In 1930, the VFL competition consisted of twelve teams of 18 on-the-field players each, plus one substitute player, known as the 19th man. A player could be substituted for any reason, Once he had been substituted, a player could not return to the field of play under any circumstances. Teams played each other in a home-and-away season of 18 rounds; matches 12 to 18 were the "home-and-way reverse" of matches 5 to 11. Once the 18 round home-and-away season had finished, the 1930 VFL Premiers were determined by the specific format and conventions of the amended "Argus system".
Round 1
Round 2
Round 3
Round 4
Round 5
Round 6
Round 7
Round 8
Round 9
Round 10
Round 11
Round 12
Round 13
Round 14
Round 15
Round 16
Round 17
Round 18
Ladder
Finals
All of the 1930 finals were played at the MCG so the home team in the Semi Finals and Preliminary Final is purely the higher ranked team from the ladder but in the Grand Final the home team was the team that won the Preliminary Final.
Semi finals
Preliminary Final
Grand final
defeated Geelong 14.16 to 9.16, in front of a crowd of 45,022 people..
The seconds premiership was won by, which finished the season undefeated. Geelong 14.12 defeated 11.8 in the Final, played as a curtain-raiser to the firsts Preliminary Final on 4 October.
Brownlow Medal
When the VFL's Umpires Panel counted the Brownlow Medal votes that had been awarded during the 1930 season, it found that three players had been considered best on the ground on four occasions: Harry Collier of Collingwood, Allan Hopkins of Footscray, and Stan Judkins of Richmond. The Panel advised the VFL of the tied result and, because there was no provision for a tied result, the Panel recommended that no Brownlow Medal be awarded for 1930. The league instead decided to break the tie by awarding the medal to the player who had achieved his votes in the fewest games. Collier had played 18 games, Hopkins had played 15 games, and Judkins only 12 games; consequently the award went to Judkins. In 1981, the league changed Brownlow Medal rules to allow more than one player to receive the medal if tied on votes; and, in 1989, it retrospectively awarded medals to Harry Collier and Allan Hopkins for 1930.
The Australian National Football Council introduced a substitute player, known as the 19th man. This meant that teams now had 18 "run on" players, and one "reserve" player. The 19th man could be substituted for an injured player, or for any other player for tactical reasons. Once he had been substituted, a player could not return to the field of play under any circumstances. The 19th man was paid a match fee only if he took the field.
Collingwood won its fourth consecutive premiership; in four seasons, 1927, 1928, 1929, and 1930 Collingwood had played 82 matches, for 70 wins, 1 draw, and 11 losses. It is still the record number of consecutive premierships to this day.
In March, the VFL accepts the Player Payments Committee recommendation that, although they may well be paid less, no senior players can be paid more than £3 for each home-and-away match, and no more than £12 for a finals match ; and that no additional lump-sum payments could be made. The VFL also institutes a series of penalties for breaches of what rapidly became known as the "Coulter Law".
In round 12, Gordon Coventry kicked a record 17 goals. The same match broke the record for the highest aggregate score in league history at that time, with the two teams scoring a combined 38.33.
