As the foundation of GWS has happened in the public gaze, evolving through the era of twitter, facebook, websites and television, Melbourne’s establishment was much more basic, utilising a weekly newpaper as a form of bulletin board to gain support and involvement. It was 10 July 1858 when the first letter appeared in the weekly newspaper - Bell’s Life in Victoria - from Tom Wills, effectively kick-starting the game we know and love today.
While GWS has arrived in the AFL with a ready made identity, Melbourne experimented with some colours to create a uniform appearance in the early years of its existence. Magenta was utilised, and a distinctive white outfit, which led to one of the Club's earliest nicknames - 'Invincible Whites'. This made way for red and blue in the 1870s, but still has an important place in the Melbourne Football Club's earliest history and cultural background.
Far from having a boutique facility at its disposal as GWS has Skoda Stadium, Melbourne had a much more basic beginning way back in the middle of the nineteenth century, taking the game to the flat stretches of land around the MCG. Since those earliest days, the long slopes of Yarra Park have played host to games galore. The initial sorting out period of the game and competition took place on ‘grounds’ that were up to a mile long, and included trees to dodge between. Games of the late 1850s went on for many hours - on occasion from week to week - and were an important part of shaping the competition and the game itself.
This formation also took in many local landmarks, which will no doubt also evolve for GWS beyond its initial existence. Where Melbourne is concerned, the landscape of the city from the nineteenth century onwards helps to tell the Club’s story, starting from East Melbourne and working throughout the wider Melbourne panorama. Up on Wellington Parade, just beyond Yarra Park, is one of the vital points. The MCG Hotel, next to the Hilton Hotel, was once the Parade Hotel, the scene of many post-match functions in the nineteenth century, and the central location for refining and writing the very early rules of the game.
Further towards the city, where apartments now dominate the landscape, rail yards were once located. But even before these were part of the scenery, there was a sports ground - the East Melbourne Cricket Ground (EMCG). This ground actually holds a special spot in Melbourne Football Club history, being the site on which the 1900 Grand Final was played against Fitzroy - and won by Melbourne. Carriages with ‘FITZROY - PREMIERS’ on their sides in banners, trundled off forlornly, leaving celebrating Melbourne hordes behind.
There are many other familiar landmarks that have played a part in the Club’s history - some hidden beneath the surface, but significant nonetheless. Where the concourse stretches out from the new stand, there was once a ground in its own right, well into the 1870s. Where the Great Southern Stand reaches up into the clouds, eager supporters once clustered onto rooflines to watch the premierships of the 1950s unfold.
It is fair to say that such experiences, and such stories, make the Melbourne Football Club - especially when tied to the MCG - a rich and complex entity. The first game against GWS this weekend adds another layer to the story, not only for Melbourne, but also for the AFL’s newcomers, making their inaugural appearance as a team at the home of football - the MCG - on Sunday.
