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1995 VFA season
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1995 VFA season
The 1995 VFA season was the 114th season of the Victorian Football Association (VFA), an Australian rules football competition played in the state of Victoria.
The premiership was won by the Springvale Football Club, after it defeated Sandringham in the grand final on 24 September by 43 points; it was the second premiership won by the club.
The 1995 season was the first season contested after the Victorian Football Association's board of management was dissolved and administration of the competition was turned over to the Victorian State Football League. Under the VSFL, the competition was restructured as a state league to serve as a supporting and developmental competition for the Victorian clubs in the Australian Football League. The 1995 season is a transitional season between the old and new structures. It was the final season in which the competition was known as the Victorian Football Association, before switching its name to the Victorian Football League in 1996.
Through the late 1980s and early 1990s, the Australian Football League (which had been known as the Victorian Football League until 1990) had expanded from a Melbourne-based competition into a national competition, and by 1994 it had admitted four new clubs: West Coast, Brisbane, Adelaide; and Fremantle was announced to begin playing in 1995 – with further expansion discussed. This had created inconsistencies in the AFL's structure: the Victorian clubs (and Sydney, which had a Victorian heritage) operated with a traditional minor grades structure, each fielding reserves and under-19s teams in a dedicated competition in addition to the seniors; but the interstate clubs operated only a senior team, with their states' existing state-level competitions (the South Australian National Football League, Queensland Australian Football League and West Australian Football League) serving the function of the minor grades and junior development.
The AFL began to act on this inconsistency at the end of its 1991 season, when it abolished its traditional zone-based recruiting in favour of the AFL draft for Victorian clubs, and abolished its under-19s competition. A new administrative body, the Victorian State Football League, was established to take over the AFL's administration of football in Victoria, which included football at most levels, but did not include the Victorian Football Association, which operated independently. The VSFL operated a new under-18s competition with newly established clubs across metropolitan and regional Victoria which were independent from AFL clubs. The Victorian AFL clubs and Sydney still operated reserves teams, and VSFL operated their reserves competition. In 1993, the AFL Commission was granted the power to administer the AFL independently, replacing the former structure requiring a vote of club presidents to enact decisions.
Separate to the AFL's drivers, the Victorian Football Association and most of its clubs were in severe financial trouble by 1994. Many clubs were still struggling with debt built up from overspending during the 1970s or 1980s, and most clubs were reliant on poker machines (or older, less lucrative bingo licences) and cutting player payments to stay viable, since gate takings and sponsorships could not sustain the clubs. As a sign of the Association's struggles, the $25,000 affiliation fee was waived in 1994. The Association executive believed that the Association was heading towards folding if no changes were made.
One of the early urgent priorities for the AFL Commission when it gained its enhanced administrative powers was to complete the restructuring of state-level football in Victoria. In early 1994, the commission proposed the establishment of a new Victorian state league, which was to have commenced in 1995. The plan would include:
This new structure was intended to: bring the Victorian structure in line with the interstate structures; reduce operating costs for the Victorian AFL clubs; and, stop the exodus of undrafted or delisted Victorian players to the SANFL or WAFL by providing a strong state-level senior competition for those players to play in, resulting in a stronger developmental structure in Victoria overall to protect the interests of the game in the state. The commission also considered including a club in Tasmania to provide similar developmental benefits to that state.
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1995 VFA season
The 1995 VFA season was the 114th season of the Victorian Football Association (VFA), an Australian rules football competition played in the state of Victoria.
The premiership was won by the Springvale Football Club, after it defeated Sandringham in the grand final on 24 September by 43 points; it was the second premiership won by the club.
The 1995 season was the first season contested after the Victorian Football Association's board of management was dissolved and administration of the competition was turned over to the Victorian State Football League. Under the VSFL, the competition was restructured as a state league to serve as a supporting and developmental competition for the Victorian clubs in the Australian Football League. The 1995 season is a transitional season between the old and new structures. It was the final season in which the competition was known as the Victorian Football Association, before switching its name to the Victorian Football League in 1996.
Through the late 1980s and early 1990s, the Australian Football League (which had been known as the Victorian Football League until 1990) had expanded from a Melbourne-based competition into a national competition, and by 1994 it had admitted four new clubs: West Coast, Brisbane, Adelaide; and Fremantle was announced to begin playing in 1995 – with further expansion discussed. This had created inconsistencies in the AFL's structure: the Victorian clubs (and Sydney, which had a Victorian heritage) operated with a traditional minor grades structure, each fielding reserves and under-19s teams in a dedicated competition in addition to the seniors; but the interstate clubs operated only a senior team, with their states' existing state-level competitions (the South Australian National Football League, Queensland Australian Football League and West Australian Football League) serving the function of the minor grades and junior development.
The AFL began to act on this inconsistency at the end of its 1991 season, when it abolished its traditional zone-based recruiting in favour of the AFL draft for Victorian clubs, and abolished its under-19s competition. A new administrative body, the Victorian State Football League, was established to take over the AFL's administration of football in Victoria, which included football at most levels, but did not include the Victorian Football Association, which operated independently. The VSFL operated a new under-18s competition with newly established clubs across metropolitan and regional Victoria which were independent from AFL clubs. The Victorian AFL clubs and Sydney still operated reserves teams, and VSFL operated their reserves competition. In 1993, the AFL Commission was granted the power to administer the AFL independently, replacing the former structure requiring a vote of club presidents to enact decisions.
Separate to the AFL's drivers, the Victorian Football Association and most of its clubs were in severe financial trouble by 1994. Many clubs were still struggling with debt built up from overspending during the 1970s or 1980s, and most clubs were reliant on poker machines (or older, less lucrative bingo licences) and cutting player payments to stay viable, since gate takings and sponsorships could not sustain the clubs. As a sign of the Association's struggles, the $25,000 affiliation fee was waived in 1994. The Association executive believed that the Association was heading towards folding if no changes were made.
One of the early urgent priorities for the AFL Commission when it gained its enhanced administrative powers was to complete the restructuring of state-level football in Victoria. In early 1994, the commission proposed the establishment of a new Victorian state league, which was to have commenced in 1995. The plan would include:
This new structure was intended to: bring the Victorian structure in line with the interstate structures; reduce operating costs for the Victorian AFL clubs; and, stop the exodus of undrafted or delisted Victorian players to the SANFL or WAFL by providing a strong state-level senior competition for those players to play in, resulting in a stronger developmental structure in Victoria overall to protect the interests of the game in the state. The commission also considered including a club in Tasmania to provide similar developmental benefits to that state.