1995 AFL season

The 1995 AFL season was the 99th season of the Australian Football League (AFL), the highest level senior Australian rules football competition in Australia, which was known as the Victorian Football League until 1989.

1995 AFL premiership season
Teams16
PremiersCarlton
16th premiership
Minor premiersCarlton
17th minor premiership
Pre-season cupNorth Melbourne
1st pre-season cup win
Brownlow MedallistPaul Kelly (Sydney)
Leading goalkickerGary Ablett (Geelong)
Attendance
Matches played185
Total attendance5,712,693 (30,879 per match)
Highest94,825 (round 4, Collingwood vs. Essendon)

The league expanded to sixteen clubs, with the newly established Fremantle Football Club, based in Fremantle, Western Australia, joining the league. The season ran from 31 March until 30 September, and comprised a 22-game home-and-away season followed by a finals series featuring the top eight clubs.

The premiership was won by the Carlton Football Club for the 16th time, after it defeated Geelong by 61 points in the 1995 AFL Grand Final.

AFL Draft

See 1995 AFL Draft.

Ansett Australia Cup

North Melbourne defeated Adelaide 14.9 (93) to 8.15 (63) in the final.

Premiership season

Round 1

Home teamScoreAway teamScoreVenueAttendanceDate
North Melbourne11.13 (79)Adelaide10.16 (76)MCG24,882Friday, 31 March
Richmond12.18 (90)Fremantle12.13 (85)MCG26,219Saturday, 1 April
Hawthorn20.7 (127)Brisbane Bears11.4 (70)Waverley Park14,653Saturday, 1 April
Geelong12.15 (87)Melbourne11.7 (73)Kardinia Park22,707Saturday, 1 April
Fitzroy6.2 (38)Essendon16.16 (112)Whitten Oval17,869Saturday, 1 April
West Coast18.13 (121)St Kilda11.9 (75)WACA28,083Sunday, 2 April
Carlton14.11 (95)Collingwood9.12 (66)MCG87,119Sunday, 2 April
Footscray15.12 (102)Sydney12.13 (85)Whitten Oval19,189Sunday, 2 April

Round 2

Home teamScoreAway teamScoreVenueAttendanceDate
Fremantle11.16 (82)Essendon12.19 (91)WACA23,688Friday, 7 April
Melbourne12.15 (87)North Melbourne16.10 (106)MCG25,010Saturday, 8 April
Hawthorn10.11 (71)Footscray14.11 (95)Waverley Park18,136Saturday, 8 April
Carlton18.17 (125)Fitzroy8.8 (56)Princes Park16,586Saturday, 8 April
Brisbane Bears18.18 (126)Adelaide14.15 (99)Gabba9,334Sunday, 9 April
Collingwood11.10 (76)West Coast11.14 (80)MCG33,129Sunday, 9 April
St Kilda9.15 (69)Richmond14.11 (95)Waverley Park26,037Sunday, 9 April
Sydney10.15 (75)Geelong11.14 (80)SCG12,973Sunday, 9 April

Round 3

Home teamScoreAway teamScoreVenueAttendanceDate
Fitzroy11.12 (78)Fremantle18.13 (121)Whitten Oval7,561Saturday, 15 April
Geelong18.14 (122)Collingwood14.11 (95)Kardinia Park27,057Saturday, 15 April
Footscray8.12 (60)Carlton23.20 (158)MCG41,576Saturday, 15 April
West Coast12.19 (91)North Melbourne5.13 (43)WACA16,586Saturday, 15 April
Hawthorn5.4 (34)Richmond4.16 (40)Waverley Park24,820Sunday, 16 April
Brisbane Bears15.14 (104)Sydney14.15 (99)Gabba8,460Sunday, 16 April
Adelaide13.14 (92)St Kilda3.8 (26)Football Park38,046Sunday, 16 April
Essendon14.14 (98)Melbourne12.10 (82)MCG60,057Monday, 17 April

