Pre VFL

On these year pages you will find the Carlton team squads. (generally 20 - 24 players) However, on some pages there are both the team squad and the actual Carlton team line-ups. (the team that took the field) These line-ups have been compiled from various newspapers via the State Library of Victoria (SLV) and Trove. Some have the name of the contributor adjacent to them, for example (Mark Pennings or M. P.), which have been sourced by Dr. Mark Pennings from the Queensland University of Technology and kindly provided to Blueseum.

Mark has extensively researched the Pre VFL era and many of his line-ups come from the final editions of The Herald which unfortunately the SLV do not have. Mark has also published his five volume "Origins of Australian Football," essential reading for all those who are interested in the beginnings and the history of Australian Football up to the end of 1896.

Unlike the VFL/AFL section of Blueseum, this part has all the games listed on one page, year by year. We wanted to include all matches, practice matches, club meetings, player movement, grounds, major rule changes, a sort of a history of the club and the game itself.

Perhaps separate match detail pages set out like the 1897 - 2026 format could be added as well in the future.

Highlighted years indicate Carlton premierships.

Note:

1869 is a disputed premiership year. Melbourne's captain H.C.A. Harrison claimed his team to be the premier team, this claim was challenged by Carlton's Jack Conway and most football journalists agreed with Conway.
There was not yet an overseeing body such as the VFA to resolve such matters.

Seasons

1860s	1870s	1880s	1890s
—	1870	1880	1890
—	1871	1881	1891
—	1872	1882	1892
—	1873	1883	1893
1864	1874	1884	1894
1865	1875	1885	1895
1866	1876	1886	1896
1867	1877	1887	—
1868	1878	1888	—
1869	1879	1889	—
VFL- AFL Era