1961 VFL Season

These are the results for the 1961 season of the Victorian Football League (currently known as the Australian Football League).

It featured eighteen rounds. Hawthorn were the minor premiers.

The season ended with a finals series following the Page-McIntyre system. Hawthorn were the premiers, with Graham Arthur as the premiership captain and John Kennedy as the premiership coach.

Season Details

Name: 1961 VFL Season
Teams: 12
Rounds: 18
Finals System: Page-McIntyre System
Matches: 112

Team Details

Team Home Ground Coach (Appointed) Coach (Caretaker)
Carlton Princes Park Ken Hands
Collingwood Victoria Park Phonse Kyne
Essendon Windy Hill John Coleman
Fitzroy Brunswick Street Oval Len Smith Arthur Edwards
Footscray Western Oval Ted Whitten Bill Findlay
Geelong Kardinia Park Bob Davis
Hawthorn Glenferrie Oval John Kennedy
Melbourne MCG Norm Smith
North Melbourne Arden Street Oval Wally Carter
Richmond Punt Road Oval Des Rowe
South Melbourne Lakeside Oval Bill Faul
St Kilda Junction Oval Allan Jeans

Season Results

Premiers: Hawthorn
Runners-Up: Footscray
Minor Premiers: Hawthorn

Team Results

Minor Premiership Results

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA GF BF GA BA
Hawthorn 1st 14 -0- 4 56 125.1% 1,467 1,173 208 219 163 195
Melbourne 2nd 12 -1- 5 50 131.2% 1,510 1,151 209 256 159 197
St Kilda 3rd 11 -0- 7 44 117.1% 1,373 1,173 190 233 165 183
Footscray 4th 11 -0- 7 44 109.7% 1,334 1,216 187 212 170 196
Fitzroy 5th 10 -1- 7 42 116.8% 1,469 1,258 202 257 175 208
Geelong 6th 10 -1- 7 42 100.4% 1,367 1,362 188 239 190 222
Essendon 7th 9 -1- 8 38 109.5% 1,462 1,335 209 208 178 267
Carlton 8th 9 -0- 9 36 96.5% 1,279 1,325 181 193 183 227
Collingwood 9th 5 -1- 12 22 84.8% 1,166 1,375 161 200 190 235
Richmond 10th 5 -0- 13 20 78.9% 1,126 1,428 155 196 195 258
South Melbourne 11th 5 -0- 13 20 72.2% 1,187 1,644 161 221 235 234
North Melbourne 12th 4 -1- 13 18 79.1% 1,133 1,433 154 209 202 221

Overall Premiership Results

Team Position (Outcome)
Hawthorn 1st Premiers
Footscray 2nd Runners-Up
Melbourne 3rd Defeated by Footscray (Preliminary Final)
St Kilda 4th Defeated by Footscray (Semi Final)
Fitzroy 5th Did not qualify for finals
Geelong 6th Did not qualify for finals
Essendon 7th Did not qualify for finals
Carlton 8th Did not qualify for finals
Collingwood 9th Did not qualify for finals
Richmond 10th Did not qualify for finals
South Melbourne 11th Did not qualify for finals
North Melbourne 12th Did not qualify for finals

Ladder Chart

This chart is based on the nominal round, i.e. only one result (win, loss, draw, bye) per round, which may result in not being accurate from a chronological perspective. The positions during the finals series is determined via bespoke logic. You can click on the teams in the legend to add/remove their respective results.

Season Fixture

Regular Season

Round 1

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 15/04/1961 2:20 PM Fitzroy v Melbourne Brunswick Street Oval 46 - 75 31,787
SAT 15/04/1961 2:20 PM Geelong v Collingwood Kardinia Park 96 - 57 23,973
SAT 15/04/1961 2:20 PM Hawthorn v South Melbourne Glenferrie Oval 56 - 81 20,000
SAT 15/04/1961 2:20 PM North Melbourne v Essendon Arden Street Oval 58 - 49 24,000
SAT 15/04/1961 2:20 PM Richmond v Footscray Punt Road Oval 74 - 102 20,000
SAT 15/04/1961 2:20 PM St Kilda v Carlton Junction Oval 38 - 48 30,400

