1978 VFL Season

These are the results for the 1978 season of the Victorian Football League (currently known as the Australian Football League).

It featured twenty-two rounds in a double round-robin format. North Melbourne were the minor premiers.

The season ended with a finals series following the McIntyre Final Five system. Hawthorn were the premiers, with Don Scott as the premiership captain and David Parkin as the premiership coach.

Season Details

Name: 1978 VFL Season
Teams: 12
Rounds: 22
Finals System: McIntyre Final Five System
Matches: 138

Team Details

Team Home Ground Coach (Appointed) Coach (Caretaker)
Carlton Princes Park Ian Stewart Serge Silvagni, Alex Jesaulenko
Collingwood Victoria Park Tom Hafey
Essendon Windy Hill Barry Davis
Fitzroy Junction Oval Graham Campbell
Footscray Western Oval Bill Goggin Don McKenzie
Geelong Kardinia Park Rod Olsson
Hawthorn Princes Park David Parkin
Melbourne MCG Dennis Jones
North Melbourne Arden Street Oval Ron Barassi
Richmond MCG Barry Richardson
South Melbourne Lakeside Oval Des Tuddenham
St Kilda Moorabbin Oval Mike Patterson

Season Results

Premiers: Hawthorn
Runners-Up: North Melbourne
Minor Premiers: North Melbourne

Team Results

Minor Premiership Results

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA GF BF GA BA
North Melbourne 1st 16 -0- 6 64 120.9% 2,407 1,991 353 289 283 293
Hawthorn 2nd 16 -0- 6 64 117.7% 2,496 2,120 356 360 309 266
Collingwood 3rd 15 -0- 7 60 113.3% 2,347 2,072 334 343 296 296
Carlton 4th 14 -0- 8 56 116.8% 2,329 1,994 336 313 279 320
Geelong 5th 12 -0- 10 48 102.3% 2,153 2,104 308 305 300 304
St Kilda 6th 11 -1- 10 46 93.1% 2,330 2,503 337 308 364 319
Richmond 7th 10 -1- 11 42 102.9% 2,459 2,389 354 335 346 313
South Melbourne 8th 9 -0- 13 36 100.3% 2,390 2,383 347 308 346 307
Fitzroy 9th 8 -0- 14 32 96.5% 2,258 2,339 326 302 335 329
Essendon 10th 8 -0- 14 32 94.3% 2,203 2,337 315 313 336 321
Footscray 11th 7 -0- 15 28 90.6% 2,272 2,508 333 274 368 300
Melbourne 12th 5 -0- 17 20 69.1% 2,025 2,929 288 297 425 379

Overall Premiership Results

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

Season Fixture

Round 1

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 01/04/1978 2:10 PM Essendon v South Melbourne Windy Hill 123 - 102 23,562
SAT 01/04/1978 2:10 PM Fitzroy v St Kilda Junction Oval 101 - 109 17,031
SAT 01/04/1978 2:10 PM Footscray v North Melbourne Western Oval 80 - 149 20,420
SAT 01/04/1978 2:10 PM Geelong v Collingwood Kardinia Park 76 - 118 27,463
SAT 01/04/1978 2:10 PM Hawthorn v Melbourne Princes Park 147 - 68 11,986
SAT 01/04/1978 2:10 PM Richmond v Carlton MCG 174 - 97 49,511

Round 1 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
Hawthorn 1st 1 -0- 0 4 216.2% 147 68
North Melbourne 2nd 1 -0- 0 4 186.3% 149 80
Richmond 3rd 1 -0- 0 4 179.4% 174 97
Collingwood 4th 1 -0- 0 4 155.3% 118 76
Essendon 5th 1 -0- 0 4 120.6% 123 102
St Kilda 6th 1 -0- 0 4 107.9% 109 101
Fitzroy 7th 0 -0- 1 0 92.7% 101 109
South Melbourne 8th 0 -0- 1 0 82.9% 102 123
Geelong 9th 0 -0- 1 0 64.4% 76 118
Carlton 10th 0 -0- 1 0 55.7% 97 174
Footscray 11th 0 -0- 1 0 53.7% 80 149
Melbourne 12th 0 -0- 1 0 46.3% 68 147

Round 2

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 08/04/1978 2:10 PM Carlton v Geelong Princes Park 95 - 109 18,932
SAT 08/04/1978 2:10 PM Collingwood v Essendon Victoria Park 155 - 88 34,665
SAT 08/04/1978 2:10 PM Melbourne v Fitzroy MCG 167 - 157 15,613
SAT 08/04/1978 2:10 PM North Melbourne v Richmond Arden Street Oval 166 - 93 22,505
SAT 08/04/1978 2:10 PM South Melbourne v Hawthorn Lakeside Oval 104 - 132 15,072
SAT 08/04/1978 2:10 PM St Kilda v Footscray Moorabbin Oval 137 - 130 18,540