Round 4

Home teamScoreAway teamScoreVenueAttendanceDate
Fremantle12.22 (94)Geelong10.15 (75)WACA26,455Friday, 21 April
St Kilda10.10 (70)Hawthorn16.10 (106)Waverley Park24,972Saturday, 22 April
Sydney17.14 (116)Fitzroy12.12 (84)SCG10,762Saturday, 22 April
Brisbane Bears12.10 (82)Carlton18.11 (119)Gabba12,009Sunday, 23 April
Melbourne12.8 (80)Footscray16.7 (103)Optus Oval16,969Sunday, 23 April
Adelaide7.14 (56)West Coast6.10 (46)Football Park42,723Sunday, 23 April
Richmond21.8 (134)North Melbourne13.7 (85)MCG62,606Monday, 24 April
Collingwood17.9 (111)Essendon16.15 (111)MCG94,825Tuesday, 25 April
  • This round featured the first Anzac Day match held between Collingwood and Essendon, which famously ended in a draw.
  • The crowd of 94,825 for the Anzac Day match was the second-largest crowd for a home and away game in AFL history. It is currently the third-largest crowd, having been surpassed by the crowd of 95,179 at the Round 6, 2023 Anzac Day match.

Round 5

Home teamScoreAway teamScoreVenueAttendanceDate
Richmond17.14 (116)Brisbane Bears14.12 (96)MCG24,379Saturday, 29 April
Geelong28.13 (181)Fitzroy13.14 (92)Kardinia Park19,644Saturday, 29 April
Footscray14.14 (98)Fremantle14.12 (96)Whitten Oval16,800Saturday, 29 April
West Coast13.12 (90)Melbourne11.8 (74)WACA30,294Saturday, 29 April
North Melbourne7.8 (50)Carlton12.12 (84)MCG42,729Sunday, 30 April
Hawthorn14.12 (96)Collingwood4.13 (37)Waverley Park40,715Sunday, 30 April
Essendon24.10 (154)St Kilda5.8 (38)Optus Oval17,930Sunday, 30 April
Sydney20.24 (144)Adelaide12.15 (87)SCG15,491Sunday, 30 April

Round 6

Home teamScoreAway teamScoreVenueAttendanceDate
Adelaide11.11 (77)Melbourne10.9 (69)Football Park40,406Friday, 5 May
St Kilda10.13 (73)Fitzroy12.12 (84)Waverley Park15,440Saturday, 6 May
Carlton13.12 (90)West Coast10.7 (67)Optus Oval24,527Saturday, 6 May
Footscray8.14 (62)Geelong22.18 (150)Whitten Oval20,749Saturday, 6 May
Collingwood12.10 (82)Richmond13.16 (94)MCG59,954Saturday, 6 May
Fremantle25.13 (163)Sydney16.9 (105)WACA22,804Sunday, 7 May
North Melbourne22.12 (144)Hawthorn14.13 (97)MCG32,207Sunday, 7 May
Essendon19.14 (128)Brisbane Bears14.16 (100)Optus Oval17,646Sunday, 7 May

Round 7

Home teamScoreAway teamScoreVenueAttendanceDate
Richmond10.12 (72)Adelaide9.4 (58)MCG38,791Friday, 12 May
Carlton10.15 (75)Essendon9.13 (67)MCG73,753Saturday, 13 May
St Kilda15.15 (105)Footscray12.15 (87)Waverley Park13,280Saturday, 13 May
Geelong9.19 (73)Hawthorn11.12 (78)Kardinia Park24,842Saturday, 13 May
Fitzroy13.10 (88)North Melbourne17.16 (118)Whitten Oval11,082Saturday, 13 May
Collingwood13.19 (97)Sydney11.10 (76)Victoria Park22,835Saturday, 13 May
West Coast23.13 (151)Fremantle9.12 (66)Subiaco Oval40,356Sunday, 14 May
Melbourne12.10 (82)Brisbane Bears10.15 (75)MCG12,783Sunday, 14 May

Round 8

Home teamScoreAway teamScoreVenueAttendanceDate
Sydney21.6 (132)Carlton8.12 (60)SCG23,744Friday, 19 May
Richmond14.7 (91)Geelong24.19 (163)MCG65,335Saturday, 20 May
Hawthorn7.8 (50)Melbourne17.10 (112)Waverley Park24,372Saturday, 20 May
Footscray13.6 (84)North Melbourne15.15 (105)Whitten Oval17,741Saturday, 20 May
Collingwood20.11 (131)Fremantle14.9 (93)Victoria Park22,466Saturday, 20 May
Adelaide9.12 (66)Fitzroy15.9 (99)Football Park39,888Saturday, 20 May
Brisbane Bears17.13 (115)St Kilda14.10 (94)Gabba7,648Sunday, 21 May
West Coast13.12 (90)Essendon16.12 (108)Subiaco Oval34,731Sunday, 21 May