Round 1 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
Geelong 1st 1 -0- 0 4 168.4% 96 57
Melbourne 2nd 1 -0- 0 4 163.0% 75 46
South Melbourne 3rd 1 -0- 0 4 144.6% 81 56
Footscray 4th 1 -0- 0 4 137.8% 102 74
Carlton 5th 1 -0- 0 4 126.3% 48 38
North Melbourne 6th 1 -0- 0 4 118.4% 58 49
Essendon 7th 0 -0- 1 0 84.5% 49 58
St Kilda 8th 0 -0- 1 0 79.2% 38 48
Richmond 9th 0 -0- 1 0 72.5% 74 102
Hawthorn 10th 0 -0- 1 0 69.1% 56 81
Fitzroy 11th 0 -0- 1 0 61.3% 46 75
Collingwood 12th 0 -0- 1 0 59.4% 57 96

Round 2

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 22/04/1961 2:20 PM Carlton v Fitzroy Princes Park 59 - 54 30,000
SAT 22/04/1961 2:20 PM Collingwood v Richmond Victoria Park 34 - 57 25,000
SAT 22/04/1961 2:20 PM Essendon v St Kilda Windy Hill 85 - 69 23,000
SAT 22/04/1961 2:20 PM Footscray v North Melbourne Western Oval 97 - 52 22,178
SAT 22/04/1961 2:20 PM Melbourne v Hawthorn MCG 44 - 76 34,640
SAT 22/04/1961 2:20 PM South Melbourne v Geelong Lakeside Oval 80 - 84 24,258

Round 2 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
Footscray 1st 2 -0- 0 8 157.9% 199 126
Geelong 2nd 2 -0- 0 8 131.4% 180 137
Carlton 3rd 2 -0- 0 8 116.3% 107 92
South Melbourne 4th 1 -0- 1 4 115.0% 161 140
Hawthorn 5th 1 -0- 1 4 105.6% 132 125
Essendon 6th 1 -0- 1 4 105.5% 134 127
Melbourne 7th 1 -0- 1 4 97.5% 119 122
Richmond 8th 1 -0- 1 4 96.3% 131 136
North Melbourne 9th 1 -0- 1 4 75.3% 110 146
St Kilda 10th 0 -0- 2 0 80.5% 107 133
Fitzroy 11th 0 -0- 2 0 74.6% 100 134
Collingwood 12th 0 -0- 2 0 59.5% 91 153

Round 3

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
TUE 25/04/1961 2:30 PM Essendon v Melbourne Windy Hill 57 - 82 32,000
TUE 25/04/1961 2:30 PM Richmond v South Melbourne Punt Road Oval 45 - 89 27,650
SAT 29/04/1961 2:20 PM Carlton v Footscray Princes Park 72 - 81 34,254
SAT 29/04/1961 2:20 PM Collingwood v North Melbourne Victoria Park 88 - 62 26,574
SAT 29/04/1961 2:20 PM Hawthorn v Fitzroy Glenferrie Oval 95 - 69 21,500
SAT 29/04/1961 2:20 PM St Kilda v Geelong Junction Oval 83 - 50 29,300

Round 3 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
Footscray 1st 3 -0- 0 12 141.4% 280 198
South Melbourne 2nd 2 -0- 1 8 135.1% 250 185
Hawthorn 3rd 2 -0- 1 8 117.0% 227 194
Melbourne 4th 2 -0- 1 8 112.3% 201 179
Geelong 5th 2 -0- 1 8 104.5% 230 220
Carlton 6th 2 -0- 1 8 103.5% 179 173
St Kilda 7th 1 -0- 2 4 103.8% 190 183
Essendon 8th 1 -0- 2 4 91.4% 191 209
Collingwood 9th 1 -0- 2 4 83.3% 179 215
Richmond 10th 1 -0- 2 4 78.2% 176 225
North Melbourne 11th 1 -0- 2 4 73.5% 172 234
Fitzroy 12th 0 -0- 3 0 73.8% 169 229

Round 4

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 06/05/1961 2:20 PM Fitzroy v Richmond Brunswick Street Oval 95 - 108 17,861
SAT 06/05/1961 2:20 PM Footscray v Collingwood Western Oval 73 - 64 34,029
SAT 06/05/1961 2:20 PM Geelong v Essendon Kardinia Park 61 - 143 21,437
SAT 06/05/1961 2:20 PM Melbourne v St Kilda MCG 81 - 84 40,572
SAT 06/05/1961 2:20 PM North Melbourne v Hawthorn Arden Street Oval 55 - 85 13,500
SAT 06/05/1961 2:20 PM South Melbourne v Carlton Lakeside Oval 56 - 72 25,624

