2002 VFL season
| 2002 VFL season | |
|---|---|
| Date | 5 April – 22 September 2002[1] |
| Teams | 16 |
| Premiers | Geelong reserves 1st premiership |
| Runners-up | Port Melbourne 18th runners-up result |
| Minor premiers | Geelong reserves 1st minor premiership |
The 2002 VFL season was the 121st season of the Victorian Football League (VFL), a second-tier Australian rules football competition played in the states of Victoria and Tasmania.[2] The season featured 16 clubs and ran from 5 April to 22 September, comprising a 20-match home-and-away season followed by a four-week finals series featuring the top eight clubs.[3][4]
Geelong reserves won the premiership for the first time, defeating Port Melbourne by 22 points in the 2002 VFL Grand Final.
Clubs
Venues and affiliations
| Club | Home venue(s) | Capacity | AFL affiliation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bendigo | Queen Elizabeth Oval | 10,000 | — |
| Box Hill | Box Hill City Oval | 10,000 | Hawthorn |
| Carlton | Optus Oval | 35,000[5] | Carlton |
| Coburg | Coburg City Oval | 15,000 | Richmond |
| Essendon | Melbourne Cricket Ground | 97,000[6] | Essendon |
| Windy Hill | 10,000 | ||
| Frankston | Frankston Park | 5,000 | — |
| Geelong | Skilled Stadium | 28,000[7] | Geelong |
| Murray Kangaroos | Coburg City Oval | 12,000 | Kangaroos |
| Lavington Sports Ground | 20,000 | ||
| North Ballarat | Northern Oval | 11,000 | — |
| Northern Bullants | Preston City Oval | 5,000 | — |
| Port Melbourne | TEAC Oval | 6,000 | Sydney |
| Sandringham | Trevor Barker Beach Oval | 6,000 | Melbourne |
| Springvale | Moorabbin Oval | 8,000 | St Kilda |
| Shepley Oval | 4,000 | ||
| Tasmania | Bellerive Oval | 16,000 | — |
| York Park | 15,000 | ||
| Werribee | Chirnside Park | 8,000 | Western Bulldogs |
| Williamstown | Williamstown Cricket Ground | 6,000 | Collingwood |
Home-and-away season
Round 1
Round 2
Round 3
Round 4
Round 5
Round 6
Round 7
Round 8
Round 9
Round 10
Round 11
Ladder
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | D | PF | PA | PP | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Geelong reserves (P) | 20 | 17 | 3 | 0 | 2171 | 1377 | 157.7 | 68 | Finals series |
| 2 | Werribee | 20 | 16 | 4 | 0 | 2233 | 1450 | 154.0 | 64 | |
| 3 | Coburg | 20 | 16 | 4 | 0 | 2019 | 1466 | 137.7 | 64 | |
| 4 | Port Melbourne | 20 | 14 | 6 | 0 | 2097 | 1780 | 117.8 | 56 | |
| 5 | Box Hill | 20 | 12 | 7 | 1 | 2235 | 1758 | 127.1 | 50 | |
| 6 | Williamstown | 20 | 11 | 9 | 0 | 1997 | 1821 | 109.7 | 44 | |
| 7 | Murray Kangaroos | 20 | 10 | 9 | 1 | 2018 | 1949 | 103.5 | 42 | |
| 8 | Sandringham | 20 | 10 | 10 | 0 | 1831 | 1768 | 103.6 | 40 | |
| 9 | Carlton reserves | 20 | 10 | 10 | 0 | 1785 | 1807 | 98.8 | 40 | |
| 10 | Essendon reserves | 20 | 10 | 10 | 0 | 2091 | 2144 | 97.5 | 40 | |
| 11 | Springvale | 20 | 9 | 11 | 0 | 1654 | 1748 | 94.6 | 36 | |
| 12 | Tasmania | 20 | 8 | 11 | 1 | 1730 | 1942 | 89.1 | 34 | |
| 13 | Northern Bullants | 20 | 6 | 14 | 0 | 1824 | 2121 | 86.0 | 24 | |
| 14 | North Ballarat | 20 | 5 | 15 | 0 | 1485 | 2024 | 73.4 | 20 | |
| 15 | Frankston | 20 | 4 | 16 | 0 | 1530 | 2258 | 67.8 | 16 | |
| 16 | Bendigo | 20 | 0 | 19 | 1 | 1266 | 2553 | 49.6 | 2 |
Source:
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) percentage; 3) number of points for.
(P) Premiers
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) percentage; 3) number of points for.
