The Pre-Season / Night competitions have taken various forms over the years. First was the Night Series that ran from 1956 to 1971. It was played by the 8 clubs that missed the Final 4. It ran through September and extended into October on a couple of occasions. The introduction of the Final 5 in 1972 left only 7 teams available and killed off the competition.
The second phase was from 1977 to 1986. It kicked off in the pre-season but mostly ran until July. The winners are called Mid-season premiers. The format and number of teams varied from year to year. Some of the years included all of the SANFL and WAFL clubs and rep teams from Tas, Qld, NSW & ACT. Sometimes only the top teams from SA & WA were involved. A maximum of 34 teams competed in 1980 & 1981.
1987 was the first year of the competition that we have today as it became exclusively for VFL clubs. Some might recognise 1988 as the start of the truly pre-season competition because in 1987 the final was at the end of April. The Blueseum tracks Carlton's performances in all of these competitions through this page.
Overall, the Blues have won 4 Pre-Season / Night Series Premierships: 1983, 1997, 2005 & 2007.
The Blueseum tracks all players to have played in the Pre-Season / Night Series competitions as outlined above in 2 main ways:
- Player summary of players that have played "Night" Series League Games for Carlton between 1956 and 2023
- Carlton Players that have played "Night" Series League Games for Carlton between 1956 and 2023 but did not play for Carlton Seniors
Links to the Summaries of the Most Games and Goals by Carlton players during the Pre-Season/Night Series (1956 and 2023)
- "Night" Series League Match Summary
- "Night" Series League Games Summary
- "Night" Series League Goals Summary
- Carlton's Nine Point Super Goals Summary
In addition to the above playing records, Brendan Fevola also holds the record for most goals in a Pre-Season/Night Series match: 12 v Collingwood on New Years Eve, 1999.
Links
Michael Tuck Medal | Premierships | Pre-Season / Night Series Premierships | Pre-Season Runners Up | "Night" Series League Coach Summary |Pre-season/Night Series Match Summary