Round 4 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
Footscray 1st 4 -0- 0 16 134.7% 353 262
Hawthorn 2nd 3 -0- 1 12 125.3% 312 249
Carlton 3rd 3 -0- 1 12 109.6% 251 229
Essendon 4th 2 -0- 2 8 123.7% 334 270
South Melbourne 5th 2 -0- 2 8 119.1% 306 257
Melbourne 6th 2 -0- 2 8 107.2% 282 263
St Kilda 7th 2 -0- 2 8 103.8% 274 264
Richmond 8th 2 -0- 2 8 88.8% 284 320
Geelong 9th 2 -0- 2 8 80.2% 291 363
Collingwood 10th 1 -0- 3 4 84.4% 243 288
North Melbourne 11th 1 -0- 3 4 71.2% 227 319
Fitzroy 12th 0 -0- 4 0 78.3% 264 337

Round 5

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 13/05/1961 2:20 PM Collingwood v Fitzroy Victoria Park 55 - 116 30,560
SAT 13/05/1961 2:20 PM Geelong v Melbourne Kardinia Park 55 - 120 18,873
SAT 13/05/1961 2:20 PM Hawthorn v Essendon Glenferrie Oval 75 - 76 31,000
SAT 13/05/1961 2:20 PM North Melbourne v Carlton Arden Street Oval 83 - 109 21,500
SAT 13/05/1961 2:20 PM Richmond v St Kilda Punt Road Oval 85 - 86 22,500
SAT 13/05/1961 2:20 PM South Melbourne v Footscray Lakeside Oval 84 - 82 26,748

Round 5 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
Footscray 1st 4 -0- 1 16 125.7% 435 346
Carlton 2nd 4 -0- 1 16 115.4% 360 312
Melbourne 3rd 3 -0- 2 12 126.4% 402 318
Hawthorn 4th 3 -0- 2 12 119.1% 387 325
Essendon 5th 3 -0- 2 12 118.8% 410 345
South Melbourne 6th 3 -0- 2 12 115.0% 390 339
St Kilda 7th 3 -0- 2 12 103.2% 360 349
Richmond 8th 2 -0- 3 8 90.9% 369 406
Geelong 9th 2 -0- 3 8 71.6% 346 483
Fitzroy 10th 1 -0- 4 4 96.9% 380 392
Collingwood 11th 1 -0- 4 4 73.8% 298 404
North Melbourne 12th 1 -0- 4 4 72.4% 310 428

Round 6

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 20/05/1961 2:20 PM Essendon v South Melbourne Windy Hill 133 - 54 32,600
SAT 20/05/1961 2:20 PM Fitzroy v North Melbourne Brunswick Street Oval 97 - 79 17,963
SAT 20/05/1961 2:20 PM Richmond v Geelong Punt Road Oval 68 - 112 24,600
SAT 27/05/1961 2:20 PM Carlton v Collingwood Princes Park 65 - 54 33,161
SAT 27/05/1961 2:20 PM Footscray v Melbourne Western Oval 62 - 87 29,490
SAT 27/05/1961 2:20 PM St Kilda v Hawthorn Junction Oval 100 - 81 32,900

Round 6 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
Carlton 1st 5 -0- 1 20 116.1% 425 366
Essendon 2nd 4 -0- 2 16 136.1% 543 399
Melbourne 3rd 4 -0- 2 16 128.7% 489 380
Footscray 4th 4 -0- 2 16 114.8% 497 433
St Kilda 5th 4 -0- 2 16 107.0% 460 430
Hawthorn 6th 3 -0- 3 12 110.1% 468 425
South Melbourne 7th 3 -0- 3 12 94.1% 444 472
Geelong 8th 3 -0- 3 12 83.1% 458 551
Fitzroy 9th 2 -0- 4 8 101.3% 477 471
Richmond 10th 2 -0- 4 8 84.4% 437 518
Collingwood 11th 1 -0- 5 4 75.1% 352 469
North Melbourne 12th 1 -0- 5 4 74.1% 389 525

