North Western Football Association Explained

North Western Football Association
Current Season:	2017
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Sport:	Australian rules football
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Website:	nwfa.net.au

The North Western Football Association is an Australian rules football competition based on the North West Coast of Tasmania, Australia.

Origins

The North Western Football Association was formed at a meeting at the Formby Hotel in 1894 and is the oldest continuously running football competition in the state of Tasmania. The first clubs were Devonport, Latrobe, Mersey and Ulverstone.

The NWFA was the senior football body on the coast until a break away group of teams formed the NWFU in 1910.
The NWFA was then looked upon as a junior competition feeding the NWFU and later the TFL Statewide League until their demise and later the NTFL teams.^[1]

The competition has seen more than fifty teams participate in its history from all parts of the North West Coast indicating the rise and fall and changing fortunes of many towns throughout history. Clubs such as Burnie Tigers, Cooee Bulldogs, Penguin, Mole Creek, Wilmot, Barrington, Don, East Devonport, Moriarty, Sassafras, Melrose and Gowrie Park are among many to have played in the NWFA. From mid-1938 until it went into recess during World War II, the NWFA played under VFA rules, a code of rules established by the Victorian Football Association as a rival to the national rules. This most notably meant that throwing the ball was legal during those years. The NWFA was one of the highest level competitions outside the VFA to play under those rules.^[2] Upon its resumption after World War II, the NWFA returned to playing under the traditional rules.^[3]
The Association currently operates as a nine club competition and the medal awarded to the Association's Best & Fairest player is the Les Hicks Medal.

Seniors Premierships

List of NWFA Seniors Premiership teams.^[4]

1894 Devonport
1895 Barrington
1896 Barrington
1897 Devonport
1898 Mersey
1899 Mersey
1900 Ulverstone
1901 Mersey
1902 Mersey
1903 Ulverstone
1904 Mersey
1905 Mersey
1906 Ulverstone
1907 Latrobe
1908 Mersey
1909 Mersey
1910 Wesley Vale
1911 no details
1912 Don
1913 no details
1914 no details
1915 Competition in Recess Due to WWI
1916 Competition in Recess Due to WWI
1917 Competition in Recess Due to WWI
1918 Competition in Recess Due to WWI
1919 Competition in Recess Due to Influenza Epidemic
1920 Melrose
1921 Wesley Vale
1922 Forth
1923 Mersey
1924 Mersey
1925 Wesley Vale
1926 Wesley Vale
1927 Mersey
1928 Mersey
1929 Wesley Vale
1930 Wesley Vale
1931 Wesley Vale
1932 Mersey
1933 Railton
1934 Wesley Vale
1935 Forth
1936 Wesley Vale
1937 Forth
1938 Forth
1939 Forth
1940 Forth
1941 Competition in Recess Due to WWII
1942 Competition in Recess Due to WWII
1943 Competition in Recess Due to WWII
1944 Competition in Recess Due to WWII
1945 Latrobe Rovers
1946 Railton
1947 Railton
1948 Forth
1949 Wesley Vale
1950 Forth
1951 Ex Servicemen
1952 Ex Servicemen
1953 Ex Servicemen
1954 Spreyton
1955 Railton
1956 Forth
1957 Forth
1958 Forth
1959 Wesley Vale
1960 Wesley Vale
1961 Railton
1962 Sheffield
1963 Wesley Vale
1964 Sheffield
1965 Forth
1966 Railton
1967 Gowrie Park
1968 Gowrie Park
1969 Gowrie Park
1970 Gowrie Park
1971 Ulverstone District
1972 Forth
1973 Sheffield
1974 Forth
1975 Spreyton
1976 Spreyton
1977 Spreyton
1978 Spreyton
1979 Wesley Vale
1980 Forth
1981 Turners Beach
1982 Turners Beach
1983 Turners Beach
1984 Spreyton
1985 Motton Preston
1986 Motton Preston
1987 Sheffield
1988 Sheffield
1989 Wesley Vale
1990 Spreyton
1991 Ulverstone District
1992 Ulverstone District
1993 Ulverstone District
1994 Sheffield
1995 Turners Beach
1996 Wesley Vale
1997 Wesley Vale
1998 Rosebery Toorak
1999 Rosebery Toorak
2000 Sheffield
2001 Spreyton
2002 East Ulverstone
2003 Sheffield
2004 Motton Preston
2005 Forth
2006 Motton Preston
2007 Forth
2008 Wesley Vale
2009 Wesley Vale
2010 Motton Preston
2011 Spreyton
2012 Motton Preston
2013 Motton Preston
2014 Turners Beach
2015 Forth
2016 Forth
2017 Wesley Vale
2018 Forth
2019 Wesley Vale
2020 Motton Preston
2021 Motton Preston
2022 Forth
2023 Motton Preston