Round 9

Home teamScoreAway teamScoreVenueAttendanceDate
North Melbourne12.7 (79)Geelong20.20 (140)MCG44,780Friday 26 May
Essendon15.11 (101)Footscray9.13 (67)MCG38,719Saturday, 27 May
St Kilda11.14 (80)Carlton3.6 (24)Waverley Park17,902Saturday, 27 May
Fitzroy8.6 (54)West Coast12.10 (82)Bruce Stadium11,282Saturday, 27 May
Adelaide9.6 (60)Hawthorn7.16 (58)Football Park38,740Saturday, 27 May
Sydney14.6 (90)Richmond17.14 (116)SCG23,475Sunday, 28 May
Melbourne12.13 (85)Collingwood7.16 (58)MCG51,774Sunday, 28 May
Fremantle17.18 (120)Brisbane Bears8.6 (54)Subiaco Oval17,574Sunday, 28 May

Round 10

Home teamScoreAway teamScoreVenueAttendanceDate
North Melbourne19.12 (126)Essendon15.9 (99)MCG59,354Friday, 2 June
Melbourne15.12 (102)Sydney11.11 (77)MCG26,630Saturday, 3 June
St Kilda9.6 (60)Fremantle20.11 (131)Waverley Park14,890Saturday, 3 June
Geelong16.20 (116)Adelaide14.7 (91)Kardinia Park26,314Saturday, 3 June
Collingwood13.15 (93)Fitzroy10.19 (79)Victoria Park23,356Saturday, 3 June
West Coast17.10 (112)Brisbane Bears10.7 (67)Subiaco Oval26,261Sunday, 4 June
Footscray9.10 (64)Richmond13.18 (96)MCG33,042Sunday, 4 June
Carlton26.16 (172)Hawthorn10.10 (70)Optus Oval29,520Sunday, 4 June

Round 11

Home teamScoreAway teamScoreVenueAttendanceDate
Collingwood25.11 (161)St Kilda13.9 (87)MCG36,528Friday, 9 June
Essendon17.10 (112)Geelong19.9 (123)MCG77,643Saturday, 10 June
Richmond18.15 (123)West Coast9.9 (63)Optus Oval17,041Saturday, 10 June
Adelaide12.18 (90)Footscray6.10 (46)Football Park36,955Saturday, 10 June
Brisbane Bears17.30 (132)Fitzroy10.14 (74)Gabba8,209Sunday, 11 June
Fremantle11.6 (72)North Melbourne22.11 (143)Subiaco Oval28,013Sunday, 11 June
Melbourne12.8 (80)Carlton16.16 (112)MCG53,290Monday, 12 June
Hawthorn17.11 (113)Sydney9.17 (71)Waverley Park19,737Monday, 12 June

Round 12

Home teamScoreAway teamScoreVenueAttendanceDate
Essendon10.18 (78)Hawthorn8.12 (60)MCG47,237Friday, 23 June
Richmond15.19 (109)Fitzroy15.13 (103)MCG26,403Saturday, 24 June
Footscray10.11 (71)Collingwood10.11 (71)Waverley Park27,421Saturday, 24 June
Carlton16.16 (112)Geelong15.19 (109)Optus Oval30,843Saturday, 24 June
Adelaide16.9 (105)Fremantle12.12 (84)Football Park40,981Saturday, 24 June
Brisbane Bears13.11 (89)North Melbourne20.13 (133)Gabba11,996Sunday, 25 June
St Kilda11.7 (73)Melbourne13.12 (90)Waverley Park18,390Sunday, 25 June
West Coast11.7 (73)Sydney10.12 (72)Subiaco Oval24,574Sunday, 25 June

