1961 Hawthorn Football Club season

Hawthorn Football Club

1961 season
President	Dr. A.S. Ferguson
Coach	John Kennedy Sr.
Captain(s)	Graham Arthur
Home ground	Glenferrie Oval
VFL season	14–4 (1st)
Finals series	Premiers (Defeated Footscray 94–51)
Best and fairest	Ian Law
Leading goalkicker	John Peck (49)
Highest home attendance	107,935 (Grand Final vs. Footscray)
Lowest home attendance	14,000 (Round 15 vs. North Melbourne)
Average home attendance	37,471
← 1960 1962 →

The 1961 season was the Hawthorn Football Club's 37th season in the Victorian Football League and 60th overall. The season was a historic one for Hawthorn finishing top of the ladder and claiming the McClelland Trophy for the first time in their history, reaching the Grand Final for the first time in their history, and winning the Premiership for the first time in their history.

Fixture

Premiership Season

Rd	Date and local time	Opponent	Scores (Hawthorn's scores indicated in bold)			Venue	Attendance	Record
			Home	Away	Result
1	Saturday, 15 April (2:20 pm)	South Melbourne	7.14 (56)	11.15 (81)	Lost by 25 points	Glenferrie Oval (H)	20,000	0–1
2	Saturday, 22 April (2:20 pm)	Melbourne	5.14 (44)	11.10 (76)	Won by 32 points	Melbourne Cricket Ground (A)	34,640	1–1
3	Saturday, 29 April (2:20 pm)	Fitzroy	13.17 (95)	10.9 (69)	Won by 26 points	Glenferrie Oval (H)	21,500	2–1
4	Saturday, 6 May (2:20 pm)	North Melbourne	8.7 (55)	12.13 (85)	Won by 30 points	Arden Street Oval (A)	13,500	3–1
5	Saturday, 13 May (2:20 pm)	Essendon	9.21 (75)	12.4 (76)	Lost by 1 point	Glenferrie Oval (H)	31,000	3–2
6	Saturday, 21 May (2:20 pm)	St Kilda	14.16 (100)	12.9 (81)	Lost by 19 points	Junction Oval (A)	32,900	3–3
7	Saturday, 3 June (2:20 pm)	Richmond	10.13 (73)	8.12 (60)	Won by 13 points	Glenferrie Oval (H)	15,000	4–3
8	Monday, 12 June (2:20 pm)	Footscray	14.19 (103)	13.13 (91)	Lost by 12 points	Western Oval (A)	24,132	4–4
9	Saturday, 17 June (2:20 pm)	Geelong	9.7 (61)	10.10 (70)	Won by 9 points	Kardinia Park (A)	14,197	5–4
10	Saturday, 24 June (2:20 pm)	Carlton	12.6 (78)	6.10 (46)	Won by 32 points	Glenferrie Oval (H)	21,500	6–4
11	Saturday, 1 July (2:20 pm)	Collingwood	13.12 (90)	4.12 (36)	Won by 54 points	Glenferrie Oval (H)	31,500	7–4
12	Saturday, 8 July (2:20 pm)	South Melbourne	7.7 (49)	9.11 (65)	Won by 16 points	Lake Oval (A)	13,860	8–4
13	Saturday, 15 July (2:20 pm)	Melbourne	8.10 (58)	5.10 (40)	Won by 18 points	Glenferrie Oval (H)	27,500	9–4
14	Saturday, 29 July (2:20 pm)	Fitzroy	12.15 (87)	13.16 (94)	Won by 7 points	Brunswick Street Oval (A)	23,012	10–4
15	Saturday, 5 August (2:20 pm)	North Melbourne	15.10 (100)	6.11 (47)	Won by 53 points	Glenferrie Oval (H)	14,000	11–4
16	Saturday, 12 August (2:45 pm)	Essendon	10.12 (72)	11.13 (79)	Won by 7 points	Windy Hill (A)	27,200	12–4
17	Saturday, 19 August (2:20 pm)	St Kilda	19.6 (120)	14.7 (91)	Won by 29 points	Glenferrie Oval (H)	34,500	13–4
18	Saturday, 26 August (2:20 pm)	Richmond	8.8 (56)	11.15 (81)	Won by 25 points	Punt Road Oval (A)	15,177	14–4

Finals Series

Rd	Date and local time	Opponent	Scores (Hawthorn's scores indicated in bold)			Venue	Attendance
			Home	Away	Result
Second Semi-Final	Saturday, 9 September (2:30 pm)	Melbourne	12.8 (80)	11.7 (73)	Won by 7 points	Melbourne Cricket Ground (H)	87,744
Grand Final	Saturday, 23 September (2:50 pm)	Footscray	13.16 (94)	7.9 (51)	Won by 43 points	Melbourne Cricket Ground (H)	107,935

Ladder

(P)	Premiers
	Qualified for finals

#	Team	P	W	L	D	PF	PA	%	Pts
1	Hawthorn (P)	18	14	4	0	1467	1173	125.1	56
2	Melbourne	18	12	5	1	1510	1151	131.2	50
3	St Kilda	18	11	7	0	1373	1173	117.1	44
4	Footscray	18	11	7	0	1334	1216	109.7	44
5	Fitzroy	18	10	7	1	1469	1258	116.8	42
6	Geelong	18	10	7	1	1367	1362	100.4	42
7	Essendon	18	9	8	1	1462	1335	109.5	38
8	Carlton	18	9	9	0	1279	1325	96.5	36
9	Collingwood	18	5	12	1	1166	1375	84.8	22
10	Richmond	18	5	13	0	1126	1428	78.9	20
11	South Melbourne	18	5	13	0	1187	1644	72.2	20
12	North Melbourne	18	4	13	1	1133	1433	79.1	18

Rules for classification: 1. premiership points; 2. percentage; 3. points for
Average score: 73.5
Source: AFL Tables