Current NWFA Clubs

Club	Nickname	Founded	Premierships	Premiership Years
East Ulverstone	Crows	2000	1	2002
Forth	Magpies	1904	20	1922, 1935, 1937-40, 1948, 1950, 1956-58, 1965, 1972, 1974, 1980, 2005, 2007, 2015-16, 2018, 2022
Motton Preston	Demons	1967	10	1985-86, 2004, 2006, 2010, 2012-13, 2020-21, 2023
Rosebery-Toorak	Hawks	1987	2	1998-99
Sheffield	Robins	c.1910	7	1964, 1973, 1987-88, 1994, 2000, 2003
Spreyton	Eagles	1921	9	1954, 1975-78, 1984, 1990, 2001, 2011
Turners Beach	Seagulls	1971	5	1981-83, 1994, 2014
Wesley Vale	Roos	1903	21	1910, 1921, 1925-26, 1929-31, 1934, 1936, 1949, 1959-60, 1963, 1979, 1989, 1996-97, 2008-09, 2017, 2019

NWFA Record Score

Sheffield Seniors – 69.29 (443) vs Rosebery Toorak 0.0 in 2021. Rosebery-Toorak set an unfortunate new NWFA benchmark with an all-time low percentage in the 2021 season of 1.635% (68 points scored, 4160 points conceded in 15 games). 60% of their points were scored in one match against West Ulverstone, when they only lost by five goals. For the other 14 games, they kicked 1.0.6 four times, 0.1.1 three times, and went scoreless seven times. Their leading goalkicker was Nick McElwee with two goals, both against West Ulverstone. It was the only time he played for the club all year.^[5]
Forth Reserves – 66.24 (420) vs Spreyton 0.0 in 2013.

NWFA Individual Goalkicking Record (Match)

Ben Holland – (36) – Wesley Vale v Rosebery Toorak in 2024.
Note: This is a current Tasmanian state record.^[6]

Leading Goal Kickers

Year	Player	H&A goals	Finals goals	Total Goals
1975	Ron Mansfield (Spreyton)	0	0	0
1976	Royce Miles (Spreyton)	0	0	0
1977	Royce Miles (Spreyton)	76	0	76
1978	G Smith	66	0	66
1979	B Johnson	65	0	65
1980	Lloyd Dixon (Turners Beach)	110	0	110
1981	Brian Cole (Spreyton)	0	0	0
1982	Brian Hickey (Turners Beach)	122	0	122
1983	Brian Eade (Ulverstone District)	86	0	86
1984	Chris Reynolds (Spreyton)	72	0	72
1985	Brian Eade (Ulverstone District)	102	0	102
1986	David Frenshaw (Sheffield)	88	0	88
1987	Mike Brocksopp (Turners Beach)	102	0	102
1988	Shane Harris (Ulverstone District)	77	0	77
1989	Les Davidson (Spreyton)	49	0	49
1990	Michael Bramich (Spreyton)	58	0	58
1991	Les Davidson (Spreyton)	55	0	55
1992	Robert Cole (Forth)	60	0	60
1993	Robert Cole (Forth)	83	10	93
1994	Tom Honner (Rosebery Toorak)	66	3	69
1995	Iaon Drake (Rosebery Toorak)	80	0	80
1996	Iaon Drake (Rosebery Toorak)	110	11	121
1997	Paul Hampton (Sheffield)	100	0	100
1998	Paul Hampton (Sheffield)	81	3	84
1999	Jason Fellows (Rosebery Toorak)	75	15	90
2000	Craig Muir (Wesley Vale)	111	0	111
2001	Andrew Stretton (Sheffield)	57	0	57
2002	Jason Foley (East Ulverstone)	81	0	81
2003	Andrew Stretton (Sheffield)	0	0	0
2004	Jamie Auton (East Ulverstone)	0	0	0
2005	Jamie Auton (East Ulverstone)	96	2	98
2006	Jamie Auton (East Ulverstone)	127	4	131
2007	Paul Hampton (Spreyton)	101	0	101
2008	Todd Bryan (Spreyton)	120	0	120
2009	Jamie Auton (West Ulverstone)	79	0	79
2010	Jamie Auton (West Ulverstone)	101	0	101
2011	Mathew Smedley (Motton Preston)	70	0	70
2012	Shannon Mulvey (Sheffield)	104	0	104
2013	Claye Sculthorpe (Motton Preston)	137	0	137
2014	Nick Milbourne (Forth)	138	8	146
2015	Nick Milbourne (Forth)	108	0	108
2016	Brodie Dennis (Rosebery Toorak))	113	0	113
2017	Nick Veal (Forth)	79	2	81
2018	Tristan Weeks (Wesley Vale)	112	8	120