Round 7

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 03/06/1961 2:20 PM Collingwood v Essendon Victoria Park 119 - 58 28,200
SAT 03/06/1961 2:20 PM Geelong v Footscray Kardinia Park 91 - 38 18,683
SAT 03/06/1961 2:20 PM Hawthorn v Richmond Glenferrie Oval 73 - 60 15,000
SAT 03/06/1961 2:20 PM Melbourne v Carlton MCG 104 - 79 49,678
SAT 03/06/1961 2:20 PM North Melbourne v St Kilda Arden Street Oval 68 - 82 13,000
SAT 03/06/1961 2:20 PM South Melbourne v Fitzroy Lakeside Oval 50 - 117 14,500

Round 7 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
Melbourne 1st 5 -0- 2 20 129.2% 593 459
St Kilda 2nd 5 -0- 2 20 108.8% 542 498
Carlton 3rd 5 -0- 2 20 107.2% 504 470
Essendon 4th 4 -0- 3 16 116.0% 601 518
Hawthorn 5th 4 -0- 3 16 111.5% 541 485
Footscray 6th 4 -0- 3 16 102.1% 535 524
Geelong 7th 4 -0- 3 16 93.2% 549 589
Fitzroy 8th 3 -0- 4 12 114.0% 594 521
South Melbourne 9th 3 -0- 4 12 83.9% 494 589
Collingwood 10th 2 -0- 5 8 89.4% 471 527
Richmond 11th 2 -0- 5 8 84.1% 497 591
North Melbourne 12th 1 -0- 6 4 75.3% 457 607

Round 8

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 10/06/1961 2:20 PM Fitzroy v Essendon Brunswick Street Oval 74 - 54 28,083
SAT 10/06/1961 2:20 PM North Melbourne v Geelong Arden Street Oval 79 - 79 16,000
SAT 10/06/1961 2:20 PM St Kilda v South Melbourne Junction Oval 110 - 46 28,800
MON 12/06/1961 2:20 PM Carlton v Richmond Princes Park 49 - 89 24,660
MON 12/06/1961 2:20 PM Footscray v Hawthorn Western Oval 103 - 91 24,132
MON 12/06/1961 2:20 PM Melbourne v Collingwood MCG 121 - 52 78,465

Round 8 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
Melbourne 1st 6 -0- 2 24 139.7% 714 511
St Kilda 2nd 6 -0- 2 24 119.9% 652 544
Footscray 3rd 5 -0- 3 20 103.7% 638 615
Carlton 4th 5 -0- 3 20 98.9% 553 559
Geelong 5th 4 -1- 3 18 94.0% 628 668
Fitzroy 6th 4 -0- 4 16 116.2% 668 575
Essendon 7th 4 -0- 4 16 110.6% 655 592
Hawthorn 8th 4 -0- 4 16 107.5% 632 588
Richmond 9th 3 -0- 5 12 91.6% 586 640
South Melbourne 10th 3 -0- 5 12 77.3% 540 699
Collingwood 11th 2 -0- 6 8 80.7% 523 648
North Melbourne 12th 1 -1- 6 6 78.1% 536 686

Round 9

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 17/06/1961 2:20 PM Collingwood v St Kilda Victoria Park 94 - 84 27,280
SAT 17/06/1961 2:20 PM Essendon v Carlton Windy Hill 89 - 54 25,000
SAT 17/06/1961 2:20 PM Footscray v Fitzroy Western Oval 59 - 63 21,107
SAT 17/06/1961 2:20 PM Geelong v Hawthorn Kardinia Park 61 - 70 14,197
SAT 17/06/1961 2:20 PM Richmond v North Melbourne Punt Road Oval 82 - 76 13,000
SAT 17/06/1961 2:20 PM South Melbourne v Melbourne Lakeside Oval 62 - 98 10,260

Round 9 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
Melbourne 1st 7 -0- 2 28 141.7% 812 573
St Kilda 2nd 6 -0- 3 24 115.4% 736 638
Fitzroy 3rd 5 -0- 4 20 115.3% 731 634
Essendon 4th 5 -0- 4 20 115.2% 744 646
Hawthorn 5th 5 -0- 4 20 108.2% 702 649
Footscray 6th 5 -0- 4 20 102.8% 697 678
Carlton 7th 5 -0- 4 20 93.7% 607 648
Geelong 8th 4 -1- 4 18 93.4% 689 738
Richmond 9th 4 -0- 5 16 93.3% 668 716
Collingwood 10th 3 -0- 6 12 84.3% 617 732
South Melbourne 11th 3 -0- 6 12 75.5% 602 797
North Melbourne 12th 1 -1- 7 6 79.7% 612 768

