The Waverley Football Club, nicknamed the Panthers, was an Australian rules football club based in the Melbourne suburb of Glen Waverley.
The club competed in the Victorian Football Association (VFA) from 1961 until 1987. They became the Waverley Amateurs in 1988 after absorbing Clayton Amateurs, before merging with Mount Waverley Burwood to form the Waverley Blues in 1998.
History Early years The club was formed in 1908 as the Glen Waverley Football Club and participated in A Grade of the Mulgrave District Football Association (MDFA). They briefly moved to the Scoresby District Football Association (SDFA) for the 1925 and 1926 seasons, but after finishing second-last and last place respectively in the two seasons, they joined the Berwick District Football Association (BDFA) in 1927.
Glen Waverley made its first known grand final in 1928, defeating Dandenong Rovers. However, the match was replayed on protest, with the Rovers winning that game by 11 points, claiming the BDFA premiership.
In 1930, the club moved to the Federal Football Association (FFA). They finished 7th on the ladder in both of their seasons in the competition, and (after one more BDFA season in 1932) joined the Caulfield-Oakleigh District Football League (CODFL) in 1933.
VFA In 1961, the club joined the newly-formed Division 2 in the Victorian Football Association (VFA). They changed their name to Waverley to better reflect their representation of the region, and adopted the "Panthers" nickname in 1963. They started strongly, winning half of their 18 matches that year, and then in 1963 finished runners up to Preston at Toorak Park. The club was promoted at short notice to the 1st Division in 1964 to fill the spot left after Moorabbin was suspended from the Association. In its first season in Division 1, the club survived relegation back to Division 2 by winning the last game of the season against their nemesis from the previous season, Preston.
The club's breakthrough year came in 1965 under the coaching of Ian Thorogood when, despite competing in just their second season in the top division, they claimed the premiership with a 12-point victory over Port Melbourne in the Grand Final at Port Melbourne's home ground. The following season they met again in the decider, but this time Port Melbourne was too strong. In 1970 they finished third, but in 1972 the club finished last and was relegated to Division 2, ending its nine-year stint in the top division.
The club struggled for support in Division 2, and was also hindered by the opening of VFL Park in nearby Mulgrave, as many locals preferred to watch the VFL game played at the ground every Saturday than watch the Panthers on a Sunday.Fiddian, Marc (2004); The VFA; A History of the Victorian Football Association 1877–1995; p. 188 In the mid-1970s when Association-wide crowds were averaging more than 4,500, Waverley still seldom drew more than 1,000 fans to games. The club was runner-up in Division 2 in 1981, and earned promotion to the expanded 12-team Division 1 for 1982, but returned to Division 2 in 1984 after two wooden spoons at the top level. Waverley was Division 2 runner-up in its final season, 1987, then abruptly folded one month before the 1988 season due to financial difficulties.
Amateurs return After spending the 1988 season in recess, the club announced it would absorb the Clayton Amateurs Football Club, which had been competing in the Victorian Amateur Football Association (VAFA) since 1978.
Under the new name of Waverley Amateurs, the club entered the VAFA's F Section for the 1989 season.
In 1991, the club moved to the Eastern District Football League (EDFL) and reverted back to the "Waverley Football Club" name. The club was runners-up in the Division 4 grand finals in 1996 and 1997, while the EDFL became the Eastern Football League (EFL) at the end of the 1997 season.
Merger with Mount Waverley Burwood
The Mount Waverley Burwood Football Club was formed in 1994 and played in Division 1 of the Southern Football League (SFL). The club was formed as a merger of the Burwood Football Club (formerly Burwood United), which had played in the played in the Eastern Churches Football Association (ECFA) and South East Suburban Football League (SESFL), and the Mount Waverley Football Club, which played in the Federal League, OCDFL and SESFL.