Round 2 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
North Melbourne 1st 2 -0- 0 8 182.1% 315 173
Collingwood 2nd 2 -0- 0 8 166.5% 273 164
Hawthorn 3rd 2 -0- 0 8 162.2% 279 172
St Kilda 4th 2 -0- 0 8 106.5% 246 231
Richmond 5th 1 -0- 1 4 101.5% 267 263
Geelong 6th 1 -0- 1 4 86.9% 185 213
Essendon 7th 1 -0- 1 4 82.1% 211 257
Melbourne 8th 1 -0- 1 4 77.3% 235 304
Fitzroy 9th 0 -0- 2 0 93.5% 258 276
South Melbourne 10th 0 -0- 2 0 80.8% 206 255
Footscray 11th 0 -0- 2 0 73.4% 210 286
Carlton 12th 0 -0- 2 0 67.8% 192 283

Round 3

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 15/04/1978 2:10 PM Carlton v Melbourne Princes Park 98 - 85 18,039
SAT 15/04/1978 2:10 PM Essendon v Fitzroy Windy Hill 105 - 101 16,549
SAT 15/04/1978 2:10 PM Footscray v Geelong Western Oval 76 - 140 16,949
SAT 15/04/1978 2:10 PM North Melbourne v Hawthorn VFL Park 111 - 86 39,097
SAT 15/04/1978 2:10 PM Richmond v St Kilda MCG 110 - 110 35,602
SAT 15/04/1978 2:10 PM South Melbourne v Collingwood Lakeside Oval 119 - 102 20,719

Round 3 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
North Melbourne 1st 3 -0- 0 12 164.5% 426 259
St Kilda 2nd 2 -1- 0 10 104.4% 356 341
Collingwood 3rd 2 -0- 1 8 132.5% 375 283
Hawthorn 4th 2 -0- 1 8 129.0% 365 283
Geelong 5th 2 -0- 1 8 112.5% 325 289
Essendon 6th 2 -0- 1 8 88.3% 316 358
Richmond 7th 1 -1- 1 6 101.1% 377 373
South Melbourne 8th 1 -0- 2 4 91.0% 325 357
Melbourne 9th 1 -0- 2 4 79.6% 320 402
Carlton 10th 1 -0- 2 4 78.8% 290 368
Fitzroy 11th 0 -0- 3 0 94.2% 359 381
Footscray 12th 0 -0- 3 0 67.1% 286 426

Round 4

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 22/04/1978 2:10 PM Carlton v Essendon VFL Park 104 - 131 34,516
SAT 22/04/1978 2:10 PM Collingwood v Hawthorn Victoria Park 103 - 105 29,577
SAT 22/04/1978 2:10 PM Fitzroy v South Melbourne Junction Oval 143 - 124 13,664
SAT 22/04/1978 2:10 PM Geelong v Richmond Kardinia Park 125 - 98 20,566
SAT 22/04/1978 2:10 PM Melbourne v Footscray MCG 127 - 120 14,865
SAT 22/04/1978 2:10 PM St Kilda v North Melbourne Moorabbin Oval 100 - 119 29,117

Round 4 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
North Melbourne 1st 4 -0- 0 16 151.8% 545 359
Hawthorn 2nd 3 -0- 1 12 121.8% 470 386
Geelong 3rd 3 -0- 1 12 116.3% 450 387
Essendon 4th 3 -0- 1 12 96.8% 447 462
St Kilda 5th 2 -1- 1 10 99.1% 456 460
Collingwood 6th 2 -0- 2 8 123.2% 478 388
Melbourne 7th 2 -0- 2 8 85.6% 447 522
Richmond 8th 1 -1- 2 6 95.4% 475 498
Fitzroy 9th 1 -0- 3 4 99.4% 502 505
South Melbourne 10th 1 -0- 3 4 89.8% 449 500
Carlton 11th 1 -0- 3 4 79.0% 394 499
Footscray 12th 0 -0- 4 0 73.4% 406 553

Round 5

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
TUE 25/04/1978 2:10 PM Richmond v Melbourne MCG 130 - 59 34,212
TUE 25/04/1978 2:10 PM St Kilda v Geelong VFL Park 98 - 65 43,388
SAT 29/04/1978 2:10 PM Footscray v Essendon Western Oval 110 - 93 20,328
SAT 29/04/1978 2:10 PM Hawthorn v Fitzroy Princes Park 101 - 102 13,788
SAT 29/04/1978 2:10 PM North Melbourne v Collingwood Arden Street Oval 124 - 115 31,424
SAT 29/04/1978 2:10 PM South Melbourne v Carlton Lakeside Oval 117 - 116 20,383

