1925 WAFL season
# 1925 WAFL season

The 1925 WAFL season was the 41st season of the West Australian Football League. It was notable as the season where a fully-fledged system of district football was firmly in place after two seasons of planning, with Perth divided into eight zones, one of which was allocated to Claremont in preparation for their entry to senior WAFL ranks for 1926 and another covered the Midland area later to be allocated to Swan Districts. Along with this, the WAFL introduced a reserves competition for players not good enough for their club's league team.

The season saw East Fremantle gain revenge for the previous season's Grand Final loss against a Subiaco team often thought to be the most talented that club had fielded so far in its history with three exceptional finals performances.

A notable incident during the season was a postponement of the Round 12 match between East Perth and West Perth because the Cardinals failed to return on time from a tour of Tasmania, due to being entertained by Senator Pearce in Melbourne the day the ‘Kalgoorlie Express’ was due to leave from Melbourne.

## Home-and-away season

### Round 1

| | Round 1 | Round 1 | Round 1 | |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| Saturday, 2 May (3:00 pm) | Perth 10.20 (80) | def. | East Perth 10.10 (70) | WACA |
| Saturday, 2 May (3:00 pm) | Subiaco 12.13 (85) | def. | West Perth 7.9 (51) | Subiaco Oval |
| Saturday, 2 May (3:00 pm) | South Fremantle 7.7 (49) | def. by | East Fremantle 14.9 (93) | Fremantle Oval |
| The new rule (as in the VFL) of awarding a free kick against a player who puts the ball out of bounds is regarded as a great success: it was estimated that in one game there were only seventeen stoppages. ||||||

### Round 2

| | Round 2 | Round 2 | Round 2 | |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| Saturday, 9 May (3:00 pm) | Perth 21.7 (133) | def. | South Fremantle 11.8 (74) | WACA |
| Saturday, 9 May (3:00 pm) | East Perth 9.10 (64) | def. | West Perth 8.6 (54) | Perth Oval |
| Saturday, 9 May (3:00 pm) | Subiaco 11.7 (73) | def. | East Fremantle 9.6 (60) | Subiaco Oval |
| Perth’s score was the first of twenty goals in the WAFL since 12 July 1919, when East Fremantle kicked 21.15 (141) against West Perth. ||||||

### Round 3

| | Round 3 | Round 3 | Round 3 | |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| Saturday, 16 May (3:00 pm) | West Perth 7.13 (55) | def. by | East Fremantle 12.5 (77) | Leederville Oval |
| Saturday, 16 May (3:00 pm) | Perth 4.14 (38) | def. by | Subiaco 8.15 (63) | WACA |
| Saturday, 16 May (3:00 pm) | South Fremantle 7.12 (54) | def. by | East Perth 13.9 (87) | Fremantle Oval |

### Round 4

| | Round 4 | Round 4 | Round 4 | |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| Saturday, 23 May (3:00 pm) | East Perth 10.12 (72) | def. by | Subiaco 16.10 (106) | Perth Oval |
| Saturday, 23 May (3:00 pm) | East Fremantle 11.15 (81) | def. | Perth 8.12 (60) | Fremantle Oval |
| Saturday, 23 May (3:00 pm) | West Perth 14.19 (103) | def. | South Fremantle 7.8 (50) | Leederville Oval |
| Subiaco, with Ahearn kicking eight goals in the absence of top goal-sneak Rodriguez, move to a clear top. In the process the Maroons end the most recent run of 100 games without reaching 100 points. ||||||

### Round 5 (Foundation Day)

| | Round 5 | Round 5 | Round 5 | |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| Saturday, 30 May (3:00 pm) | South Fremantle 9.10 (64) | drew with | Subiaco 9.10 (64) | Fremantle Oval |
| Saturday, 30 May (3:00 pm) | Perth 8.11 (59) | def. by | West Perth 11.17 (83) | WACA |
| Monday, 1 June (3:00 pm) | East Perth 11.11 (77) | def. | East Fremantle 8.13 (61) | Subiaco Oval |
| This is the most recent drawn game between Subiaco and South Fremantle. ||||||