Ladder

North West FA	Wins	Byes	Losses	Draws	For	Against	%	Pts	Final	Team	G	B	Pts	Team	G	B	Pts
Motton Preston	15	0	1	0	2617	865	302.54%	60	Elimination	Spreyton	26	18	174	West Ulverstone	6	9	45
Wesley Vale	14	0	2	0	2810	1081	259.94%	56	Qualifying	Wesley Vale	10	12	72	Turners Beach	8	12	60
Turners Beach	12	0	4	0	2450	1120	218.75%	48	1st Semi	Spreyton	25	7	157	Turners Beach	20	9	129
Spreyton	11	0	5	0	2516	1275	197.33%	44	2nd Semi	Motton Preston	17	18	120	Wesley Vale	10	6	66
West Ulverstone	7	0	9	0	1580	2266	69.73%	28	Preliminary	Wesley Vale	17	16	118	Spreyton	10	14	74
East Ulverstone	6	0	10	0	1282	2007	63.88%	24	Grand	Wesley Vale	16	11	107	Motton Preston	12	10	82
Sheffield	4	0	12	0	1292	1972	65.52%	16
Rosebery/Toorak	2	0	14	0	698	2958	23.60%	8
Forth	1	0	15	0	972	2673	36.36%	4

2010 Ladder

North West FA	Wins	Byes	Losses	Draws	For	Against	%	Pts	Final	Team	G	B	Pts	Team	G	B	Pts
Motton Preston	16	2	0	0	2126	711	299.02%	64	Elimination	Forth	14	16	100	East Ulverstone	14	15	99
Turners Beach	11	2	5	0	2009	1186	169.39%	44	Qualifying	Turners Beach	9	13	67	Spreyton	19	12	126
Spreyton	11	2	5	0	1800	1194	150.75%	44	1st Semi	Turners Beach	19	11	125	Forth	13	11	89
Forth	8	2	8	0	1784	1402	127.25%	32	2nd Semi	Motton Preston	20	8	128	Spreyton	11	11	77
East Ulverstone	8	2	8	0	1519	1290	117.75%	32	Preliminary	Turners Beach	9	15	69	Spreyton	5	8	38
West Ulverstone	8	2	8	0	1832	1585	115.58%	32	Grand	Motton Preston	17	12	114	Turners Beach	10	11	71
Sheffield	5	2	11	0	1358	1571	86.44%	20
Rosebery/Toorak	5	2	11	0	1383	1780	77.70%	20
Wesley Vale	0	2	16	0	345	3529	9.78%	0

2011 Ladder

North West FA	Wins	Byes	Losses	Draws	For	Against	%	Pts	Final	Team	G	B	Pts	Team	G	B	Pts
Motton Preston	16	0	0	0	2579	734	351.36%	64	Elimination	Forth	18	10	118	East Ulverstone	15	13	103
Spreyton	13	0	3	0	2196	1130	194.34%	52	Qualifying	Spreyton	23	18	156	Turners Beach	9	7	61
Turners Beach	10	0	6	0	2000	1252	159.74%	40	1st Semi	Turners Beach	12	14	86	Forth	7	4	46
Forth	8	0	8	0	1731	1674	103.41%	32	2nd Semi	Motton Preston	27	15	177	Spreyton	10	10	70
East Ulverstone	8	0	8	0	1440	1563	92.13%	32	Preliminary	Spreyton	17	15	117	Turners Beach	14	9	93
Rosebery/Toorak	6	0	9	1	1238	1987	62.30%	26	Grand	Spreyton	11	18	84	Motton Preston	9	7	61
Wesley Vale	6	0	10	0	1538	2109	72.93%	24
Sheffield	4	0	11	1	1383	1675	82.57%	18
West Ulverstone	0	0	16	0	1071	3051	35.10%	0

