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Following the formation of clubs in Victoria in
1858, the game slowly moved throughout country Victoria in the 1860s.
Football was played in
South Australia
in 1860 and the South Australian Football Association was formed in 1877, the
same year as the VFA.
In
Tasmania games were played in Northern
Tasmania in 1875 and in the south a year later with the Southern Football
Association being formed in 1879.
The first recorded game in
Western Australia
was played in 1868 with the West Australian Football Association formed in 1885.
Competition in Sydney,
New South Wales, commenced in 1880 with
the formation of the NSW Football Association.
In
Queensland the first Australian Football club was formed in
1866 with the Association formed in 1879.
The
Northern Territory
Football League was formed in 1917.
New South Wales
The next year saw the first interstate game between NSW and a Bendigo
Representative side in Bendigo, NSW won by four goals to one. Competition
continued till 1893 when it ceased for the next season.
Early in 1903 Collingwood played Fitzroy on the SCG before 15,000 people.
This rekindled the game and the NSW League was established in 1903 with eleven
clubs. The game spread to the Riverina, Lithgow and Newcastle. In 1914 the
Australian Football Carnival was held in Sydney.
The game fluctuated up and down being at its strongest during the second
World War.
In the ACT football was first played in 1911. It has always had a strong league
although it was weakened by the introduction of the Canberra Raiders in Rugby
League.
Presently the Sydney and ACT Football Leagues have amalgamated.
Queensland
The first club was called the
Brisbane Australian Football Club in May 1866. In the 1868-69 season there were
four teams being Brisbane, Volunteer Artillery, Brisbane Grammar and Civil
Service. They played eight games for the season. In 1870 games were played
between Ipswich and Brisbane, Brisbane winning the first three games. Ipswich
was a particularly strong area and in 1885 they recorded a win over Essendon.
In 1870 a match was played at Queen's Park between Brisbane and Ipswich Grammar
Schools. The return match in Ipswich required an overnight ferry journey.
In 1879 the first controlling body was formed to oversee the competition and
in 1883 Queensland sent delegates to the Inter-colonial Football Conference.
1882 appeared to be the turning point when Sydney and Brisbane had
negotiations for inter-colonial games. Although Brisbane wanted to play both
Australian Rules and Rugby Union, the Southern Rugby Union offered to cover the
whole cost of the matches so it was decided only to play Union. 1882 saw the
birth of the Queensland Rugby Union.
Australian Football still continued to be played throughout Queensland and there
are competitions, junior development and coaching activity in areas including
Brisbane, Gold Coast, Cairns, Sunshine Coast, Townsville, Mackay, Central
Highlands, Rockhampton and Mt Isa.
Northern Territory
In the Northern Territory, Football
is played in the wet season from October to April, the opposite to the other
states. It has strong competitions in both Darwin and Alice Springs. Recently it
has produced magical Aboriginal players in the likes of Maurice Rioli, Michael
Long, Michael Mclean, Darryl White and the McAdam brothers.
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