### Round 6 (King’s Birthday)

| | Round 6 | Round 6 | Round 6 | |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| Saturday, 6 June (3:00 pm) | East Fremantle 11.12 (78) | def. | South Fremantle 7.10 (52) | Fremantle Oval |
| Saturday, 6 June (3:00 pm) | East Perth 11.11 (77) | def. | Perth 8.15 (63) | Perth Oval |
| Monday, 8 June (3:00 pm) | West Perth 12.11 (83) | def. | Subiaco 12.10 (82) | Leederville Oval |
| This was the second last time the WA(N)FL played matches on the King’s Birthday public holiday, though the VFL/AFL and SANFL have done so ever since. In a match noted for its brilliant high marking, Subiaco lose their unbeaten record as they fail to get a kick away when the bell sounds. ||||||

### Round 7

| | Round 7 | Round 7 | Round 7 | |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| Saturday, 13 June (3:00 pm) | Perth 16.5 (101) | def. | South Fremantle 7.10 (52) | WACA |
| Saturday, 13 June (3:00 pm) | East Fremantle 7.17 (59) | def. | Subiaco 7.8 (50) | Fremantle Oval |
| Saturday, 13 June (3:00 pm) | West Perth 14.15 (99) | def. | East Perth 7.6 (48) | Leederville Oval |
| 1924 wooden spooners West Perth, in rainy conditions, win their fourth straight game by thrashing a depleted Royal team with 8.9 (57) to 2.3 (15) after half-time. ||||||

### Interstate match

| | Interstate match | Interstate match | Interstate match | | |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Saturday, 20 June (3:00 pm) | Western Australia | def. by | South Australia | Subiaco Oval | |
| | 2.3 (15) 3.5 (23) 6.9 (45) 7.12 (54) | Q1 Q2 Q3 Final | 2.2 (14) 6.6 (42) 7.7 (49) 8.9 (57) | Umpires: Frank O‘Connor | Umpires: Frank O‘Connor |
| Johnny Campbell 3, Bonny Campbell 2, Owens, Parks | Johnny Campbell 3, Bonny Campbell 2, Owens, Parks | Goals | Bent 2, McGregor 2, Dayman 2, Ryan, Potts | Bent 2, McGregor 2, Dayman 2, Ryan, Potts |
| Johnny Campbell, Sherlock, Leonard, Craig, Brophy, Jarvis, Green | Johnny Campbell, Sherlock, Leonard, Craig, Brophy, Jarvis, Green | Best | Golding (best on ground), Lid, Dayman, Ryan, Moriarty, McGregor, Whitehead | Golding (best on ground), Lid, Dayman, Ryan, Moriarty, McGregor, Whitehead |
| South Australia hold off the locals in a thrilling match, in which a gate of £997 showed the popularity of football. ||||||

### Round 8

| | Round 8 | Round 8 | Round 8 | |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| Saturday, 27 June (3:00 pm) | East Perth 8.17 (65) | def. by | South Fremantle 10.7 (67) | Perth Oval |
| Saturday, 27 June (3:00 pm) | Subiaco 6.8 (44) | def. | Perth 4.11 (35) | Subiaco Oval |
| Saturday, 27 June (3:00 pm) | East Fremantle 12.13 (85) | def. | West Perth 7.11 (53) | Fremantle Oval |
| East Fremantle end the Cardinals’ run on another wet Saturday despite Flemming kicking six of their seven goals. South Fremantle win their first game against the depleted Royals, handicapped by injuries to captain Hebbard, Walsh, O‘Meara and Fletcher. ||||||