(P) Premiers
Finals series
| Qualifying and elimination finals | Semi-finals | Preliminary finals | Grand final | ||||||||||||||||
| 31 August, North Port Oval | |||||||||||||||||||
| 1 | Geelong | 16.14 (110) | |||||||||||||||||
| 4 | Port Melbourne | 18.9 (117) | September 8, North Port Oval | ||||||||||||||||
| Geelong | 18.15 (123) | ||||||||||||||||||
| August 31, Box Hill City Oval | Sandringham | 4.9 (33) | September 14, North Port Oval | ||||||||||||||||
| 5 | Box Hill | 9.7 (61) | Port Melbourne | 13.10 (88) | |||||||||||||||
| 8 | Sandringham | 8.15 (63) | Coburg | 12.13 (85) | September 22, Optus Oval | ||||||||||||||
| Port Melbourne | 12.11 (83) | ||||||||||||||||||
| September 1, W.C.G. | September 15, North Port Oval | Geelong | 15.15 (105) | ||||||||||||||||
| 6 | Williamstown | 14.14 (98) | Werribee | 9.11 (65) | |||||||||||||||
| 7 | Murray Kangaroos | 18.18 (126) | September 7, North Port Oval | Geelong | 12.20 (92) | ||||||||||||||
| Coburg | 14.15 (99) | ||||||||||||||||||
| September 1, North Port Oval | Murray Kangaroos | 11.8 (74) | |||||||||||||||||
| 2 | Werribee | 13.13 (91) | |||||||||||||||||
| 3 | Coburg | 14.6 (90) | |||||||||||||||||
Grand Final
| 2002 VFL Grand Final | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday 22 September
(2:10 pm) |
Port Melbourne | def. by | Geelong | Optus Oval (crowd: 11,500) | [8][9] |
| 2.3 (15) 7.5 (47) 12.8 (80) 12.11 (83) |
Q1 Q2 Q3 Final |
3.2 (20) 7.6 (48) 9.12 (66) 15.15 (105) |
Norm Goss Memorial Medal: James Rahilly (Geelong) Television broadcast: ABC | ||
| Stevens 2, Gill 2, Ablett, Buchanan, Evans, O'Keefe, Phibbs, Rix, Robertson, Schneider | Goals | Mensch 3, S. Johnson 2, Ablett, Chapman, Chatfield, Gardiner, Hunt, McCarthy, McGrath, O'Brien, Slade, White | |||
| Brockman, Obst, Rose, R O'Loughlin, McMahon, O'Keefe | Best | Rahilly, Slade, Mensch, Bartel, Chapman, McGrath | |||
Awards
- The Jim 'Frosty' Miller Medal was won for the fourth consecutive year by Nick Sautner (Frankston), who kicked 93 goals.[10]
- The J. J. Liston Trophy was won by Sam Mitchell (Box Hill). In the most dominant Liston Trophy performance in history, Mitchell polled 31 votes in only eleven games, including ten best-on-ground performances. Dean Talbot (Coburg) was second with 19 votes, and Mark Bradley (Bendigo) was third with 18 votes.[11]
- The Fothergill–Round Medal was won by Michael Firrito (Box Hill).[12]
- Williamstown won the reserves premiership. Williamstown 11.15 (81) defeated Werribee 10.14 (74) in the Grand Final, held as a curtain-raiser to the Seniors Grand Final on 22 September.[8]
Notable events
- In Round 13, Port Melbourne 11.5 (71) trailed Box Hill 18.14 (122) by 51 points at three-quarter time, before kicking nine goals to no score in the final quarter to win the game by nine points, 20.11 (131) d. 18.14 (122).[13][14]
- The round 17 match between Coburg and Sandringham had its start time moved from 2pm to 1:10pm to allow for an ABC television broadcast.[15]
See also
- List of VFA/VFL premiers
- Australian Rules Football
- Victorian Football League
- Australian Football League
- 2002 AFL season
References
- ^ "2002 VFL Men's Premiership Season". Australian Football. Archived from the original on 19 June 2025. Retrieved 19 June 2025.
- ^ "2002 Annual Review" (PDF). footyindustry.com. Football Victoria. Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 May 2025. Retrieved 27 May 2025.
- ^ "VFL SIDE TO PLAY EIGHT GAMES AT WINDY HILL". Essendon Football Club. 13 November 2001. Archived from the original on 19 June 2025. Retrieved 19 June 2025.
- ^ "52nd Annual General Meeting" (PDF). Box Hill Hawks. 9 December 2002. Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 April 2025. Retrieved 20 June 2025.
- ^ "Ikon Park". Austadiums. Archived from the original on 18 September 2024. Retrieved 19 June 2025.
- ^ Pande, Chinmaya (29 December 1999). "The magic of the MCG". Rediff. Archived from the original on 19 June 2025. Retrieved 19 June 2025.
- ^ "The Last Time the Hawks were in Town". Geelong Football Club. 5 July 2024. Archived from the original on 19 June 2025. Retrieved 19 June 2025.
- ^ a b Jon Ralph (23 September 2002). "Mensch spurs Cats to break drought". Herald Sun. Melbourne, VIC. p. 61.
- ^ Amy, Paul (29 August 2022). "How a stacked 2002 VFL grand final between Geelong and Port Melbourne launched Cats dynasty". Code Sports. News Corporation Australia. Retrieved 29 August 2022.
- ^ "Frosty Miller Medallists". Fox Sports Pulse. 25 May 2016. Retrieved 4 August 2016.
- ^ Gordon Oldham (17 September 2002). "Box Hill midfielder wins Liston Trophy". The Age. Melbourne, VIC. Retrieved 4 August 2016.
- ^ "Fothergill–Round Medallists". Sportingpulse. 29 October 2014. Retrieved 20 December 2014.
- ^ "2001 VFL Premiership Season". AustralianFootball.com. Retrieved 6 June 2022.
- ^ Brendan Rhodes (8 May 2022). "VFL Rd7: Dolphins produce a Saturday night stunner". Australian Football League. Retrieved 6 June 2022.
- ^ "Round 17 change of game time - COBURG TIGERS v SANDRINGHAM". Football Victoria. 31 July 2002. Archived from the original on 4 August 2002. Retrieved 17 June 2025.