Round 13

Home teamScoreAway teamScoreVenueAttendanceDate
Collingwood24.8 (152)Adelaide7.14 (56)MCG33,407Friday, 30 June
Melbourne14.11 (95)Richmond12.12 (84)MCG42,548Saturday, 1 July
St Kilda12.12 (84)North Melbourne18.13 (121)Waverley Park14,301Saturday, 1 July
Geelong17.14 (116)West Coast9.10 (64)Kardinia Park23,743Saturday, 1 July
Footscray9.15 (69)Brisbane Bears8.5 (53)Whitten Oval11,556Saturday, 1 July
Sydney21.12 (138)Essendon17.17 (119)SCG21,853Sunday, 2 July
Fitzroy7.10 (52)Hawthorn21.25 (151)Optus Oval12,503Sunday, 2 July
Fremantle7.7 (49)Carlton15.16 (106)Subiaco Oval25,465Sunday, 2 July

Round 14

Home teamScoreAway teamScoreVenueAttendanceDate
North Melbourne18.17 (125)Collingwood10.13 (73)MCG66,719Friday, 7 July
Essendon27.20 (182)Adelaide8.12 (60)MCG40,269Saturday, 8 July
Hawthorn8.8 (56)West Coast14.13 (97)Waverley Park19,373Saturday, 8 July
Geelong15.21 (111)Brisbane Bears15.8 (98)Kardinia Park22,459Saturday, 8 July
Sydney14.10 (94)St Kilda17.17 (119)SCG14,979Sunday, 9 July
Carlton17.13 (115)Richmond12.13 (85)MCG84,745Sunday, 9 July
Fitzroy12.7 (79)Footscray23.8 (146)Whitten Oval16,745Sunday, 9 July
Fremantle7.8 (50)Melbourne15.12 (102)Subiaco Oval16,161Sunday, 9 July

Round 15

Home teamScoreAway teamScoreVenueAttendanceDate
Richmond15.11 (101)Essendon15.11 (101)MCG76,628Friday, 14 July
North Melbourne12.12 (84)Sydney16.17 (113)MCG22,524Saturday, 15 July
Hawthorn18.10 (118)Fremantle11.8 (74)Waverley Park14,167Saturday, 15 July
Carlton20.13 (133)Adelaide15.10 (100)Optus Oval22,543Saturday, 15 July
Fitzroy7.8 (50)Melbourne20.11 (131)Whitten Oval8,862Saturday, 15 July
Brisbane Bears11.14 (80)Collingwood19.15 (129)Gabba11,467Sunday, 16 July
Geelong13.7 (85)St Kilda13.15 (93)MCG37,382Sunday, 16 July
West Coast8.13 (61)Footscray12.15 (87)Subiaco Oval30,169Sunday, 16 July

Round 16

Home teamScoreAway teamScoreVenueAttendanceDate
Adelaide9.11 (65)North Melbourne7.12 (54)Football Park34,301Friday, 21 July
Essendon22.18 (150)Fitzroy12.7 (79)MCG25,295Saturday, 22 July
St Kilda9.10 (64)West Coast19.8 (122)Waverley Park13,490Saturday, 22 July
Melbourne12.10 (82)Geelong15.21 (111)Optus Oval18,416Saturday, 22 July
Sydney12.7 (79)Footscray21.8 (134)SCG15,708Saturday, 22 July
Brisbane Bears14.20 (104)Hawthorn14.13 (97)Gabba8,209Sunday, 23 July
Collingwood10.8 (68)Carlton12.18 (90)MCG78,934Sunday, 23 July
Fremantle9.13 (67)Richmond10.14 (74)Subiaco Oval18,723Sunday, 23 July

*Brisbane Bears came from 45 points down at 3 quarter time to beat Hawthorn by 7 points.

Round 17

Home teamScoreAway teamScoreVenueAttendanceDate
North Melbourne12.8 (80)Melbourne15.12 (102)MCG28,838Friday, 28 July
Essendon21.9 (135)Fremantle13.9 (87)MCG29,102Saturday, 29 July
Richmond9.8 (62)St Kilda15.17 (107)Optus Oval15,715Saturday, 29 July
Geelong23.13 (151)Sydney11.8 (74)Kardinia Park28,600Saturday, 29 July
Footscray8.9 (57)Hawthorn7.10 (52)Whitten Oval16,673Saturday, 29 July
West Coast18.21 (129)Collingwood11.13 (79)Subiaco Oval35,332Sunday, 30 July
Fitzroy9.10 (64)Carlton24.17 (161)Waverley Park15,567Sunday, 30 July
Adelaide6.10 (46)Brisbane Bears11.10 (76)Football Park33,829Sunday, 30 July

