The Dockerty Cup: A short history

The doyen of football in Victoria, Harry Dockerty, not content with playing the game and organizing its revival in 1908, presented a trophy for competition between the clubs which were formed around that time. Dockerty played with the St Kilda club when competition got under way. The handsome silver cup, which became known as the Dockerty Challenge Cup, was first played for in 1909 and won by Carlton which defeated St Kilda by two goals to one on 15 August. That trophy was to become the Victorian equivalent of the FA Cup involving all the senior clubs in the state in knock-out competition for nearly a century. It was last won by Green Gully in 2004 and has now been returned to Football Federation of Victoria. It was not the oldest cup competition in Australia but it has one of the longest histories, with only two short breaks.

Before competition was suspended in 1915 during the First World War, Carlton United, Williamstown and Melbourne Thistle had each won the trophy twice. The Dockerty Cup was revived in 1919 and won by Footscray Thistle. The Argus reported:

Mention of the English ‘Cup ties’ and ‘finals’ were revived on Saturdav, when Footscray Thistle played Windsor in the final for the Dockerty Cup at Middle Park, in the presence of a large crowd. Footscray, aided by a strong wind, led at half-time by 1 goal to nil. In the second half, with the wind Windsor attacked, but Footscray broke away, and in an endeavour to clear, Tunn kicked the ball through his own goal, adding another to the Footscray lead. From this on, although Windsor had all the advantages, they failed to give the Footscray goalkeeper anything difficult to handle. When the whistle blew the score remained unchanged, and Footscray won, 1 goal to nil.

The score should, of course, have been two-nil!

A new record attendance was established in a second-round Dockerty Cup match between Northumberland and Durhams and Melbourne Thistle at Middle Park on 3 July 1920. The final that year between Albert Park and N and D was abandoned.

By 1927 the Dockerty Cup was attracting teams from Wonthaggi, Bendigo and Geelong. It had become the state-wide competition and the final was the culmination of the football year, drawing large attendances and providing great excitement. Nobels, later ICI, had a hat-trick of wins from 1938 to 1940. The competition continued throughout the Second World War.

Hakoah was the cup champion of the 1950s, annexing the Dockerty Cup in every year from 1953 to 1956. The competition produced many stories of upsets and exciting cup runs over the years.

As well as pursuing the Metropolitan First Division North title in 1959, Croatia, then based in Geelong, had a dream run in the Dockerty Cup, defeating Fairfield by ten-nil, Maccabi, Sandringham City (Sandringham’s first defeat of the season) and South Melbourne in the first four rounds. After beating Brunswick Latvia 29–1 in the league, probably the highest score ever recorded in an official league match in Victoria, Croatia played the Dutch-backed club Wilhelmina in the Dockerty Cup and came back to earth in a defeat by twelve goals to four.

Slavia players and officials with the Dockerty and Australian Cups in 1963–64. Source: 30 Years of Slavia.

The list of winners of the trophy highlights the arrival of the different groups of migrants after the Second World War as teams representing these communities had their name engraved on the cup, including Juventus, Slavia, JUST, Wilhelmina, Croatia and George Cross.

Juventus again dominated the early 1970s with a hat-trick of wins in 1970 to 1972, while Green Gully recorded back to back wins in 1981 and 1982.

John Gardiner

Rivalry between Melbourne Croatia and South Melbourne Hellas was a feature of the late 1980s and 1990s as the two National Soccer League teams won the competition seven times in nine years. It was probably this domination which led to a reduction in public interest and support for the tournament.

The competition was not played in 1997 and so a great competition came to an end. In the late 1990s the Dockerty Cup model was being mooted as the basis for an all-Australian competition, but nothing came of this. Victoria briefly revived the idea in 2004 but the need for sponsorship resulted in the competition being known as the Crazy John’s Cup/Dockerty Cup and the link with the earlier tradition was attenuated. Green Gully won the cup and thus remains the last club to hold the trophy.

Dockerty Cup at Green Gully. Photo: Roy Hay

In 2011, Football Federation Victoria launched the Mirabella Cup as a successor to the Dockerty Cup in the form of a seeded statewide club knock-out competition.

Dockerty Cup Winners
written by John Punshon, from the Ozfootball website.

Season Winner

2004 Green Gully Cavaliers
2003 Not played
2002 Not played
2001 Not played
2000 Not played
1999 Not played
1998 Not played
1997 Not played
1996 Melbourne Knights
1995 South Melbourne
1994 Morwell Falcons
1993 South Melbourne
1992 Preston
1991 South Melbourne Hellas
1990 Melbourne Croatia
1989 South Melbourne Hellas
1988 South Melbourne Hellas
1987 Brunswick United Juventus
1986 Green Gully
1985 Melbourne Croatia
1984 Fawkner
1983 Melbourne Croatia
1982 Green Gully
1981 Green Gully
1980 Essendon
1979 Essendon
1978 George Cross
1977 Juventus
1976 Footscray JUST
1975 South Melbourne Hellas
1974 South Melbourne Hellas
1973 Hakoah St.Kilda
1972 Juventus
1971 Juventus
1970 Juventus
1969 Croatia
1968 Croatia
1967 Port Melbourne Slavia
1966 Hakoah
1965 Slavia
1964 Slavia
1963 Footscray JUST
1962 George Cross
1961 Polonia
1960 Brunswick Juventus
1959 George Cross
1958 Ringwood Wilhelmina
1957 Moreland
1956 Hakoah
1955 Hakoah
1954 Hakoah
1953 Hakoah
1952 Brighton
1951 J.U.S.T.
1950 Moreland
1949 Park Rangers
1948 Park Rangers
1947 South Yarra
1946 Prahran
1945 Moreland-Hakoah
1944 Brighton

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