101st season of the Australian Football League (AFL)
The 1997 AFL season was the 101st season of the Australian Football League (AFL), the highest level senior Australian rules football competition in Australia, which was known as the Victorian Football League until 1989. The season ran from 27 March until 27 September, and comprised a 22-game home-and-away season followed by a finals series featuring the top eight clubs.
Before the season, the Port Adelaide Football Club (SANFL) was admitted to the league, increasing the South Australian membership to two clubs. Foundation club Fitzroy, which had gone into administration in 1996, merged with the Brisbane Bears to form a new Queensland-based club known as the Brisbane Lions. The Footscray Football Club changed its name to the Western Bulldogs. With these changes, the league's size remained at sixteen clubs.
The premiership was won by the Adelaide Football Club for the first time, after it defeated St Kilda by 31 points in the 1997 AFL Grand Final.
Home-and-away season
Round 1
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Round 1
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| Thursday, 27 March (7:40 pm)
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North Melbourne 7.13 (55)
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def. by
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Melbourne 10.10 (70)
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MCG (crowd: 35,802)
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Report
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| Saturday, 29 March (2:10 pm)
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Collingwood 26.10 (166)
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def.
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Port Adelaide 13.9 (87)
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MCG (crowd: 51,883)
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Report
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| Saturday, 29 March (2:10 pm)
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Western Bulldogs 11.10 (76)
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def. by
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Fremantle 10.20 (80)
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Optus Oval (crowd: 8,664)
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Report
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| Saturday, 29 March (7:40 pm)
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St Kilda 10.11 (71)
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def. by
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Hawthorn 11.11 (77)
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Waverley Park (crowd: 35,732)
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Report
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| Saturday, 29 March (6:40 pm)
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West Coast 12.6 (78)
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def.
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Sydney 5.7 (37)
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Subiaco Oval (crowd: 29,965)
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Report
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| Sunday, 30 March (1:40 pm)
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Adelaide 20.12 (132)
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def.
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Brisbane Lions 14.12 (96)
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Football Park (crowd: 36,602)
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Report
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| Sunday, 30 March (2:10 pm)
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Richmond 15.14 (104)
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def.
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Geelong 13.17 (95)
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MCG (crowd: 48,358)
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Report
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| Monday, 31 March (2:10 pm)
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Essendon 16.10 (106)
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def.
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Carlton 15.9 (99)
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MCG (crowd: 82,363)
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Report
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- Port Adelaide endured a disappointing AFL debut at the MCG in front of over 50,000 spectators, with Collingwood jumping out to a 22-point lead at quarter time and extending the lead at each change to run out comfortable 79-point winners. Speedy midfielder Paul Williams was considered best-on-ground with 30 touches and 4 goals, while Nathan Buckley (who won a Magarey with Port in the SANFL) racked up 23 kicks and Saverio Rocca made the most of limited opportunities to kick six goals. For Port, Donald Dickie (26 touches), Fabian Francis (20 touches, 2 goals) and eventual Rising Star winner Michael Wilson were among Port's better players.
- The Easter Monday clash between Essendon and Carlton is best remembered not for its close finish but for what happened after the game. The ongoing feud between Sean Denham and Greg Williams (which had stemmed from the 1993 Grand final) had reached a critical point, with both players engaged in a heated argument before umpire Andrew Coates tried to intervene, only to be pushed away by Williams. Despite the innocuous nature of the contact, the AFL Tribunal suspended Williams for nine matches.[1] The incident was one of football's major talking points that year, leading to a Supreme Court battle between Carlton and the AFL, and eventually the establishment of the AFL Appeals Board.
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Round 2
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Home team score
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Away team
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Away team score
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Ground
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Crowd
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Date
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| Melbourne |
7.14 (56) |
Collingwood |
24.19 (163) |
MCG |
61,138 |
Friday 4, April
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| Richmond |
19.14 (128) |
Adelaide |
15.10 (100) |
MCG |
32,880 |
Saturday 5, April
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| Geelong |
11.12 (78) |
West Coast |
11.6 (72) |
Kardinia Park |
17,988 |
Saturday 5, April
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| Western Bulldogs |
13.12 (90) |
Sydney |
12.11 (83) |
Princes Park |
12,604 |
Saturday 5, April
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| Brisbane Lions |
23.16 (154) |
St Kilda |
7.15 (57) |
Gabba |
17,123 |
Sunday 6, April
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| Port Adelaide |
8.12 (60) |
Essendon |
14.9 (93) |
Football Park |
32,747 |
Sunday 6, April
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| Fremantle |
13.9 (87) |
Hawthorn |
10.13 (73) |
Subiaco Oval |
19,057 |
Sunday 6, April
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| North Melbourne |
12.14 (86) |
Carlton |
8.12 (60) |
MCG |
38,170 |
Monday 7, April
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Round 3
| Home team
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Home team score
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Away team
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Away team score
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Ground
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Crowd
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Date
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| Sydney |
15.9 (99) |
Melbourne |
14.7 (91) |
SCG |
23,598 |
Friday 11, April
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| Western Bulldogs |
16.9 (105) |
Richmond |
12.14 (86) |
MCG |
35,438 |
Saturday 12, April
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| St Kilda |
19.11 (125) |
Collingwood |
17.16 (118) |
Waverley Park |
54,699 |
Saturday 12, April
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| Port Adelaide |
18.21 (129) |
Geelong |
14.6 (90) |
Football Park |
32,074 |
Saturday 12, April
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| Essendon |
18.14 (122) |
North Melbourne |
12.8 (80) |
MCG |
57,978 |
Sunday 13, April
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| Carlton |
15.18 (108) |
Adelaide |
12.8 (80) |
Princes Park |
25,966 |
Sunday 13, April
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| Hawthorn |
12.15 (87) |
Brisbane Lions |
11.9 (75) |
Waverley Park |
27,947 |
Sunday 13, April
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| West Coast |
16.15 (111) |
Fremantle |
9.17 (71) |
Subiaco Oval |
39,294 |
Sunday 13, April
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Round 4
| Home team
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Home team score
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Away team
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Away team score
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Ground
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Crowd
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Date
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| Melbourne |
13.9 (87) |
Western Bulldogs |
13.11 (89) |
MCG |
28,043 |
Friday 18, April
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| Collingwood |
12.12 (84) |
Carlton |
15.11 (101) |
MCG |
78,704 |
Saturday 19, April
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| Richmond |
10.12 (72) |
Fremantle |
10.7 (67) |
Princes Park |
15,461 |
Saturday 19, April
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| West Coast |
17.10 (112) |
Hawthorn |
13.10 (88) |
Subiaco Oval |
38,222 |
Saturday 19, April
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| St Kilda |
12.9 (81) |
Sydney |
18.19 (127) |
Waverley Park |
35,061 |
Saturday 19, April
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| Brisbane Lions |
15.19 (109) |
North Melbourne |
12.11 (83) |
Gabba |
18,575 |
Sunday 20, April
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| Adelaide |
11.6 (72) |
Port Adelaide |
11.17 (83) |
Football Park |
47,256 |
Sunday 20, April
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| Geelong |
11.19 (85) |
Essendon |
11.12 (78) |
MCG |
54,922 |
Sunday 20, April
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Round 5