During the 1998 season (the EDFL became the Eastern Football League (EFL) at the end of the 1997 season) the committees of Waverley and Mount Waverley Burwood discussed the possibility of merging to create a larger club that represented the Waverley district of the City of Monash. The merger was agreed on, and the new club − known as the Waverley Blues − entered the EFL in 1999.
Honours VFA premierships (1) 1st Division – 1965 Waverley 14.13 (97) d. Port Melbourne 10.25 (85)
J. J. Liston Trophies (2) Alan Poore – 1965, 1966
Seasons Source: PremiersGrand FinalistMinor premiersFinals appearanceWooden spoonVFA/VFL leading goalkickerVFA/VFL best and fairest Seniors YearLeagueDivisionCoachCaptainBest and fairestLeading goalkickerGoals 1908 MDFA A Grade 1909 MDFA A Grade 1910 MDFA A Grade 1911 MDFA A Grade 1912 MDFA A Grade 1913 MDFA A Grade 1914 MDFA A Grade 1915 MDFA A Grade 1916 MDFA A Grade 1917 MDFA A Grade 1918 MDFA A Grade 1919 MDFA A Grade 1920 MDFA A Grade 1921 MDFA A Grade 1922 MDFA A Grade 1923 MDFA A Grade 1924 MDFA A Grade 1925 SDFA A Grade 8th 3 12 1 1926 SDFA A Grade 9th 2 14 0 1927 BDFA A Grade 3rd 8 6 0 1928 BDFA A Grade 1st 12 2 0 1929 BDFA A Grade 2nd 13 3 0 1930 FFA 7th 1931 FFA 7th 1932 BDFA 1933 CODFL 1934 CODFL 1935 CODFL 1936 CODFL 1937 CODFL 1938 CODFL 1939 CODFL 1940 CODFL 1941 CODFL 1942 CODFL 1943 CODFL 1944 CODFL 1945 CODFL 1946 CODFL 1947 CODFL 1948 CODFL 1949 CODFL 1950 CODFL 1951 CODFL 1952 CODFL 1953 CODFL 1954 CODFL 1955 CODFL 1956 CODFL 1957 CODFL 1958 CODFL 1959 CODFL 1960 CODFL 1961 VFA Division 2 Don Scott Don Scott 1962 VFA Division 2 1963 VFA Division 2 1964 VFA Division 1 1965 VFA Division 1 Ian Thorogood 1966 VFA Division 1 1967 VFA Division 1 1968 VFA Division 1 1969 VFA Division 1 1970 VFA Division 1 1971 VFA Division 1 1972 VFA Division 1 1973 VFA Division 2 1974 VFA Division 2 1975 VFA Division 2 1976 VFA Division 2 1977 VFA Division 2 1978 VFA Division 2 1979 VFA Division 2 1980 VFA Division 2 Paul Angelis 100 1981 VFA Division 2 1982 VFA Division 1 Laurie Fowler Laurie Fowler 1983 VFA Division 1 1984 VFA Division 2 1985 VFA Division 2 1986 VFA Division 2 1987 VFA Division 2 1988 VFA Division 2 (In recess) 1989 VAFA F Section 7th 9 9 0 John Hartley 1990 VAFA F Section 1991 EDFL Division 4 3rd 10 6 0 1992 EDFL 2nd 12 6 0 1993 EDFL Division 4 4th 13 5 0 1994 EDFL Division 4 1995 EDFL Division 4 1996 EDFL Division 4 3rd 13 4 0 1997 EDFL Division 4 2nd 11 7 0 1998 EFL Division 4 5th 7 11 0
Notable players Russell Blew, Essendon dual premiership player Greg Brown, 1965 Essendon premiership team Alan Poore, had a stint at Collingwood Don R. Scott, inaugural VFA captain-coach Ray Shaw, Collingwood player and Copeland Trophy winner Kevin Morris, mercurial half forward flanker who went on to a successful career with Richmond and Collingwood Football Clubs Ralph Rogerson, South Australian and VFL state representative, Fitzroy (VFL) captain Alby Smedts, Footscry and St.Kilda
References