Round 10

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 24/06/1961 2:20 PM Collingwood v South Melbourne Victoria Park 84 - 44 24,637
SAT 24/06/1961 2:20 PM Geelong v Fitzroy Kardinia Park 64 - 57 16,881
SAT 24/06/1961 2:20 PM Hawthorn v Carlton Glenferrie Oval 78 - 46 21,500
SAT 24/06/1961 2:20 PM North Melbourne v Melbourne Arden Street Oval 44 - 93 11,500
SAT 24/06/1961 2:20 PM Richmond v Essendon Punt Road Oval 92 - 74 23,000
SAT 24/06/1961 2:20 PM St Kilda v Footscray Junction Oval 59 - 37 28,100

Round 10 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
Melbourne 1st 8 -0- 2 32 146.7% 905 617
St Kilda 2nd 7 -0- 3 28 117.8% 795 675
Hawthorn 3rd 6 -0- 4 24 112.2% 780 695
Geelong 4th 5 -1- 4 22 94.7% 753 795
Fitzroy 5th 5 -0- 5 20 112.9% 788 698
Essendon 6th 5 -0- 5 20 110.8% 818 738
Footscray 7th 5 -0- 5 20 99.6% 734 737
Richmond 8th 5 -0- 5 20 96.2% 760 790
Carlton 9th 5 -0- 5 20 89.9% 653 726
Collingwood 10th 4 -0- 6 16 90.3% 701 776
South Melbourne 11th 3 -0- 7 12 73.3% 646 881
North Melbourne 12th 1 -1- 8 6 76.2% 656 861

Round 11

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 01/07/1961 2:20 PM Carlton v Geelong Princes Park 78 - 118 17,936
SAT 01/07/1961 2:20 PM Essendon v Footscray Windy Hill 83 - 92 22,400
SAT 01/07/1961 2:20 PM Fitzroy v St Kilda Brunswick Street Oval 63 - 62 19,291
SAT 01/07/1961 2:20 PM Hawthorn v Collingwood Glenferrie Oval 90 - 36 31,500
SAT 01/07/1961 2:20 PM Melbourne v Richmond MCG 120 - 54 38,090
SAT 01/07/1961 2:20 PM South Melbourne v North Melbourne Lakeside Oval 68 - 50 10,500

Round 11 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
Melbourne 1st 9 -0- 2 36 152.8% 1,025 671
Hawthorn 2nd 7 -0- 4 28 119.0% 870 731
St Kilda 3rd 7 -0- 4 28 116.1% 857 738
Geelong 4th 6 -1- 4 26 99.8% 871 873
Fitzroy 5th 6 -0- 5 24 112.0% 851 760
Footscray 6th 6 -0- 5 24 100.7% 826 820
Essendon 7th 5 -0- 6 20 108.6% 901 830
Richmond 8th 5 -0- 6 20 89.5% 814 910
Carlton 9th 5 -0- 6 20 86.6% 731 844
Collingwood 10th 4 -0- 7 16 85.1% 737 866
South Melbourne 11th 4 -0- 7 16 76.7% 714 931
North Melbourne 12th 1 -1- 9 6 76.0% 706 929

Round 12

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 08/07/1961 2:20 PM Carlton v St Kilda Princes Park 62 - 30 14,636
SAT 08/07/1961 2:20 PM Collingwood v Geelong Victoria Park 41 - 58 20,700
SAT 08/07/1961 2:20 PM Essendon v North Melbourne Windy Hill 63 - 28 12,800
SAT 08/07/1961 2:20 PM Footscray v Richmond Western Oval 42 - 33 16,648
SAT 08/07/1961 2:20 PM Melbourne v Fitzroy MCG 44 - 44 29,947
SAT 08/07/1961 2:20 PM South Melbourne v Hawthorn Lakeside Oval 49 - 65 13,860