Round 5 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
North Melbourne 1st 5 -0- 0 20 141.1% 669 474
St Kilda 2nd 3 -1- 1 14 105.5% 554 525
Hawthorn 3rd 3 -0- 2 12 117.0% 571 488
Geelong 4th 3 -0- 2 12 106.2% 515 485
Essendon 5th 3 -0- 2 12 94.4% 540 572
Richmond 6th 2 -1- 2 10 108.6% 605 557
Collingwood 7th 2 -0- 3 8 115.8% 593 512
Fitzroy 8th 2 -0- 3 8 99.7% 604 606
South Melbourne 9th 2 -0- 3 8 91.9% 566 616
Melbourne 10th 2 -0- 3 8 77.6% 506 652
Carlton 11th 1 -0- 4 4 82.8% 510 616
Footscray 12th 1 -0- 4 4 79.9% 516 646

Round 6

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 06/05/1978 2:10 PM Carlton v Hawthorn Princes Park 126 - 157 19,649
SAT 06/05/1978 2:10 PM Essendon v Richmond Windy Hill 150 - 129 21,946
SAT 06/05/1978 2:10 PM Fitzroy v Collingwood Junction Oval 96 - 148 25,232
SAT 06/05/1978 2:10 PM Footscray v South Melbourne VFL Park 105 - 123 19,263
SAT 06/05/1978 2:10 PM Geelong v North Melbourne Kardinia Park 88 - 110 23,074
SAT 06/05/1978 2:10 PM Melbourne v St Kilda MCG 141 - 204 24,852

Round 6 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
North Melbourne 1st 6 -0- 0 24 138.6% 779 562
St Kilda 2nd 4 -1- 1 18 113.8% 758 666
Hawthorn 3rd 4 -0- 2 16 118.6% 728 614
Essendon 4th 4 -0- 2 16 98.4% 690 701
Collingwood 5th 3 -0- 3 12 121.9% 741 608
Geelong 6th 3 -0- 3 12 101.3% 603 595
South Melbourne 7th 3 -0- 3 12 95.6% 689 721
Richmond 8th 2 -1- 3 10 103.8% 734 707
Fitzroy 9th 2 -0- 4 8 92.8% 700 754
Melbourne 10th 2 -0- 4 8 75.6% 647 856
Carlton 11th 1 -0- 5 4 82.3% 636 773
Footscray 12th 1 -0- 5 4 80.8% 621 769

Round 7

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 13/05/1978 2:10 PM Collingwood v Carlton Victoria Park 68 - 85 27,503
SAT 13/05/1978 2:10 PM Geelong v Melbourne VFL Park 126 - 139 13,072
SAT 13/05/1978 2:10 PM Hawthorn v Footscray Princes Park 177 - 91 9,198
SAT 13/05/1978 2:10 PM North Melbourne v Fitzroy Arden Street Oval 98 - 95 14,150
SAT 13/05/1978 2:10 PM Richmond v South Melbourne MCG 98 - 125 25,904
SAT 13/05/1978 2:10 PM St Kilda v Essendon Moorabbin Oval 113 - 107 30,760

Round 7 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
North Melbourne 1st 7 -0- 0 28 133.5% 877 657
St Kilda 2nd 5 -1- 1 22 112.7% 871 773
Hawthorn 3rd 5 -0- 2 20 128.4% 905 705
South Melbourne 4th 4 -0- 3 16 99.4% 814 819
Essendon 5th 4 -0- 3 16 97.9% 797 814
Collingwood 6th 3 -0- 4 12 116.7% 809 693
Geelong 7th 3 -0- 4 12 99.3% 729 734
Melbourne 8th 3 -0- 4 12 80.0% 786 982
Richmond 9th 2 -1- 4 10 100.0% 832 832
Fitzroy 10th 2 -0- 5 8 93.3% 795 852
Carlton 11th 2 -0- 5 8 85.7% 721 841
Footscray 12th 1 -0- 6 4 75.3% 712 946

Round 8

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 20/05/1978 2:10 PM Carlton v Fitzroy Princes Park 63 - 61 21,601
SAT 20/05/1978 2:10 PM Essendon v Geelong Windy Hill 76 - 60 21,307
SAT 20/05/1978 2:10 PM Footscray v Collingwood Western Oval 89 - 93 19,096
SAT 20/05/1978 2:10 PM Melbourne v North Melbourne MCG 61 - 137 21,266
SAT 20/05/1978 2:10 PM Richmond v Hawthorn VFL Park 70 - 99 27,224
SAT 20/05/1978 2:10 PM South Melbourne v St Kilda Lakeside Oval 136 - 37 21,458

Round 8 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
North Melbourne 1st 8 -0- 0 32 141.2% 1,014 718
Hawthorn 2nd 6 -0- 2 24 129.5% 1,004 775
St Kilda 3rd 5 -1- 2 22 99.9% 908 909
South Melbourne 4th 5 -0- 3 20 111.0% 950 856
Essendon 5th 5 -0- 3 20 99.9% 873 874
Collingwood 6th 4 -0- 4 16 115.3% 902 782
Geelong 7th 3 -0- 5 12 97.4% 789 810
Carlton 8th 3 -0- 5 12 86.9% 784 902
Melbourne 9th 3 -0- 5 12 75.7% 847 1,119
Richmond 10th 2 -1- 5 10 96.9% 902 931
Fitzroy 11th 2 -0- 6 8 93.6% 856 915
Footscray 12th 1 -0- 7 4 77.1% 801 1,039

