The 1901 VFL season was the fifth season of the Victorian Football League (VFL), the premier Australian‑rules football competition in Victoria, Australia. Eight clubs contested the season: Carlton, Collingwood, Essendon, Fitzroy, Geelong, Melbourne, South Melbourne, and St Kilda.
Season format
The competition comprised a home‑and‑away season in which each club played the others twice, followed by a finals series conducted under the Argus system, which was used by the VFL from 1901 to 1930.
Premiership
Essendon Football Club won the 1901 VFL premiership. The club defeated Collingwood in the Grand Final, which was played at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Essendon’s victory secured its second premiership in the league’s history; its first had been in the inaugural 1897 season.
Finals series
The top four clubs after the home‑and‑away rounds qualified for the finals. The clubs that contested the finals were Essendon, Collingwood, Fitzroy, and Geelong. Under the Argus system, the first‑semi final featured the 3rd‑placed club against the 4th‑placed club, while the 1st‑placed club played the 2nd‑placed club in the second‑semi final. The winners of the two semi‑finals then met in the Grand Final.
Ladder (final home‑and‑away standings)
The final ladder placed Essendon on top of the table, followed by Collingwood, Fitzroy, and Geelong. The remaining clubs—Carlton, Melbourne, South Melbourne, and St Kilda—occupied the lower positions. Specific win–loss records and points totals for each club are not provided here.
Leading goalkicker
Insufficient Encyclopedic Information.
Notable events and context
- The 1901 season continued the early expansion of Australian‑rules football’s popularity in Melbourne, with match attendances regularly reaching several thousand spectators.
- The season was played before the introduction of many modern features of the game, such as the Brownlow Medal (first awarded in 1925) and the current finals format.
Legacy
Essendon’s 1901 premiership contributed to the club’s early reputation as one of the VFL’s dominant teams. The season also reinforced the Argus finals system, which would remain in use for nearly three decades.