Round 12 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
Melbourne 1st 9 -1- 2 38 149.5% 1,069 715
Hawthorn 2nd 8 -0- 4 32 119.9% 935 780
Geelong 3rd 7 -1- 4 30 101.6% 929 914
St Kilda 4th 7 -0- 5 28 110.9% 887 800
Footscray 5th 7 -0- 5 28 101.8% 868 853
Fitzroy 6th 6 -1- 5 26 111.3% 895 804
Essendon 7th 6 -0- 6 24 112.4% 964 858
Carlton 8th 6 -0- 6 24 90.7% 793 874
Richmond 9th 5 -0- 7 20 89.0% 847 952
Collingwood 10th 4 -0- 8 16 84.2% 778 924
South Melbourne 11th 4 -0- 8 16 76.6% 763 996
North Melbourne 12th 1 -1- 10 6 74.0% 734 992

Round 13

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 15/07/1961 2:20 PM Hawthorn v Melbourne Glenferrie Oval 58 - 40 27,500
SAT 15/07/1961 2:20 PM North Melbourne v Footscray Arden Street Oval 75 - 72 15,000
SAT 15/07/1961 2:20 PM Richmond v Collingwood Punt Road Oval 38 - 54 22,790
SAT 22/07/1961 2:20 PM Fitzroy v Carlton Brunswick Street Oval 85 - 76 24,561
SAT 22/07/1961 2:20 PM Geelong v South Melbourne Kardinia Park 82 - 67 18,480
SAT 22/07/1961 2:20 PM St Kilda v Essendon Junction Oval 98 - 50 34,600

Round 13 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
Melbourne 1st 9 -1- 3 38 143.5% 1,109 773
Hawthorn 2nd 9 -0- 4 36 121.1% 993 820
Geelong 3rd 8 -1- 4 34 103.1% 1,011 981
St Kilda 4th 8 -0- 5 32 115.9% 985 850
Fitzroy 5th 7 -1- 5 30 111.4% 980 880
Footscray 6th 7 -0- 6 28 101.3% 940 928
Essendon 7th 6 -0- 7 24 106.1% 1,014 956
Carlton 8th 6 -0- 7 24 90.6% 869 959
Richmond 9th 5 -0- 8 20 88.0% 885 1,006
Collingwood 10th 5 -0- 8 20 86.5% 832 962
South Melbourne 11th 4 -0- 9 16 77.0% 830 1,078
North Melbourne 12th 2 -1- 10 10 76.0% 809 1,064

Round 14

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 29/07/1961 2:20 PM Fitzroy v Hawthorn Brunswick Street Oval 87 - 94 23,012
SAT 29/07/1961 2:20 PM Footscray v Carlton Western Oval 83 - 51 21,639
SAT 29/07/1961 2:20 PM Geelong v St Kilda Kardinia Park 73 - 68 25,993
SAT 29/07/1961 2:20 PM Melbourne v Essendon MCG 78 - 87 31,155
SAT 29/07/1961 2:20 PM North Melbourne v Collingwood Arden Street Oval 67 - 64 15,000
SAT 29/07/1961 2:20 PM South Melbourne v Richmond Lakeside Oval 105 - 68 14,350

Round 14 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
Hawthorn 1st 10 -0- 4 40 119.8% 1,087 907
Melbourne 2nd 9 -1- 4 38 138.0% 1,187 860
Geelong 3rd 9 -1- 4 38 103.3% 1,084 1,049
St Kilda 4th 8 -0- 6 32 114.1% 1,053 923
Footscray 5th 8 -0- 6 32 104.5% 1,023 979
Fitzroy 6th 7 -1- 6 30 109.5% 1,067 974
Essendon 7th 7 -0- 7 28 106.5% 1,101 1,034
Carlton 8th 6 -0- 8 24 88.3% 920 1,042
Collingwood 9th 5 -0- 9 20 87.1% 896 1,029
Richmond 10th 5 -0- 9 20 85.8% 953 1,111
South Melbourne 11th 5 -0- 9 20 81.6% 935 1,146
North Melbourne 12th 3 -1- 10 14 77.7% 876 1,128