Round 9

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 27/05/1978 2:10 PM Carlton v North Melbourne Princes Park 117 - 59 31,211
SAT 27/05/1978 2:10 PM Collingwood v Richmond Victoria Park 92 - 76 29,381
SAT 27/05/1978 2:10 PM Fitzroy v Footscray Junction Oval 92 - 117 11,903
SAT 27/05/1978 2:10 PM Geelong v South Melbourne Kardinia Park 109 - 95 20,603
SAT 27/05/1978 2:10 PM Melbourne v Essendon VFL Park 60 - 102 28,231
SAT 27/05/1978 2:10 PM St Kilda v Hawthorn Moorabbin Oval 57 - 97 25,293

Round 9 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
North Melbourne 1st 8 -0- 1 32 128.5% 1,073 835
Hawthorn 2nd 7 -0- 2 28 132.3% 1,101 832
Essendon 3rd 6 -0- 3 24 104.4% 975 934
St Kilda 4th 5 -1- 3 22 95.9% 965 1,006
Collingwood 5th 5 -0- 4 20 115.9% 994 858
South Melbourne 6th 5 -0- 4 20 108.3% 1,045 965
Geelong 7th 4 -0- 5 16 99.2% 898 905
Carlton 8th 4 -0- 5 16 93.8% 901 961
Melbourne 9th 3 -0- 6 12 74.3% 907 1,221
Richmond 10th 2 -1- 6 10 95.6% 978 1,023
Fitzroy 11th 2 -0- 7 8 91.9% 948 1,032
Footscray 12th 2 -0- 7 8 81.2% 918 1,131

Round 10

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 03/06/1978 2:10 PM Hawthorn v Geelong Princes Park 96 - 61 11,203
SAT 03/06/1978 2:10 PM North Melbourne v Essendon Arden Street Oval 85 - 82 28,274
SAT 03/06/1978 2:10 PM Richmond v Fitzroy MCG 86 - 80 21,122
MON 05/06/1978 2:10 PM Footscray v Carlton Western Oval 125 - 104 30,197
MON 05/06/1978 2:10 PM South Melbourne v Melbourne Lakeside Oval 162 - 92 16,387
MON 05/06/1978 2:10 PM St Kilda v Collingwood VFL Park 97 - 131 72,669

Round 10 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
North Melbourne 1st 9 -0- 1 36 126.3% 1,158 917
Hawthorn 2nd 8 -0- 2 32 134.0% 1,197 893
Collingwood 3rd 6 -0- 4 24 117.8% 1,125 955
South Melbourne 4th 6 -0- 4 24 114.2% 1,207 1,057
Essendon 5th 6 -0- 4 24 103.7% 1,057 1,019
St Kilda 6th 5 -1- 4 22 93.4% 1,062 1,137
Geelong 7th 4 -0- 6 16 95.8% 959 1,001
Carlton 8th 4 -0- 6 16 92.5% 1,005 1,086
Richmond 9th 3 -1- 6 14 96.5% 1,064 1,103
Footscray 10th 3 -0- 7 12 84.5% 1,043 1,235
Melbourne 11th 3 -0- 7 12 72.2% 999 1,383
Fitzroy 12th 2 -0- 8 8 91.9% 1,028 1,118

Round 11

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 17/06/1978 2:10 PM Carlton v St Kilda Princes Park 165 - 65 25,388
SAT 17/06/1978 2:10 PM Collingwood v Melbourne Victoria Park 127 - 67 20,579
SAT 17/06/1978 2:10 PM Essendon v Hawthorn Windy Hill 104 - 133 24,217
SAT 17/06/1978 2:10 PM Fitzroy v Geelong Junction Oval 111 - 114 10,303
SAT 17/06/1978 2:10 PM Richmond v Footscray MCG 155 - 97 22,764
SAT 17/06/1978 2:10 PM South Melbourne v North Melbourne VFL Park 97 - 117 31,037

Round 11 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
North Melbourne 1st 10 -0- 1 40 125.7% 1,275 1,014
Hawthorn 2nd 9 -0- 2 36 133.4% 1,330 997
Collingwood 3rd 7 -0- 4 28 122.5% 1,252 1,022
South Melbourne 4th 6 -0- 5 24 111.1% 1,304 1,174
Essendon 5th 6 -0- 5 24 100.8% 1,161 1,152
St Kilda 6th 5 -1- 5 22 86.6% 1,127 1,302
Carlton 7th 5 -0- 6 20 101.7% 1,170 1,151
Geelong 8th 5 -0- 6 20 96.5% 1,073 1,112
Richmond 9th 4 -1- 6 18 101.6% 1,219 1,200
Footscray 10th 3 -0- 8 12 82.0% 1,140 1,390
Melbourne 11th 3 -0- 8 12 70.6% 1,066 1,510
Fitzroy 12th 2 -0- 9 8 92.5% 1,139 1,232