### Round 9

| | Round 9 | Round 9 | Round 9 | |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| Saturday, 4 July (3:00 pm) | South Fremantle 7.7 (49) | def. by | West Perth 8.4 (52) | Fremantle Oval |
| Saturday, 4 July (3:00 pm) | Perth 8.10 (58) | def. by | East Fremantle 12.17 (89) | WACA |
| Saturday, 4 July (3:00 pm) | Subiaco 6.12 (48) | def. by | East Perth 8.13 (61) | Subiaco Oval |
| In a thrilling last stanza of a scrappy game, South Fremantle fail to obtain the decisive goal and kick the only 0.3 (3) of the whole last quarter. ||||||

### Round 10

| | Round 10 | Round 10 | Round 10 | |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| Saturday, 11 July (3:00 pm) | West Perth 9.8 (62) | def. by | Perth 12.13 (85) | Leederville Oval |
| Saturday, 11 July (3:00 pm) | East Fremantle 13.13 (91) | def. | East Perth 8.4 (52) | Fremantle Oval |
| Saturday, 11 July (3:00 pm) | Subiaco 12.13 (85) | def. | South Fremantle 6.5 (41) | Subiaco Oval |

### Round 11

| | Round 11 | Round 11 | Round 11 | |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| Saturday, 18 July (3:00 pm) | Subiaco 11.8 (74) | def. | West Perth 9.13 (67) | Subiaco Oval |
| Saturday, 18 July (3:00 pm) | South Fremantle 8.8 (56) | def. | East Fremantle 4.13 (37) | Fremantle Oval |
| Saturday, 18 July (3:00 pm) | East Perth 14.12 (96) | def. | Perth 3.12 (30) | Perth Oval |
| During the two weekends following this round, Western Australia were thrashed at the MCG by 8.10 (58) to 22.11 (143) and then at the Adelaide Oval on 1 August by 7.8 (50) to 12.22 (94). West Perth went on a tour of Tasmania at this time and played two games against representative teams there, beating Northern Tasmania 10.7 (67) to 7.10 (52) on July 25 and losing 8.5 (53) to 8.12 (60) against Southern Tasmania on August 1. ||||||

### Round 12

| | Round 12 | Round 12 | Round 12 | |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| Saturday, 8 August (3:00 pm) | Subiaco 10.14 (74) | def. | East Fremantle 11.7 (73) | Subiaco Oval |
| Saturday, 8 August (3:00 pm) | South Fremantle 8.7 (55) | def. by | Perth 9.11 (65) | Fremantle Oval |
| Saturday, 15 August (3:00 pm) | East Perth 4.17 (41) | def. by | West Perth 12.16 (88) | Perth Oval |
| The Perth Oval match was postponed because West Perth were delayed in their return from Tasmania. The Cardinals, despite having only seventeen players, record a hollow victory over East Perth. ||||||

### Round 13

| | Round 13 | Round 13 | Round 13 | |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| Saturday, 22 August (3:00 pm) | West Perth 10.18 (78) | def. | East Fremantle 3.7 (25) | Leederville Oval |
| Saturday, 22 August (3:00 pm) | Perth 7.10 (52) | def. by | Subiaco 13.9 (87) | WACA |
| Saturday, 22 August (3:00 pm) | South Fremantle 6.10 (46) | def. by | East Perth 15.12 (102) | Fremantle Oval |

### Round 14

| | Round 14 | Round 14 | Round 14 | |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| Saturday, 29 August (3:00 pm) | East Fremantle 15.10 (100) | def. | Perth 11.10 (76) | Fremantle Oval |
| Saturday, 29 August (3:00 pm) | West Perth 13.7 (85) | def. | South Fremantle 7.9 (51) | Leederville Oval |
| Saturday, 29 August (3:00 pm) | East Perth 4.9 (33) | def. by | Subiaco 6.8 (44) | Perth Oval |
| Subiaco seal the minor premiership as a result of East Perth’s shocking forward work in perfect conditions. ||||||