Round 15

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 05/08/1961 2:20 PM Carlton v South Melbourne Princes Park 111 - 52 16,880
SAT 05/08/1961 2:20 PM Collingwood v Footscray Victoria Park 40 - 78 22,324
SAT 05/08/1961 2:20 PM Essendon v Geelong Windy Hill 94 - 56 27,000
SAT 05/08/1961 2:20 PM Hawthorn v North Melbourne Glenferrie Oval 100 - 47 14,000
SAT 05/08/1961 2:20 PM Richmond v Fitzroy Punt Road Oval 63 - 68 15,547
SAT 05/08/1961 2:20 PM St Kilda v Melbourne Junction Oval 66 - 55 33,100

Round 15 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
Hawthorn 1st 11 -0- 4 44 124.4% 1,187 954
Melbourne 2nd 9 -1- 5 38 134.1% 1,242 926
Geelong 3rd 9 -1- 5 38 99.7% 1,140 1,143
St Kilda 4th 9 -0- 6 36 114.4% 1,119 978
Footscray 5th 9 -0- 6 36 108.0% 1,101 1,019
Fitzroy 6th 8 -1- 6 34 109.5% 1,135 1,037
Essendon 7th 8 -0- 7 32 109.6% 1,195 1,090
Carlton 8th 7 -0- 8 28 94.2% 1,031 1,094
Richmond 9th 5 -0- 10 20 86.2% 1,016 1,179
Collingwood 10th 5 -0- 10 20 84.6% 936 1,107
South Melbourne 11th 5 -0- 10 20 78.5% 987 1,257
North Melbourne 12th 3 -1- 11 14 75.2% 923 1,228

Round 16

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 12/08/1961 2:20 PM Carlton v North Melbourne Princes Park 70 - 68 15,430
SAT 12/08/1961 2:20 PM Essendon v Hawthorn Windy Hill 72 - 79 27,200
SAT 12/08/1961 2:20 PM Fitzroy v Collingwood Brunswick Street Oval 92 - 70 23,768
SAT 12/08/1961 2:20 PM Footscray v South Melbourne Western Oval 101 - 46 19,242
SAT 12/08/1961 2:20 PM Melbourne v Geelong MCG 89 - 87 48,245
SAT 12/08/1961 2:20 PM St Kilda v Richmond Junction Oval 91 - 8 20,600

Round 16 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
Hawthorn 1st 12 -0- 4 48 123.4% 1,266 1,026
Melbourne 2nd 10 -1- 5 42 131.4% 1,331 1,013
St Kilda 3rd 10 -0- 6 40 122.7% 1,210 986
Footscray 4th 10 -0- 6 40 112.9% 1,202 1,065
Fitzroy 5th 9 -1- 6 38 110.8% 1,227 1,107
Geelong 6th 9 -1- 6 38 99.6% 1,227 1,232
Essendon 7th 8 -0- 8 32 108.4% 1,267 1,169
Carlton 8th 8 -0- 8 32 94.8% 1,101 1,162
Collingwood 9th 5 -0- 11 20 83.9% 1,006 1,199
Richmond 10th 5 -0- 11 20 80.6% 1,024 1,270
South Melbourne 11th 5 -0- 11 20 76.1% 1,033 1,358
North Melbourne 12th 3 -1- 12 14 76.3% 991 1,298

Round 17

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 19/08/1961 2:20 PM Collingwood v Carlton Victoria Park 72 - 88 21,849
SAT 19/08/1961 2:20 PM Geelong v Richmond Kardinia Park 77 - 46 17,976
SAT 19/08/1961 2:20 PM Hawthorn v St Kilda Glenferrie Oval 120 - 91 34,500
SAT 19/08/1961 2:20 PM Melbourne v Footscray MCG 88 - 48 52,195
SAT 19/08/1961 2:20 PM North Melbourne v Fitzroy Arden Street Oval 75 - 63 15,000
SAT 19/08/1961 2:20 PM South Melbourne v Essendon Lakeside Oval 78 - 107 14,125

Round 17 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
Hawthorn 1st 13 -0- 4 52 124.1% 1,386 1,117
Melbourne 2nd 11 -1- 5 46 133.7% 1,419 1,061
Geelong 3rd 10 -1- 6 42 102.0% 1,304 1,278
St Kilda 4th 10 -0- 7 40 117.6% 1,301 1,106
Footscray 5th 10 -0- 7 40 108.4% 1,250 1,153
Fitzroy 6th 9 -1- 7 38 109.1% 1,290 1,182
Essendon 7th 9 -0- 8 36 110.2% 1,374 1,247
Carlton 8th 9 -0- 8 36 96.4% 1,189 1,234
Collingwood 9th 5 -0- 12 20 83.8% 1,078 1,287
Richmond 10th 5 -0- 12 20 79.4% 1,070 1,347
South Melbourne 11th 5 -0- 12 20 75.8% 1,111 1,465
North Melbourne 12th 4 -1- 12 18 78.3% 1,066 1,361