Round 12

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 24/06/1978 2:10 PM Carlton v Richmond Princes Park 137 - 94 25,813
SAT 24/06/1978 2:10 PM Collingwood v Geelong VFL Park 56 - 96 31,636
SAT 24/06/1978 2:10 PM Melbourne v Hawthorn MCG 108 - 128 14,652
SAT 24/06/1978 2:10 PM North Melbourne v Footscray Arden Street Oval 60 - 90 14,629
SAT 24/06/1978 2:10 PM South Melbourne v Essendon Lakeside Oval 97 - 120 19,814
SAT 24/06/1978 2:10 PM St Kilda v Fitzroy Moorabbin Oval 111 - 134 15,822

Round 12 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
Hawthorn 1st 10 -0- 2 40 131.9% 1,458 1,105
North Melbourne 2nd 10 -0- 2 40 120.9% 1,335 1,104
Collingwood 3rd 7 -0- 5 28 117.0% 1,308 1,118
Essendon 4th 7 -0- 5 28 102.6% 1,281 1,249
South Melbourne 5th 6 -0- 6 24 108.3% 1,401 1,294
Carlton 6th 6 -0- 6 24 105.0% 1,307 1,245
Geelong 7th 6 -0- 6 24 100.1% 1,169 1,168
St Kilda 8th 5 -1- 6 22 86.2% 1,238 1,436
Richmond 9th 4 -1- 7 18 98.2% 1,313 1,337
Footscray 10th 4 -0- 8 16 84.8% 1,230 1,450
Fitzroy 11th 3 -0- 9 12 94.8% 1,273 1,343
Melbourne 12th 3 -0- 9 12 71.7% 1,174 1,638

Round 13

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 01/07/1978 2:10 PM Essendon v Collingwood Windy Hill 98 - 105 29,768
SAT 01/07/1978 2:10 PM Fitzroy v Melbourne VFL Park 141 - 61 13,933
SAT 01/07/1978 2:10 PM Footscray v St Kilda Western Oval 213 - 106 16,300
SAT 01/07/1978 2:10 PM Geelong v Carlton Kardinia Park 57 - 67 25,185
SAT 01/07/1978 2:10 PM Hawthorn v South Melbourne Princes Park 140 - 119 13,853
SAT 01/07/1978 2:10 PM Richmond v North Melbourne MCG 142 - 117 27,156

Round 13 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
Hawthorn 1st 11 -0- 2 44 130.6% 1,598 1,224
North Melbourne 2nd 10 -0- 3 40 116.5% 1,452 1,246
Collingwood 3rd 8 -0- 5 32 116.2% 1,413 1,216
Carlton 4th 7 -0- 6 28 105.5% 1,374 1,302
Essendon 5th 7 -0- 6 28 101.8% 1,379 1,354
South Melbourne 6th 6 -0- 7 24 106.0% 1,520 1,434
Geelong 7th 6 -0- 7 24 99.3% 1,226 1,235
Richmond 8th 5 -1- 7 22 100.1% 1,455 1,454
St Kilda 9th 5 -1- 7 22 81.5% 1,344 1,649
Footscray 10th 5 -0- 8 20 92.7% 1,443 1,556
Fitzroy 11th 4 -0- 9 16 100.7% 1,414 1,404
Melbourne 12th 3 -0- 10 12 69.4% 1,235 1,779

Round 14

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 08/07/1978 2:10 PM Essendon v Carlton Windy Hill 102 - 95 29,788
SAT 08/07/1978 2:10 PM Footscray v Melbourne Western Oval 127 - 59 13,325
SAT 08/07/1978 2:10 PM Hawthorn v Collingwood VFL Park 74 - 84 46,086
SAT 08/07/1978 2:10 PM North Melbourne v St Kilda Arden Street Oval 121 - 124 12,799
SAT 08/07/1978 2:10 PM Richmond v Geelong MCG 122 - 117 24,407
SAT 08/07/1978 2:10 PM South Melbourne v Fitzroy Lakeside Oval 143 - 93 14,642

Round 14 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
Hawthorn 1st 11 -0- 3 44 127.8% 1,672 1,308
North Melbourne 2nd 10 -0- 4 40 114.8% 1,573 1,370
Collingwood 3rd 9 -0- 5 36 116.0% 1,497 1,290
Essendon 4th 8 -0- 6 32 102.2% 1,481 1,449
South Melbourne 5th 7 -0- 7 28 108.9% 1,663 1,527
Carlton 6th 7 -0- 7 28 104.6% 1,469 1,404
Richmond 7th 6 -1- 7 26 100.4% 1,577 1,571
St Kilda 8th 6 -1- 7 26 82.9% 1,468 1,770
Geelong 9th 6 -0- 8 24 99.0% 1,343 1,357
Footscray 10th 6 -0- 8 24 97.2% 1,570 1,615
Fitzroy 11th 4 -0- 10 16 97.4% 1,507 1,547
Melbourne 12th 3 -0- 11 12 67.9% 1,294 1,906

