North West Football Union

The North West Football Union (NWFU) was an Australian rules football competition which ran from 1910 to 1986 on the north-western coast of Tasmania. In its time it was one of the three main leagues in Tasmania, with the Tasmanian Football League in Hobart and Northern Tasmanian Football Association in Launceston representing the rest of the state. Burnie, Latrobe and Ulverstone were the most successful clubs with 12 premierships each. Prior to 1922 the Union was restricted to the Devonport, Latrobe and Ulverstone municipalities. From 1922 Burnie, Penguin and Yeoman were admitted. Wynyard replaced Yeoman in 1925.

In 1929 Devonport and Latrobe decided to break away from the NWFU . They formed with the addition of Kentish and Deloraine the Central Combine. The NWFU was reduced to four teams. Inter-league matches against Circular Head had the Circular Head winning so it was decided to have invite them compete in the Union's finals series. Circular Head played 3 matches and won them all including the premiership. The following year the Central Combine became NWFU East and so the winners of each division played off for the premiership. In 1931 the grand finalist of both divisions played a knock out competition for the premiership.

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.

Clubs

Final

Former

NWFU premierships

Winners by year

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

Most premierships

Tasmanian State Premiership

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:

• 1955 – Ulverstone
• 1963 – Burnie
• 1964 – Cooee
• 1970 – Latrobe
• 1976 – Ulverstone
• 1978 – Cooee

Best and Fairests

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

• 1948 – Dave Jeffrey
• 1949 – Len Hayes
• 1950 – Lou Redman
• 1951 – Jack Rough
• 1952 – Max Berryman, Peter Gillam
• 1953 – Darrel Eaton
• 1954 – Ray Stokes
• 1955 – Arthur Hodgson
• 1956 – Joe Murphy
• 1957 – Darrel Baldock
• 1958 – Colin Moore
• 1959 – Darrel Baldock
• 1960 – Terry Pierce

• 1961 – Lloyd Robson
• 1962 – Jock O'Brien
• 1963 – John Bingley
• 1964 – Wally Clark
• 1965 – Len Lawson
• 1966 – Bob Hickman
• 1967 – Bob Hickman
• 1968 – Brian Waters
• 1969 – Darrel Baldock
• 1970 – John Jillard
• 1971 – John Jillard
• 1972 – Ricky Smith
• 1973 – Graeme Shephard

• 1974 – Cec Rheinberger
• 1975 – Ricky Watt
• 1976 – Kerry Coates
• 1977 – Ricky Smith
• 1978 – Jim Prentice
• 1979 – Tom Lee
• 1980 – Lindsay Bell
• 1981 – John Murphy
• 1982 – Richard Lynch
• 1983 – Stephen Parsons
• 1984 – John Korporshoek
• 1985 – Neville Muir
• 1986 – Peter Borlini

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 <br /> Awarded only to players from the eastern region of the NWFU

• 1930 – Bill Berryman

Wright Medal <br /> Awarded only to players from the western region of the NWFU

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

Alford Medal

• 1937 – Clem Riggs

References