Round 18

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 26/08/1961 2:20 PM Essendon v Collingwood Windy Hill 88 - 88 18,500
SAT 26/08/1961 2:20 PM Footscray v Geelong Western Oval 84 - 63 42,015
SAT 26/08/1961 2:20 PM Richmond v Hawthorn Punt Road Oval 56 - 81 15,177
SAT 26/08/1961 2:30 PM Carlton v Melbourne Princes Park 90 - 91 21,863
SAT 26/08/1961 2:30 PM St Kilda v North Melbourne Junction Oval 72 - 67 24,250
SAT 26/08/1961 2:50 PM Fitzroy v South Melbourne Brunswick Street Oval 179 - 76 12,815

Round 18 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
Hawthorn 1st 14 -0- 4 56 125.1% 1,467 1,173
Melbourne 2nd 12 -1- 5 50 131.2% 1,510 1,151
St Kilda 3rd 11 -0- 7 44 117.1% 1,373 1,173
Footscray 4th 11 -0- 7 44 109.7% 1,334 1,216
Fitzroy 5th 10 -1- 7 42 116.8% 1,469 1,258
Geelong 6th 10 -1- 7 42 100.4% 1,367 1,362
Essendon 7th 9 -1- 8 38 109.5% 1,462 1,335
Carlton 8th 9 -0- 9 36 96.5% 1,279 1,325
Collingwood 9th 5 -1- 12 22 84.8% 1,166 1,375
Richmond 10th 5 -0- 13 20 78.9% 1,126 1,428
South Melbourne 11th 5 -0- 13 20 72.2% 1,187 1,644
North Melbourne 12th 4 -1- 13 18 79.1% 1,133 1,433

Finals Series

The positions of teams going into the finals:

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA GF BF GA BA
Hawthorn 1st 14 -0- 4 56 125.1% 1,467 1,173 208 219 163 195
Melbourne 2nd 12 -1- 5 50 131.2% 1,510 1,151 209 256 159 197
St Kilda 3rd 11 -0- 7 44 117.1% 1,373 1,173 190 233 165 183
Footscray 4th 11 -0- 7 44 109.7% 1,334 1,216 187 212 170 196
Fitzroy 5th 10 -1- 7 42 116.8% 1,469 1,258 202 257 175 208
Geelong 6th 10 -1- 7 42 100.4% 1,367 1,362 188 239 190 222
Essendon 7th 9 -1- 8 38 109.5% 1,462 1,335 209 208 178 267
Carlton 8th 9 -0- 9 36 96.5% 1,279 1,325 181 193 183 227
Collingwood 9th 5 -1- 12 22 84.8% 1,166 1,375 161 200 190 235
Richmond 10th 5 -0- 13 20 78.9% 1,126 1,428 155 196 195 258
South Melbourne 11th 5 -0- 13 20 72.2% 1,187 1,644 161 221 235 234
North Melbourne 12th 4 -1- 13 18 79.1% 1,133 1,433 154 209 202 221

Final Round 1

Semi Final

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 02/09/1961 2:30 PM St Kilda v Footscray MCG 60 - 69 86,411
SAT 09/09/1961 2:30 PM Hawthorn v Melbourne MCG 80 - 73 87,744

Final Round 1 Ladder

Team Pos.
Hawthorn 1st
Melbourne 2nd
Footscray 3rd
St Kilda 4th

Final Round 2

Preliminary Final

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 16/09/1961 2:30 PM Melbourne v Footscray MCG 58 - 85 86,118

Final Round 2 Ladder

Team Pos.
Hawthorn 1st
Footscray 2nd
Melbourne 3rd
St Kilda 4th

Final Round 3

Grand Final

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 23/09/1961 2:50 PM Hawthorn v Footscray MCG 94 - 51 107,935

Final Round 3 Ladder

Team Pos.
Hawthorn 1st
Footscray 2nd
Melbourne 3rd
St Kilda 4th