbane Carnival, it was required to play off against the winners of the lower division, the
Australian Amateurs, to determine which team qualified for the top division at the next carnival, held in Adelaide in
1953. The play-off match was held at
Manuka Oval,
Canberra, on Saturday 14 July.[16] The Association 20.17 (137) defeated the Amateurs 12.12 (84), to retain their place in the 1953 Carnival. The crowd was 2,500, and Prime Minister
Robert Menzies executed the opening bounce of the match.[17]
Association representative teams played two other interstate matches during the season:[18]
On Wednesday 9 May,
South Australia 28.19 (187) defeated the Association 13.14 (92) at
Adelaide Oval before a crowd of 21,000.[19]
On Saturday 30 June, the Association 26.15 (171) defeated
Tasmania 12.11 (83) at
North Hobart Oval, before a crowd of 6,949.[20]