Round 18

Home teamScoreAway teamScoreVenueAttendanceDate
Richmond13.21 (99)Hawthorn8.7 (55)MCG37,543Friday, 4 August
Melbourne11.7 (73)Essendon15.16 (106)MCG52,523Saturday, 5 August
St Kilda10.8 (68)Adelaide14.14 (98)Waverley Park13,141Saturday, 5 August
North Melbourne15.16 (106)West Coast7.2 (44)Optus Oval11,822Saturday, 5 August
Sydney17.9 (111)Brisbane Bears19.12 (126)SCG8,150Sunday, 6 August
Collingwood15.9 (99)Geelong14.11 (95)MCG62,212Sunday, 6 August
Carlton15.16 (106)Footscray11.15 (81)Optus Oval24,084Sunday, 6 August
Fremantle17.14 (116)Fitzroy9.10 (64)Subiaco Oval20,073Sunday, 6 August

Round 19

Home teamScoreAway teamScoreVenueAttendanceDate
North Melbourne16.14 (110)Richmond15.10 (100)MCG51,247Friday, 11 August
Essendon16.14 (110)Collingwood15.12 (102)MCG77,448Saturday, 12 August
Hawthorn14.13 (97)St Kilda16.9 (105)Waverley Park19,852Saturday, 12 August
Geelong16.10 (106)Fremantle12.11 (83)Kardinia Park20,679Saturday, 12 August
Footscray11.12 (78)Melbourne7.16 (58)Whitten Oval17,697Saturday, 12 August
West Coast26.21 (177)Adelaide5.12 (42)Subiaco Oval30,507Sunday, 13 August
Carlton11.19 (85)Brisbane Bears10.11 (71)Optus Oval16,350Sunday, 13 August
Fitzroy6.8 (44)Sydney27.8 (170)Whitten Oval7,426Sunday, 13 August

Round 20

Home teamScoreAway teamScoreVenueAttendanceDate
Collingwood15.14 (104)Hawthorn15.11 (101)MCG51,746Friday, 18 August
Melbourne10.15 (75)West Coast16.8 (104)MCG24,874Saturday, 19 August
St Kilda10.15 (75)Essendon23.13 (151)Waverley Park34,121Saturday, 19 August
Carlton18.14 (122)North Melbourne15.13 (103)Optus Oval32,065Saturday, 19 August
Fitzroy8.17 (65)Geelong15.16 (106)Whitten Oval9,196Saturday, 19 August
Adelaide13.15 (93)Sydney22.7 (139)Football Park38,529Saturday, 19 August
Brisbane Bears24.16 (160)Richmond13.5 (83)Gabba11,524Sunday, 20 August
Fremantle17.14 (116)Footscray12.13 (85)Subiaco Oval18,175Sunday, 20 August

Round 21

Home teamScoreAway teamScoreVenueAttendanceDate
Melbourne18.7 (115)Adelaide23.8 (146)MCG22,800Friday, 25 August
Richmond14.25 (109)Collingwood7.13 (55)MCG70,809Saturday, 26 August
Hawthorn9.14 (68)North Melbourne17.11 (113)Waverley Park21,513Saturday, 26 August
Geelong15.20 (110)Footscray19.11 (125)Kardinia Park25,057Saturday, 26 August
Fitzroy13.12 (90)St Kilda16.21 (117)Optus Oval9,363Saturday, 26 August
Brisbane Bears17.14 (116)Essendon12.12 (84)Gabba12,657Saturday, 26 August
Sydney19.13 (127)Fremantle20.24 (144)SCG10,410Sunday, 27 August
West Coast16.8 (104)Carlton15.15 (105)Subiaco Oval41,492Sunday, 27 August

Tony Lockett kicked both his 100th goal for the season and his 1000th career goal during the Sydney Swans v Fremantle game at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
The Brisbane Bears vs Essendon Bombers game at the Gabba is the first ever night game in Brisbane.

