The 1991 AFL season was the 95th season of senior Australian rules football competition in Victoria, known as the Victorian Football League (VFL) until it was re‑branded the Australian Football League (AFL) in 1990. The season comprised a home‑and‑away component followed by a finals series, and it was contested by fifteen clubs.
Season structure
- Duration: The home‑and‑away season commenced in early March and concluded with the Grand Final on 28 September 1991.
- Matches: Each club played 22 games during the regular season, with a combination of scheduled matches and a single “bye” round for each team.
- Finals system: The top eight clubs on the ladder after the regular season qualified for the AFL’s final eight system, culminating in the Grand Final at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG).
Teams
The competition featured the following fifteen clubs: Adelaide, Brisbane Bears, Carlton, Collingwood, Essendon, Fitzroy, Geelong, Hawthorn, Melbourne, North Melbourne, Richmond, St Kilda, Sydney Swans, West Coast Eagles, and Footscray (now the Western Bulldogs).
Ladder and finals
- Premiers: Hawthorn Football Club won its tenth VFL/AFL premiership, defeating the West Coast Eagles by 53 points in the Grand Final.
- Runners‑up: West Coast Eagles.
- Minor premiers: Essendon Football Club finished the home‑and‑away season atop the ladder.
Individual awards
- Brownlow Medal: Awarded to Jim Stynes (Melbourne) for being adjudged the league’s fairest and best player.
- Coleman Medal (leading goalkicker): Insufficient Encyclopedic Information (records for the leading goalkicker in 1991 are not definitively confirmed in the available sources).
- Norm Smith Medal (best on ground, Grand Final): Paul Dear (Hawthorn).
Notable events
- The 1991 season marked the first year that the West Coast Eagles reached the Grand Final, signifying the growing competitiveness of non‑Victorian clubs.
- The competition continued its expansion and nationalisation agenda, with the Adelaide Crows having entered the league in 1991 as the league’s first South Australian team.
Statistical summary
- Total matches played: 161 (including finals).
- Average attendance: Approximately 31,000 spectators per home‑and‑away match, with the Grand Final drawing a crowd of 98,280.
Legacy
The 1991 AFL season is remembered for Hawthorn’s dominant performance, the emergence of West Coast as a national contender, and the continued integration of clubs from outside Victoria into the league’s structure.