### Round 15

| | Round 15 | Round 15 | Round 15 | |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| Saturday, 5 September (3:00 pm) | East Perth 9.12 (66) | def. | East Fremantle 7.3 (45) | Perth Oval |
| Saturday, 5 September (3:00 pm) | South Fremantle 13.7 (85) | def. | Subiaco 11.9 (75) | Fremantle Oval |
| Saturday, 5 September (3:00 pm) | Perth 8.10 (58) | def. by | West Perth 7.17 (59) | WACA |
| A dubious goal by Beaumont when Sharples almost certainly marked inside the field of play gives West Perth a narrow win. ||||||

## Ladder

1925 ladder :

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | D | PF | PA | PP | Pts |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | Subiaco | 15 | 10 | 4 | 1 | 1054 | 874 | 120.6 | 42 |
| 2 | West Perth | 15 | 9 | 6 | 0 | 1072 | 933 | 114.9 | 36 |
| 3 | East Fremantle (P) | 15 | 9 | 6 | 0 | 1054 | 929 | 113.5 | 36 |
| 4 | East Perth | 15 | 8 | 7 | 0 | 1011 | 976 | 103.6 | 32 |
| 5 | Perth | 15 | 5 | 10 | 0 | 993 | 1092 | 90.9 | 20 |
| 6 | South Fremantle | 15 | 3 | 11 | 1 | 845 | 1225 | 69.0 | 14 |

## Finals

### First semi-final

| | First semi-final | First semi-final | First semi-final | |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| Saturday, 12 September (3:00 pm) | West Perth 2.9 (21) | def. by | East Fremantle 6.22 (58) | Subiaco Oval (crowd: 9,483) |
| East Fremantle’s superior ground play in cold, wet and windy weather ensures them a clear win over the high-flying style of the Cardinals. West Perth never again scored only two goals in a match or a lower total score until 2014. ||||||

### Second semi-final

| | Second semi-final | Second semi-final | Second semi-final | |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| Saturday, 19 September (3:00 pm) | Subiaco 13.15 (93) | def. by | East Perth 15.12 (102) | WACA (crowd: 9,045) |
| An eight-goal second quarter ensures East Perth upset the minor premiers, in the process avenging their loss in the corresponding match from 1924. ||||||

### Final

| | Preliminary final | Preliminary final | Preliminary final | |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| Saturday, 26 September (3:00 pm) | East Fremantle 12.10 (82) | def. | East Perth 5.7 (37) | Subiaco Oval (crowd: 12,077) |
| After losing star goalkicker Bonny Campbell with a broken bone in his ankle the Royals are crushed by a rugged East Fremantle outfit ||||||

### Grand Final

| | 1925 WAFL Grand Final | 1925 WAFL Grand Final | 1925 WAFL Grand Final | | |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Saturday, 3 October (3:00 pm) | Subiaco | def. by | East Fremantle | Perth Oval (crowd: 15,112) | |
| | 0.1 (1) 1.3 (9) 3.5 (23) 6.7 (43) | Q1 Q2 Q3 Final | 5.4 (34) 8.4 (52) 8.8 (56) 10.10 (70) | Umpires: Frank O‘Connor | Umpires: Frank O‘Connor |
| Rodriguez 3, Grigg 2, Ahearn | Rodriguez 3, Grigg 2, Ahearn | Goals | Gibson 2, Truscott 2, Gallagher 2, Woods, Jarvis, Dolan, Cinoris | Gibson 2, Truscott 2, Gallagher 2, Woods, Jarvis, Dolan, Cinoris |
| Brophy (best on ground), Leonard, Scaddan, Wieland, Grigg, Rodriguez | Brophy (best on ground), Leonard, Scaddan, Wieland, Grigg, Rodriguez | Best | Dolan, Buchanan, Coffey, Brown, Mudie, Jones, Jarvis | Dolan, Buchanan, Coffey, Brown, Mudie, Jones, Jarvis |
| Outridge (ankle) | Outridge (ankle) | Injuries | | |
| East Fremantle continue their form of the previous two finals to have the premiership sealed by half-time, aided by a wind that lost its force during the second quarter. ||||||
