North West Football Union

The North West Football Union (NWFU) was an Australian rules football competition which ran from 1910 to 1986. In its time it was one of the three main leagues in Tasmania, with the Tasmanian Football League and Northern Tasmanian Football Association representing the rest of the state. Burnie, Latrobe and Ulverstone were the most successful clubs with 12 premierships each.

North West Football Union
SportAustralian rules football
Founded1910
Ceased1986; 38 years ago (1986)
Replaced byNorth West Football League
CountryAustralia
Most titlesBurnie Dockers
Latrobe
Ulverstone Robins
(12 titles each)

The league disbanded after the 1986 season after major clubs such as Cooee and Devonport defected to the TFL Statewide League. In 1987 the NWFU effectively merged with the Northern Tasmanian Football Association (NTFA) to form the Northern Tasmanian Football League, which exists today as the North West Football League.

NWFU premierships

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Winners by year

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The NWFU intrastate representative team in Hobart, 1930
 
The TFL (southern) team photo. Charlesworth in front and Gorringe 3rd from the end. players in a North vs South fixture at Hobart, 1927
 
Joe Littler played as many as 500 league games, mostly in the NWFU
Year Premiers Runner-up Year Premiers Runner-up
1910 Ulverstone 8.13 (61) def. Mersey 5.8 (38) 1952 Wynyard 9.12 (66) def. Ulverstone 7.14 (56)
1911 Mersey 7.8 (50) def. Latrobe 1.9 (15) 1953 Ulverstone 8.14 (62) def. Wynyard 7.14 (56)
1912 Mersey 2.8 (20) def. Ulverstone 1.7 (13) 1954 Burnie 9.13 (67) def. Wynyard 8.10 (58)
1913 Latrobe (No Final Played) 1955 Ulverstone 11.14 (80) def. Burnie 10.15 (75)
1914 Devonport 9.9 (63) def. Latrobe 5.1 (31) 1956 Ulverstone 13.15 (93) def. Cooee 7.14 (56)
1915 Devonport 3.2 (20) def. Ulverstone 2.6 (18) 1957 Ulverstone 29.17 (191) def. Latrobe 9.11 (65)
1916–19 No Competition due to WWI and Spanish Flu Epidemic 1958 Burnie 19.15 (129) def. East Devonport 13.13 (91)
1920 Latrobe 8.11 (59) def. Ulverstone 5.6 (36) 1959 Burnie 16.10 (106) def. East Devonport 11.10 (76)
1921 Diggers 7.11 (53) def. Latrobe 4.6 (30) 1960 Burnie 12.10 (82) def. Cooee 7.15 (57)
1922 Latrobe 5.12 (52) def. Burnie 4.12 (36) 1961 Cooee 8.10 (58) def. Burnie 8.5 (53)
1923 Ulverstone 9.6 (60) def. Latrobe 7.11 (53) 1962 Burnie 12.20 (92) def. Devonport 13.4 (82)
1924 Latrobe 10.11 (71) def. Devonport 8.9 (57) 1963 Burnie 15.15 (105) def. Ulverstone 13.11 (89)
1925 Devonport 11.11 (77) def. Ulverstone 6.13 (49) 1964 Cooee 17.12 (114) def. Ulverstone 5.14 (44)
1926 Latrobe 12.14 (86) def. Ulverstone 12.8 (80) 1965 Cooee 12.14 (86) def. Ulverstone 7.9 (51)
1927 Burnie 13.8 (86) def. Devonport 12.12 (84) 1966 Burnie 7.7 (49) def Latrobe 5.11 (41)
1928 Burnie 7.11 (53) def. Devonport 4.13 (37) 1967 Wynyard 13.7 (85) def. Cooee 7.7 (49)
1929 Circular Head 8.8 (56) def. Burnie 6.14 (50) 1968 East Devonport 15.16 (106) def. Ulverstone 10.18 (78)
1930 Latrobe 9.15 (69) def. Burnie 6.10 (46) 1969 Latrobe 9.10 (64) def. Ulverstone 4.5 (29)
1931 Latrobe 8.19 (67) def. Ulverstone 8.10 (58) 1970 Latrobe 14.19 (103) def. Wynyard 12.5 (77)
1932 Penguin 14.10 (94) def. Latrobe 10.13 (73) 1971 Latrobe 14.16 (100) def. East Devonport 5.9 (39)
1933 Latrobe 14.13 (97) def. Penguin 6.10 (46) 1972 Latrobe 11.16 (82) def. Burnie 8.12 (60)
1934 Devonport 17.14 (116) def. Burnie 8.13 (61) 1973 Cooee 14.12 (96) def. Latrobe 10.10 (70)
1935 Ulverstone 9.16 (70) def. Devonport 8.8 (56) 1974 Burnie 14.15 (99) def. Latrobe 9.12 (66)
1936 Devonport 14.11 (95) def. Burnie 9.19 (73) 1975 Wynyard 15.10 (100) def. Ulverstone 12.8 (80)
1937 Burnie 14.14 (98) def. Devonport 13.15 (93) 1976 Ulverstone 14.9 (93) def. Penguin 7.19 (61)
1938 Devonport 13.22 (100) def. Burnie 9.9 (63) 1977 Penguin 11.18 (84) def. Cooee 11.14 (80)
1939 Burnie 16.10 (106) def. Latrobe 8.13 (61) 1978 Cooee 20.11 (131) def. Wynyard 13.30 (108)
1940–44 No Competition Due To World War II 1979 Wynyard 21.24 (150) def. Cooee 15.7 (97)
1945 W APPM 10.20 (80) def. Wynyard 11.12 (78) 1980 Penguin 12.11 (83) def. Wynyard 11.5 (71)
1945 E East Devonport 8.15 (63) def Devonport 6.16 (52)
1946 W Burnie 13.11 (89) def. Wynyard 12.10 (82) 1981 Devonport 13.9 (87) def. Penguin 10.12 (72)
1946 E East Devonport 18.14 (122) def Ulverstone 12.4 (76)
1947 W Burnie 10.17 (77) def. Cooee 11.8 (74) 1982 Cooee 16.15 (111) def. Penguin 16.5 (101)
1947 E Ulverstone 15.17 (107) def Latrobe 8.17 (65)
1948 W Wynyard 8.13 (61) def. Cooee 8.9 (57) 1983 Smithton 20.17 (137) def. Cooee 21.10 (136)
1948 E East Devonport 10.7 (67) def Ulverstone 6.8 (44)
1949 APPM 14.12 (96) def. Ulverstone 9.15 (69) 1984 Cooee 18.16 (124) def. Smithton 17.13 (115)
1950 Ulverstone 7.8 (50) def. Devonport 7.7 (49) 1985 Penguin 21.9 (135) def. Smithton 13.9 (87)
1951 Ulverstone 17.22 (124) def. Cooee 8.11 (59) 1986 Ulverstone 9.10 (64) def. Smithton 7.7 (49)

