1981 VFL Season: Essendon
These are the details of the premiership results of Essendon for the 1981 VFL season. The team finished the regular season in fourth place, securing a place in the finals series. Essendon were defeated by Fitzroy in the elimination final, resulting in finishing in fifth place overall (adjusted for finals).
Season Team Details
Competition:
1981 VFL Season
Team:
Essendon
Home Ground:
Windy Hill
Team Results
Ladder Position:
4th (W-D-L: 16-0-6, P%: 127.6)
Finals Performance:
Defeated by Fitzroy (Elimination Final)
Player Results
| Player | Guernseys | Matches | Goals | Rounds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Andrews, Ron | #4 | 20 | 12 | R01-14, R18-22, EF |
| Bennett, Peter | #38 | 12 | 4 | R01-02, R04, R07-08, R10-13, R15-17 |
| Besanko, Neil | #30 | 5 | 0 | R01-05 |
| Buhagiar, Tony | #20 | 22 | 42 | R01-15, R17-22, EF |
| Burdett, Geoff | #15 | 6 | 7 | R03-04, R12-15 |
| Carey, Stephen | #17 | 17 | 2 | R01-14, R19, R22, EF |
| Carman, Phil | #8 | 6 | 5 | R01-05, R07 |
| Clarke, Neil | #39 | 20 | 0 | R01-12, R16-22, EF |
| Crow, Max | #31 | 22 | 19 | R01-20, R22, EF |
| Daniher, Neale | #6 | 21 | 11 | R01-21 |
| Daniher, Terry | #5 | 21 | 20 | R01-03, R06-22, EF |
| Dunell, Frank | #7 | 1 | 0 | EF |
| Eustice, Mark | #47 | 9 | 5 | R05-09, R18-21 |
| Fields, Neville | #28 | 2 | 2 | R21-22 |
| Foreman, Wayne | #22 | 8 | 5 | R04-07, R15-18 |
| Foulds, Garry | #10 | 22 | 22 | R01-06, R08-22, EF |
| Fowler, Grant | #23 | 22 | 18 | R01-12, R14-22, EF |
| Hawker, Glenn | #33 | 23 | 17 | R01-22, EF |
| Heard, Shane | #9 | 7 | 5 | R01-03, R14, R21-22, EF |
| Madden, Justin | #44 | 17 | 2 | R05-18, R21-22, EF |
| Madden, Simon | #27 | 19 | 36 | R01-02, R07-22, EF |
| Merrett, Roger | #25 | 10 | 4 | R01-05, R07, R20-22, EF |
| Morrison, Ian | #12 | 3 | 0 | R17-19 |
| Muir, Russell | #42 | 8 | 2 | R06-09, R15-17, R19 |
| Neagle, Merv | #1 | 22 | 10 | R01-08, R10-22, EF |
| Reid, Alan | #2 | 18 | 9 | R01-04, R06-11, R13-16, R19-22 |
| Scanlon, Denis | #36 | 2 | 0 | R02-03 |
| Schultz, Graeme | #14 | 13 | 30 | R10-18, R20-22, EF |
| Shaw, Robert | #26 | 7 | 0 | R04, R09-13, R16 |
| Stoneham, Alan | #11 | 20 | 4 | R03, R05-22, EF |
| Taubert, Steven | #16 | 14 | 2 | R01, R03-05, R11-20 |
| Thomson, Michael | #34 | 10 | 8 | R04-06, R08-09, R13-15, R20, EF |
| Vander Haar, Paul | #18 | 13 | 19 | R01-02, R08-10, R16-22, EF |
| Walsh, Kevin | #41 | 1 | 0 | R06 |
| Watson, Tim | #32 | 17 | 15 | R05-06, R09-22, EF |
Coach Results
| Coach | Matches (W-D-L) | Rounds | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sheedy, Kevin | 23 | 16 | -0- | 7 | R01-22, EF |
Match Results
| Date | Round | Opponent | H/A | Result | Coach | Captain (Nominated) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 28/03/1981 | Round 1 | Geelong | AWAY | LOSS | GEEL by 6 | Kevin Sheedy | Simon Madden |
| 04/04/1981 | Round 2 | North Melbourne | HOME | WIN | ESSE by 12 | Kevin Sheedy | Simon Madden |
| 11/04/1981 | Round 3 | Richmond | AWAY | LOSS | RICH by 4 | Kevin Sheedy | Ron Andrews |
| 20/04/1981 | Round 4 | Hawthorn | HOME | LOSS | HWTH by 15 | Kevin Sheedy | Ron Andrews |
| 25/04/1981 | Round 5 | Fitzroy | HOME | LOSS | FITZ by 21 | Kevin Sheedy | Ron Andrews |
| 02/05/1981 | Round 6 | Footscray | AWAY | LOSS | FOOT by 8 | Kevin Sheedy | Ron Andrews |
| 09/05/1981 | Round 7 | St Kilda | HOME | WIN | ESSE by 25 | Kevin Sheedy | Simon Madden |
| 16/05/1981 | Round 8 | Collingwood | AWAY | WIN | ESSE by 57 | Kevin Sheedy | Simon Madden |
| 23/05/1981 | Round 9 | Melbourne | AWAY | WIN | ESSE by 34 | Kevin Sheedy | Simon Madden |
| 30/05/1981 | Round 10 | Carlton | HOME | WIN | ESSE by 35 | Kevin Sheedy | Simon Madden |
| 08/06/1981 | Round 11 | South Melbourne | AWAY | WIN | ESSE by 28 | Kevin Sheedy | Simon Madden |
| 13/06/1981 | Round 12 | North Melbourne | AWAY | WIN | ESSE by 47 | Kevin Sheedy | Simon Madden |
| 20/06/1981 | Round 13 | Richmond | HOME | WIN | ESSE by 4 | Kevin Sheedy | Simon Madden |
| 28/06/1981 | Round 14 | Hawthorn | AWAY | WIN | ESSE by 18 | Kevin Sheedy | Simon Madden |
| 04/07/1981 | Round 15 | Fitzroy | AWAY | WIN | ESSE by 19 | Kevin Sheedy | Simon Madden |
| 18/07/1981 | Round 16 | Footscray | HOME | WIN | ESSE by 93 | Kevin Sheedy | Simon Madden |
| 25/07/1981 | Round 17 | St Kilda | AWAY | WIN | ESSE by 17 | Kevin Sheedy | Simon Madden |
| 02/08/1981 | Round 18 | Collingwood | HOME | WIN | ESSE by 19 | Kevin Sheedy | Simon Madden |
| 08/08/1981 | Round 19 | Melbourne | HOME | WIN | ESSE by 44 | Kevin Sheedy | Simon Madden |
| 15/08/1981 | Round 20 | Carlton | AWAY | WIN | ESSE by 1 | Kevin Sheedy | Simon Madden |
| 22/08/1981 | Round 21 | South Melbourne | HOME | WIN | ESSE by 111 | Kevin Sheedy | Simon Madden |
| 29/08/1981 | Round 22 | Geelong | HOME | LOSS | GEEL by 8 | Kevin Sheedy | Simon Madden |
| 05/09/1981 | Elimination Final | Fitzroy | HOME | LOSS | FITZ by 15 | Kevin Sheedy | Simon Madden |
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.