Round 15

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 15/07/1978 2:10 PM Collingwood v South Melbourne Victoria Park 114 - 94 24,482
SAT 15/07/1978 2:10 PM Fitzroy v Essendon Junction Oval 101 - 83 13,743
SAT 15/07/1978 2:10 PM Geelong v Footscray Kardinia Park 84 - 72 15,150
SAT 15/07/1978 2:10 PM Hawthorn v North Melbourne Princes Park 74 - 55 16,214
SAT 15/07/1978 2:10 PM Melbourne v Carlton VFL Park 26 - 115 16,870
SAT 15/07/1978 2:10 PM St Kilda v Richmond Moorabbin Oval 71 - 125 18,958

Round 15 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
Hawthorn 1st 12 -0- 3 48 128.1% 1,746 1,363
Collingwood 2nd 10 -0- 5 40 116.4% 1,611 1,384
North Melbourne 3rd 10 -0- 5 40 112.7% 1,628 1,444
Carlton 4th 8 -0- 7 32 110.8% 1,584 1,430
Essendon 5th 8 -0- 7 32 100.9% 1,564 1,550
Richmond 6th 7 -1- 7 30 103.7% 1,702 1,642
South Melbourne 7th 7 -0- 8 28 107.1% 1,757 1,641
Geelong 8th 7 -0- 8 28 99.9% 1,427 1,429
St Kilda 9th 6 -1- 8 26 81.2% 1,539 1,895
Footscray 10th 6 -0- 9 24 96.6% 1,642 1,699
Fitzroy 11th 5 -0- 10 20 98.7% 1,608 1,630
Melbourne 12th 3 -0- 12 12 65.3% 1,320 2,021

Round 16

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 22/07/1978 2:10 PM Carlton v South Melbourne Princes Park 112 - 71 24,552
SAT 22/07/1978 2:10 PM Collingwood v North Melbourne Victoria Park 59 - 101 33,902
SAT 22/07/1978 2:10 PM Essendon v Footscray VFL Park 86 - 107 30,200
SAT 22/07/1978 2:10 PM Fitzroy v Hawthorn Junction Oval 122 - 121 12,299
SAT 22/07/1978 2:10 PM Geelong v St Kilda Kardinia Park 104 - 92 16,219
SAT 22/07/1978 2:10 PM Melbourne v Richmond MCG 93 - 121 18,416

Round 16 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
Hawthorn 1st 12 -0- 4 48 125.7% 1,867 1,485
North Melbourne 2nd 11 -0- 5 44 115.0% 1,729 1,503
Collingwood 3rd 10 -0- 6 40 112.5% 1,670 1,485
Carlton 4th 9 -0- 7 36 113.0% 1,696 1,501
Richmond 5th 8 -1- 7 34 105.1% 1,823 1,735
Geelong 6th 8 -0- 8 32 100.7% 1,531 1,521
Essendon 7th 8 -0- 8 32 99.6% 1,650 1,657
South Melbourne 8th 7 -0- 9 28 104.3% 1,828 1,753
Footscray 9th 7 -0- 9 28 98.0% 1,749 1,785
St Kilda 10th 6 -1- 9 26 81.6% 1,631 1,999
Fitzroy 11th 6 -0- 10 24 98.8% 1,730 1,751
Melbourne 12th 3 -0- 13 12 66.0% 1,413 2,142

Round 17

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 29/07/1978 2:10 PM Collingwood v Fitzroy VFL Park 107 - 77 32,246
SAT 29/07/1978 2:10 PM Hawthorn v Carlton Princes Park 95 - 119 28,118
SAT 29/07/1978 2:10 PM North Melbourne v Geelong Arden Street Oval 122 - 76 15,775
SAT 29/07/1978 2:10 PM Richmond v Essendon MCG 136 - 96 41,878
SAT 29/07/1978 2:10 PM South Melbourne v Footscray Lakeside Oval 105 - 91 14,172
SAT 29/07/1978 2:10 PM St Kilda v Melbourne Moorabbin Oval 141 - 89 13,118