Round 22

Home teamScoreAway teamScoreVenueAttendanceDate
Brisbane Bears16.14 (110)Melbourne13.11 (89)Gabba11,842Friday, 1 September
Essendon9.13 (67)Carlton16.12 (108)MCG87,984Saturday, 2 September
Hawthorn15.12 (102)Geelong23.10 (148)Waverley Park32,747Saturday, 2 September
North Melbourne30.24 (204)Fitzroy15.11 (101)Optus Oval14,907Saturday, 2 September
Footscray11.12 (78)St Kilda20.12 (132)Whitten Oval19,442Saturday, 2 September
Adelaide12.14 (86)Richmond19.9 (123)Football Park40,168Saturday, 2 September
Sydney19.13 (127)Collingwood15.14 (104)SCG18,191Sunday, 3 September
Fremantle8.10 (58)West Coast16.15 (111)Subiaco Oval39,844Sunday, 3 September

Ladder

1995 AFL ladder
Pos Team Pld W L D PF PA PP Pts
1 Carlton (P) 22 20 2 0 2357 1711 137.8 80 Finals
2 Geelong 22 16 6 0 2558 1939 131.9 64
3 Richmond 22 15 6 1 2096 1943 107.9 62
4 Essendon 22 14 6 2 2464 1931 127.6 60
5 West Coast 22 14 8 0 2079 1692 122.9 56
6 North Melbourne 22 14 8 0 2311 2013 114.8 56
7 Footscray 22 11 10 1 1879 2054 91.5 46
8 Brisbane Bears 22 10 12 0 2104 2207 95.3 40
9 Melbourne 22 9 13 0 1938 1925 100.7 36
10 Collingwood 22 8 12 2 2043 2111 96.8 36
11 Adelaide 22 9 13 0 1749 2184 80.1 36
12 Sydney 22 8 14 0 2314 2299 100.7 32
13 Fremantle 22 8 14 0 2051 2209 92.8 32
14 St Kilda 22 8 14 0 1814 2258 80.3 32
15 Hawthorn 22 7 15 0 1857 1975 94.0 28
16 Fitzroy 22 2 20 0 1617 2780 58.2 8
Source: AFL ladder
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) percentage; 3) number of points for.
(P) Premiers

Ladder progression

  Numbers highlighted in green indicate that the team finished the round inside the top 8.
  Numbers highlighted in blue indicates the team finished first on the ladder in that round.
  Numbers highlighted in red indicates the team finished in last place on the ladder in that round.
Team ╲ Round12345678910111213141516171819202122
Carlton (P)481216202428282832364044485256606468727680
Geelong481212162020242832363640444448525256606064
Richmond481216202428283236404444465050505454545862
Essendon481214182222263030303434384044485256606060
West Coast Eagles481212161620202428283232363640444448525256
North Melbourne488881216202024283236404040404448485256
Footscray48812161616161616161822263034383842424646
Brisbane Bears0488888121212161616162020242828323640
Melbourne000000481216162024283232363636363636
Collingwood0002226101014182024242828283232363636
Adelaide004881212121616202424242828283232323636
Sydney0004888121212121216162020202024282832
Fremantle004881212121620202020202020202424283232
St Kilda0000004488888121616202024242832
Hawthorn4448121216161616202024242828282828282828
Fitzroy0000044888888888888888
Source:

Finals

Qualifying Finals

Home teamScoreAway teamScoreVenueAttendanceDate
Richmond12.12 (84)North Melbourne17.12 (114)MCG68,226Friday, 8 September
Essendon11.8 (74)West Coast8.7 (55)Waverley Park36,102Saturday, 9 September
Geelong24.11 (155)Footscray10.13 (73)MCG59,889Saturday, 9 September
Carlton13.12 (90)Brisbane Bears12.5 (77)MCG52,092Sunday, 10 September

Semi finals

Home teamScoreAway teamScoreVenueAttendanceDate
Essendon11.7 (73)Richmond12.14 (86)MCG88,308Saturday, 16 September
North Melbourne18.21 (129)West Coast10.11 (71)MCG53,759Sunday, 17 September

Preliminary Finals

Home teamScoreAway teamScoreVenueAttendanceDate
Geelong20.9 (129)Richmond6.4 (40)Waverley Park70,321Saturday, 23 September
Carlton18.10 (118)North Melbourne8.8 (56)MCG72,552Saturday, 23 September

