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1956

Image Coach: Norm Smith
Captain: Noel McMahen
Finishing Position: 1st (Premiers)
Best and Fairest: Stuart Spencer
Leading Goalkicker: Robert B Johnson (43)
Best First Year Player: Jim Sandral

Matches Ladder Playing List Best and Fairest Seconds Thirds

Image


Tossed off the MCG due to preparations for the 1956 Melbourne Olympic Games, the reigning premiers were forced to use Olympic Park as an alternative training venue before moving to the Albert Ground from the start of the season, where they remained until August. The Thirds were forced to play at the Albert Ground all season while curtain raisers were banned from the MCG.

The ground was unavailable to the senior side for the first four rounds of the season, though the Round 1 game was moved to Punt Road on the request of the club, and a lesser side could have been expected to struggle amongst the chaos, but this Melbourne outfit were a class above, and by the time they returned home in Round 5 to unveil the flag against Geelong they were unbeaten.

Even though they'd just won the premiership, Norm Smith admitted before the season that he thought his side was weak in attack and vulnerable to over-confidence.

The Demons were unbeatable for the first thirteen weeks and Athol Webb, Robert B Johnson, Ron Barassi and John Beckwith were amongst the best players in the competition. Two losses in three weeks were quickly overcome, and they finished the season with a 16-2 record - the best in the club's history to that point. They used just 27 players for the year, the equal least of any Melbourne season.

The season ended with three matches against Collingwood, one in Round 18 1956, one in the Semi Final and then the Grand Final 1956. After winning the first two it would have been a major shock if the Demons hadn't won, and they didn't let down their area of the record 115,000 strong crowd.

The reserves had already won the premiership when the senior side ran out, and what is almost universally described as the best Melbourne side ever to take the field, followed their lead to do the 'double'.

A night football competition was played for the first time, but as it was restricted to the eight clubs who had failed to make the finals the Demons weren't involved.

During the Summer Olympics held in Melbourne during summer Denis Cordner captained a combined team of VFA/VFL amateurs in a match against the VAFA as part of a demonstration of Australian Rules Football.

The club made a profit of £1268 for the year. Before the season the league approved an increase in player payments to 6p per match, 3p for emergency players, 2p for listed players, 6p for injured players and 2p for disqualified players.

Ron Barassi and Stuart Spencer were Melbourne's players in a carnival winning interstate side.

Melbourne's VFL delegates were Bert Chadwick and Richard Taylor.

Premiership Season

RoundOppositionResult
1 RichmondWIN
2 CarltonWIN
3 FootscrayWIN
4 FitzroyWIN
5 GeelongWIN
6 North MelbourneWIN
7 CollingwoodWIN
8 St. KildaWIN
9 EssendonWIN
10 South MelbourneWIN
11 HawthornWIN
12 RichmondWIN
13 CarltonWIN
14 FootscrayLOSS
15 FitzroyWIN
16 GeelongLOSS
17 North MelbourneWIN
18 CollingwoodWIN
SF CollingwoodWIN
GF CollingwoodWIN

Ladder

WDL%P
Melbourne1602146.064
Collingwood1305125.952
Geelong1305121.952
Footscray1107114.244
Carlton1017113.742
Essendon100895.840
Hawthorn711088.930
Fitzroy701189.328
South Melbourne611188.126
Richmond601286.824
St. Kilda411388.018
North Melbourne301569.612

Exhibition Games

OppositionResult
North West Football Union WIN
Port Adelaide WIN
East Perth WIN

Playing List

NumberNameGamesGoals
1 Denis Cordner 202
3 Peter Marquis 154
5 Ian McLean 141
6 Frank Adams 73
7 Geoff Case 40
8 Jim Sandral 152
9 Brian Dixon 175
11 Laurie Mithen 188
12 Stuart Spencer 1942
14 Trevor Johnson 201
15 Athol Webb 2028
16 Clyde Laidlaw 185
17 Geoff McGivern 130
18 Bob Johnson 1943
19 Keith Carroll 200
21 Peter Cook 73
24 Ian Ridley 2040
25 Don Williams 180
27 Denis Jones 21
28 Terry Gleeson 102
29 Tony Bull 71
30 John Beckwith 200
31 Ron Barassi 1927
33 Colin Wilson 20
34 Ralph Lane 182
35 Noel McMahen 192
38 Ken Melville 191

Best and Fairest

Player Votes
1st Stuart Spencer 87.5
2nd John Beckwith 87
3rd Ron Barassi 50

Other Awards
Best Clubman - Ralph Lane
Outstanding Service - Brian Dixon
Most Unselfish - Athol Webb

Seconds

1956 Seconds season

Captain - Brian Collopy
Vice Captain - Denis Jones
Best and Fairest - Graham Kerr
Second Best and Fairest - Colin Wilson
Most serviceable - Denis Jones
Outstanding service - Robert Hayes, Dick Atkinson, Brian Collopy, Tom Lay
Grand Final Trophy - John Lord, Ben Crameri

WDL%P
South Melbourne 1404125.556
Melbourne 1305130.452
Hawthorn 1206134.548
Richmond 1206111.748
St Kilda 1206109.048
Collingwood 1206106.048
Essendon909119.936
Footscray601288.124
Carlton 501379.020
Geelong501377.320
Fitzroy 501372.820
North Melbourne301572.512

Finals

RoundOppositionResult
SF South Melbourne WIN
GF South Melbourne WIN

Thirds

1956 Thirds season

Captain - Noel Williamson
Best and Fairest - Trevor Clay
Second Best and Fairest - Ron Dudley
Outstanding service - Noel Williamson, Kevin Boyle, David McKenzie, Ken Davidson

WDL%P
Fitzroy 1303163.352
Collingwood 1303138.552
St Kilda 1213130.850
South Melbourne 1204168.148
Essendon 1105129.044
North Melbourne835126.038
Carlton 61990.926
Geelong601067.324
Richmond401267.316
Footscray311270.914
Hawthorn301366.212
Melbourne201457.48

Fourths

Best and Fairest - Neil Campbell
Second Best and Fairest - Bernie Massey
Outstanding service - L. Scotland, L. Seawood, G. Harris

Notes
Football Record suggests the Demons were planning to play a game against the Western Australian premiers on October 20. The Grand Final Record says they also played in Tasmania and Adelaide before the WA game.

Media
Age - 14/02/1956
Argus - 09/04/1956
Football Record R17 1956
Age - 21/09/1956
Argus - 21/09/1956

Links
1956 Story - melbfc.com.au

Created by Supermercado. Last Modification: Thursday 13 February 2020 19:06:42 AEDT by Supermercado. (Version 56)

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