Round 17 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
Hawthorn 1st 12 -0- 5 48 122.3% 1,962 1,604
North Melbourne 2nd 12 -0- 5 48 117.2% 1,851 1,579
Collingwood 3rd 11 -0- 6 44 113.8% 1,777 1,562
Carlton 4th 10 -0- 7 40 113.7% 1,815 1,596
Richmond 5th 9 -1- 7 38 107.0% 1,959 1,831
South Melbourne 6th 8 -0- 9 32 104.8% 1,933 1,844
Geelong 7th 8 -0- 9 32 97.8% 1,607 1,643
Essendon 8th 8 -0- 9 32 97.4% 1,746 1,793
St Kilda 9th 7 -1- 9 30 84.9% 1,772 2,088
Footscray 10th 7 -0- 10 28 97.4% 1,840 1,890
Fitzroy 11th 6 -0- 11 24 97.3% 1,807 1,858
Melbourne 12th 3 -0- 14 12 65.8% 1,502 2,283

Round 18

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 05/08/1978 2:10 PM Carlton v Collingwood Princes Park 103 - 62 43,365
SAT 05/08/1978 2:10 PM Essendon v St Kilda Windy Hill 82 - 121 18,784
SAT 05/08/1978 2:10 PM Fitzroy v North Melbourne Junction Oval 82 - 124 12,804
SAT 05/08/1978 2:10 PM Footscray v Hawthorn Western Oval 112 - 118 17,255
SAT 05/08/1978 2:10 PM Melbourne v Geelong MCG 95 - 101 12,364
SAT 05/08/1978 2:10 PM South Melbourne v Richmond VFL Park 93 - 70 31,717

Round 18 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
Hawthorn 1st 13 -0- 5 52 121.2% 2,080 1,716
North Melbourne 2nd 13 -0- 5 52 118.9% 1,975 1,661
Carlton 3rd 11 -0- 7 44 115.7% 1,918 1,658
Collingwood 4th 11 -0- 7 44 110.5% 1,839 1,665
Richmond 5th 9 -1- 8 38 105.5% 2,029 1,924
South Melbourne 6th 9 -0- 9 36 105.9% 2,026 1,914
Geelong 7th 9 -0- 9 36 98.3% 1,708 1,738
St Kilda 8th 8 -1- 9 34 87.2% 1,893 2,170
Essendon 9th 8 -0- 10 32 95.5% 1,828 1,914
Footscray 10th 7 -0- 11 28 97.2% 1,952 2,008
Fitzroy 11th 6 -0- 12 24 95.3% 1,889 1,982
Melbourne 12th 3 -0- 15 12 67.0% 1,597 2,384

Round 19

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 12/08/1978 2:10 PM Collingwood v Footscray Victoria Park 82 - 66 24,071
SAT 12/08/1978 2:10 PM Fitzroy v Carlton VFL Park 58 - 69 21,410
SAT 12/08/1978 2:10 PM Geelong v Essendon Kardinia Park 92 - 85 15,407
SAT 12/08/1978 2:10 PM Hawthorn v Richmond Princes Park 127 - 70 15,979
SAT 12/08/1978 2:10 PM North Melbourne v Melbourne Arden Street Oval 174 - 61 10,183
SAT 12/08/1978 2:10 PM St Kilda v South Melbourne Moorabbin Oval 85 - 37 20,935

Round 19 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
North Melbourne 1st 14 -0- 5 56 124.8% 2,149 1,722
Hawthorn 2nd 14 -0- 5 56 123.6% 2,207 1,786
Carlton 3rd 12 -0- 7 48 115.8% 1,987 1,716
Collingwood 4th 12 -0- 7 48 111.0% 1,921 1,731
Geelong 5th 10 -0- 9 40 98.7% 1,800 1,823
Richmond 6th 9 -1- 9 38 102.3% 2,099 2,051
St Kilda 7th 9 -1- 9 38 89.6% 1,978 2,207
South Melbourne 8th 9 -0- 10 36 103.2% 2,063 1,999
Essendon 9th 8 -0- 11 32 95.4% 1,913 2,006
Footscray 10th 7 -0- 12 28 96.6% 2,018 2,090
Fitzroy 11th 6 -0- 13 24 94.9% 1,947 2,051
Melbourne 12th 3 -0- 16 12 64.8% 1,658 2,558

Round 20

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 19/08/1978 2:10 PM Essendon v Melbourne Windy Hill 130 - 136 11,872
SAT 19/08/1978 2:10 PM Footscray v Fitzroy Western Oval 71 - 139 12,525
SAT 19/08/1978 2:10 PM Hawthorn v St Kilda VFL Park 83 - 139 31,677
SAT 19/08/1978 2:10 PM North Melbourne v Carlton Arden Street Oval 70 - 131 28,715
SAT 19/08/1978 2:10 PM Richmond v Collingwood MCG 109 - 123 59,680
SAT 19/08/1978 2:10 PM South Melbourne v Geelong Lakeside Oval 155 - 167 15,259