Grand final

Home teamScoreAway teamScoreVenueAttendanceDate
Geelong11.14 (80)Carlton21.15 (141)MCG93,102Saturday, 30 September

Awards

Notable events

  • The Fremantle Dockers made their debut in the competition.
  • The first ANZAC Day clash between Collingwood and Essendon was held in round 4 which ended in a draw.
  • Carlton won a record 16th premiership, winning twenty games for the home-and-away season, also a new record (subsequently surpassed by Essendon in 2000 and Geelong in 2008). They won their 16th consecutive match in the grand final, comfortably beating Geelong 21.15 (141) to 11.14 (80).
    • Amidst these records, they also suffered the rare ignominy of losing to the bottom team (St Kilda) while atop the ladder in their Round 9 game. In this game, they failed to score a goal in the first half and became the fifth (and to date last) premier team to have kicked a season's lowest score (also in 1923, 1968, 1970 and 1992).
  • Richmond reached the finals for the first time since 1982, finishing 3rd and making the preliminary finals.
    • They won their first 7 games, winning their first five games for the first time since the early 1980s.
    • They were on top of the ladder for the first time since 1982 (from rounds 9 to 12).
  • Brisbane Bears made an exceptional late season charge to reach the finals for the first time in team history.
    • The Bears sat 14th after 15 rounds with a win–loss record of 4–11 and a percentage of 83.2%.
    • In Round 16 at the Gabba against Hawthorn, the Bears trailed Hawthorn by 45 points at three-quarter time, but scored nine goals to one in the final quarter to pull off a seven-point victory. It remains the largest three-quarter time deficit ever overcome in VFL/AFL history. The Bears were still in 14th place at the end of the game.
    • Brisbane won its next two games against bottom eight opposition to reach 12th place, but were to face Carlton, Richmond and Essendon (who then held the top three places respectively) in the following three weeks. Against all odds, Brisbane lost to Carlton by only 14 points, then thrashed the Tigers by 77 points and beat Essendon by 32 points.
    • At the start of the final round, Melbourne, Collingwood and Brisbane sat 8th, 9th and 10th respectively, all on nine wins. Brisbane needed to beat Melbourne, and rely on Sydney (13th place) beating Collingwood to reach the finals. Brisbane beat Melbourne by 21 points on Friday night, then watched on Sunday as Sydney scored eight final quarter goals to overhaul Collingwood by 23 points.
    • The Bears finals appearance was short-lived, as the eventual premiers Carlton beat them by 13 points in the first week of the finals in a very high standard game.
    • However, the 10 wins and 12 losses of Brisbane in 1995, remains the worst record of a team in VFL/AFL history which qualified a team for the finals (excluding those seasons where more than half of teams qualified for the finals).
  • Tony Lockett transferred from St Kilda to Sydney.
  • Footscray, VFL and State of Origin legend Ted Whitten died.
    • He had been given a "lap of honour" during the 1995 State of Origin match between Victoria and South Australia. The State of Origin saw Victoria win against South Australia in Melbourne and Allies win against Western Australia in Perth.
    • The Western Oval would be renamed the Whitten Oval in his memory.
  • Hawthorn missed out on the finals for the first time since the early 1980s.
    • The team finished second last, failing to register a win for its last seven matches.
  • Fitzroy continued to decline, failing to register a win from round 9 and finished on the bottom of the ladder with just 2 wins.
  • There were many significant changes to incumbent AFL team coaches:
  • After round 19, the Fitzroy coach Bernie Quinlan was sacked and replaced by caretaker coach Alan McConnell for the remaining three games of their season (Michael Nunan later was signed as coach for 1996).
  • Peter Knights was sacked as coach of Hawthorn.
  • John Northey resigned from Richmond (he became coach of Brisbane Bears in 1996).
  • Robert Walls resigned as coach of Brisbane Bears and joined Richmond as coach in 1996.
  • Ron Barassi coached his last VFL/AFL match, resigning as coach of Sydney at the end of 1995.
  • The first ever (and to date only) AFL game was played at Bruce Stadium in Canberra, between Fitzroy and West Coast Eagles in round 9.

References

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