2012 Ladder

North West FA	Wins	Byes	Losses	Draws	For	Against	%	Pts	Final	Team	G	B	Pts	Team	G	B	Pts
Motton Preston	15	0	1	0	2390	1005	237.81%	60	Elimination	Forth	17	10	112	Spreyton	15	10	100
Sheffield	12	0	4	0	2344	1059	221.34%	48	Qualifying	East Ulverstone	21	11	137	Sheffield	18	21	129
East Ulverstone	12	0	4	0	2020	1144	176.57%	48	1st Semi	Sheffield	20	10	130	Forth	4	15	39
Spreyton	10	0	6	0	2115	1269	166.67%	40	2nd Semi	Motton Preston	17	16	118	East Ulverstone	8	7	55
Forth	7	0	9	0	1752	1400	125.14%	28	Preliminary	Sheffield	17	15	117	East Ulverstone	15	9	99
Wesley Vale	7	0	9	0	1698	1426	119.07%	28	Grand	Motton Preston	9	11	65	Sheffield	5	4	34
Rosebery/Toorak	7	0	9	0	1626	1370	118.69%	28
West Ulverstone	2	0	14	0	1141	2545	44.83%	8
Turners Beach	0	0	16	0	314	4182	7.51%	0

2013 Ladder

North West FA	Wins	Byes	Losses	Draws	For	Against	%	Pts	Final	Team	G	B	Pts	Team	G	B	Pts
Motton Preston	15	0	1	0	2496	774	322.48%	60	Elimination	Rosebery Toorak	7	10	52	Forth	5	15	45
Sheffield	12	0	4	0	2667	1143	233.33%	48	Qualifying	Sheffield	23	20	158	Wesley Vale	7	12	54
Wesley Vale	11	0	5	0	2299	1082	212.48%	44	1st Semi	Rosebery Toorak	16	16	112	Wesley Vale	13	6	84
Forth	11	0	5	0	2251	1317	170.92%	44	2nd Semi	Motton Preston	18	23	131	Sheffield	9	4	58
Rosebery/Toorak	9	0	7	0	1605	1266	126.78%	36	Preliminary	Sheffield	16	13	109	Rosebery Toorak	12	18	90
East Ulverstone	7	0	9	0	1306	1657	78.82%	28	Grand	Motton Preston	14	16	100	Sheffield	5	7	37
Turners Beach	5	0	11	0	1525	1926	79.18%	20
West Ulverstone	2	0	14	0	937	2679	34.98%	8
Spreyton	0	0	16	0	667	3909	17.06%	0

2014 Ladder

North West FA	Wins	Byes	Losses	Draws	For	Against	%	Pts	Final	Team	G	B	Pts	Team	G	B	Pts
Turners Beach	14	0	2	0	2463	856	287.73%	56	Elimination	Forth	24	16	160	Rosebery Toorak	14	15	99
Sheffield	14	0	2	0	3039	1106	274.77%	56	Qualifying	Motton Preston	16	10	106	Sheffield	14	16	100
Motton Preston	14	0	2	0	2354	1062	221.66%	56	1st Semi	Sheffield	18	18	126	Forth	8	9	57
Forth	9	0	7	0	2271	1108	204.96%	36	2nd Semi	Turners Beach	15	15	105	Motton Preston	15	10	100
Rosebery/Toorak	8	0	8	0	1587	1628	97.48%	32	Preliminary	Motton Preston	17	14	116	Sheffield	13	5	83
Wesley Vale	7	0	9	0	1644	1805	91.08%	28	Grand	Turners Beach	12	14	86	Motton Preston	8	10	58
East Ulverstone	4	0	12	0	963	2283	42.18%	16
West Ulverstone	2	0	14	0	1053	3023	34.83%	8
Spreyton	0	0	16	0	746	3249	22.96%	0

External links

Official website
Tasmania on FullPoints Footy

Notes and References

Web site: North Western Football Association NWFA Tasmania Founded in 1894 . www.nwfa.net.au . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20080724212321/http://www.nwfa.net.au/history.html . 2008-07-24.
News: Advocate. Burnie, TAS. Altered rules adopted at Devonport: outlined and explained. 5. 14 July 1938.
News: Advocate. Burnie, TAS. Football – N.W. Association. 3. 16 March 1946.
http://www.australianrulesfootball.com.au/pages/NorthWesternFA
Web site: NWFA: 2021 Current ladder . htwebsites.mygameday.app . 8 November 2023.
Web site: Oh, sweet victory . 5 April 2009 .