Round 20 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
North Melbourne 1st 14 -0- 6 56 119.8% 2,219 1,853
Hawthorn 2nd 14 -0- 6 56 119.0% 2,290 1,925
Carlton 3rd 13 -0- 7 52 118.6% 2,118 1,786
Collingwood 4th 13 -0- 7 52 111.1% 2,044 1,840
Geelong 5th 11 -0- 9 44 99.4% 1,967 1,978
St Kilda 6th 10 -1- 9 42 92.4% 2,117 2,290
Richmond 7th 9 -1- 10 38 101.6% 2,208 2,174
South Melbourne 8th 9 -0- 11 36 102.4% 2,218 2,166
Essendon 9th 8 -0- 12 32 95.4% 2,043 2,142
Fitzroy 10th 7 -0- 13 28 98.3% 2,086 2,122
Footscray 11th 7 -0- 13 28 93.7% 2,089 2,229
Melbourne 12th 4 -0- 16 16 66.7% 1,794 2,688

Round 21

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 26/08/1978 2:10 PM Carlton v Footscray Princes Park 145 - 102 22,413
SAT 26/08/1978 2:10 PM Collingwood v St Kilda Victoria Park 147 - 107 31,537
SAT 26/08/1978 2:10 PM Essendon v North Melbourne VFL Park 51 - 77 22,337
SAT 26/08/1978 2:10 PM Fitzroy v Richmond Junction Oval 134 - 117 11,226
SAT 26/08/1978 2:10 PM Geelong v Hawthorn Kardinia Park 86 - 88 21,663
SAT 26/08/1978 2:10 PM Melbourne v South Melbourne MCG 106 - 85 13,488

Round 21 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
North Melbourne 1st 15 -0- 6 60 120.6% 2,296 1,904
Hawthorn 2nd 15 -0- 6 60 118.2% 2,378 2,011
Carlton 3rd 14 -0- 7 56 119.9% 2,263 1,888
Collingwood 4th 14 -0- 7 56 112.5% 2,191 1,947
Geelong 5th 11 -0- 10 44 99.4% 2,053 2,066
St Kilda 6th 10 -1- 10 42 91.3% 2,224 2,437
Richmond 7th 9 -1- 11 38 100.7% 2,325 2,308
South Melbourne 8th 9 -0- 12 36 101.4% 2,303 2,272
Fitzroy 9th 8 -0- 13 32 99.2% 2,220 2,239
Essendon 10th 8 -0- 13 32 94.4% 2,094 2,219
Footscray 11th 7 -0- 14 28 92.3% 2,191 2,374
Melbourne 12th 5 -0- 16 20 68.5% 1,900 2,773

Round 22

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 02/09/1978 2:10 PM Footscray v Richmond VFL Park 81 - 134 17,768
SAT 02/09/1978 2:10 PM Geelong v Fitzroy Kardinia Park 100 - 38 22,842
SAT 02/09/1978 2:10 PM Hawthorn v Essendon Princes Park 118 - 109 14,534
SAT 02/09/1978 2:10 PM Melbourne v Collingwood MCG 125 - 156 40,285
SAT 02/09/1978 2:10 PM North Melbourne v South Melbourne Arden Street Oval 111 - 87 15,607
SAT 02/09/1978 2:10 PM St Kilda v Carlton Moorabbin Oval 106 - 66 35,850

Round 22 Ladder

Team Ladder (W-D-L, PP & P%) PF PA
North Melbourne 1st 16 -0- 6 64 120.9% 2,407 1,991
Hawthorn 2nd 16 -0- 6 64 117.7% 2,496 2,120
Collingwood 3rd 15 -0- 7 60 113.3% 2,347 2,072
Carlton 4th 14 -0- 8 56 116.8% 2,329 1,994
Geelong 5th 12 -0- 10 48 102.3% 2,153 2,104
St Kilda 6th 11 -1- 10 46 93.1% 2,330 2,503
Richmond 7th 10 -1- 11 42 102.9% 2,459 2,389
South Melbourne 8th 9 -0- 13 36 100.3% 2,390 2,383
Fitzroy 9th 8 -0- 14 32 96.5% 2,258 2,339
Essendon 10th 8 -0- 14 32 94.3% 2,203 2,337
Footscray 11th 7 -0- 15 28 90.6% 2,272 2,508
Melbourne 12th 5 -0- 17 20 69.1% 2,025 2,929

Final Round 1

Elimination Final

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 09/09/1978 2:30 PM Carlton v Geelong VFL Park 105 - 72 57,505

Qualifying Final

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 09/09/1978 2:30 PM Hawthorn v Collingwood MCG 154 - 98 79,931

Final Round 2

Semi Final

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 16/09/1978 2:30 PM Collingwood v Carlton MCG 108 - 93 91,933
SAT 16/09/1978 2:30 PM North Melbourne v Hawthorn VFL Park 73 - 87 48,716

Final Round 3

Preliminary Final

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 23/09/1978 2:30 PM North Melbourne v Collingwood VFL Park 96 - 84 73,354

Final Round 4

Grand Final

Date Match Venue Result Attendance
SAT 30/09/1978 2:32 PM Hawthorn v North Melbourne MCG 121 - 103 101,704