Reforming after the war there were two divisions, East and West, Both Divisional premiers would play off.

Most premierships

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NWFU representative coach Ivor Warne-Smith
Club Premierships
Burnie 12
Latrobe 12
Ulverstone 12
Cooee 7
Devonport 7
Penguin 4
Wynyard 4
East Devonport 3
APPM 2
Mersey 2
Circular Head 1
Diggers 1
Smithton 1

This was contested regularly between the premiers of the Tasmanian Football League and the Northern Tasmanian Football Association and then the NWFU from 1954 until 1978.

The six winners from the NWFU were:

Best and Fairests

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The Wander Medal was awarded annually to the best and fairest player in the NWFU, every year from 1948 to 1986. Prior to 1948, the league's best and fairest award was known under various names and given out semi regularly. From 1945 to 1947, an award was given to best and fairest player from the western region but the name of it is unknown. Len Hayes won it in the first two years and Alan Crawford the last.

Wander Medal

Cheel Medal

  • 1923 – Stan Trebilco
  • 1924 – Fred Odgers
  • 1925 – Bill Berryman
  • 1926 – Rupert Stott
  • 1927 – H. O. "Nip" Smith (Penguin)
  • 1928 – Charlie Hallam
  • 1929 – Tas Langmaid

Royal Medal
Awarded only to players from the eastern region of the NWFU

Wright Medal
Awarded only to players from the western region of the NWFU

  • 1930 – Jimmy Brown (Ulverstone)
  • 1931 – Gerry Plapp

Alford Medal

  • 1937 – Clem Riggs

References

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