Round 15, 1938
South Melbourne vs Melbourne
Saturday 6 August
Venue: Lake Oval
Attendance: 8000
| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Final | |
| South Melbourne | 3.3 | 5.10 | 5.12 | 9.16.70 |
| Melbourne | 5.5 | 7.6 | 10.11 | 14.15.99 |
Melbourne win by 29 points
Goalkickers: Norm Smith 8, Ron Baggott 1, Ron Barassi 1, Ted Buckley 1, Lou Reiffel 1, Keith Truscott 1, Ray Wartman 1
Milestones:
Last MFC Game
Pat McNamara
Needing to win almost every game for the rest of the season to make the finals, Melbourne were almost assured of victory against South - who had just one victory all season and 13 consecutive losses - but needed to significantly boost their percentage so that it would play a factor in any post-Round 18 tiebreaker.
They got the result they required, but not by the margin they'd have hoped for with South gamely holding on all day to avoid a thrashing.
The win pushed Melbourne back inside the top four, in front of Richmond, but with three difficult games to be played to end the season and an inferior percentage which they had failed to boost against poor teams it was still going to be a tough call to qualify for the finals.
Frank Roberts was reported for striking and Ron Barassi for attempted striking. Barassi was found guilty and suspended for two matches. 19th man McNamara replaced Fischer in the final term.
Seconds
Melbourne 15.9 d. South Melbourne 4.10
Goals - Fanning 7, Alsop 2, Anderson 2, Barton 2
Best - Benjamin, Neenan, Fanning
Lists
Tribunal
Media
Herald - 05/08/1938
Football Record R16 1938