1912 Chronology
Position: Ninth
Won 3, Lost 15, For 863, Against 1333.
Captain: Ted Ohlson
Vice Captains: Thomas Heaney, Edward Farrell
Coach: Charles Pannam
Leading Goal Kicker: Ted Keggin (24)
Revenue: 1754 pounds 5s. 8d (largest in club history) Credit Balance: 15 pounds 2s. 2d.
Membership: 2,258
Ground: The Football Record states that the Richmond Cricket Ground is 168 yards long by 148 yards wide.
January
Wed. 31
A meeting to discuss the reform of the Richmond Football Club is held at the Town Hall. Reform Party members call for players to be paid according to merit rather than on a uniform rate of one pound per game. Current committee members were howled down by the audience.
February
Thursday 15
A meeting of 300 members of the Reform Committee movement is held at 8pm. The meeting was scheduled for the Oldfellows' Hall but as the hallkeeper never showed it was moved to a neighbouring building.
Nominations were called to join the Reform Committee. Frank Tudor is elected President, George Beachcroft as Hon. Secretary, James MacDermott as Hon. Treasurer. The Committee is made up of Jack Archer, Alec Edmond, Bill Burns, Dick Kelly, G Dando, T Broughton, and Abe Aarons.
Wednesday 21 Richmond’s secretary Andrew Manzie accepts the position as secretary of the Melbourne Football Club for the 1912 season.
Sat. __
The incumbent committee refuse to allow the nomination of Reform Party candidate Bill Burns for the coming election because he is without a playing permit.
March
Sat. 2
A crowd of 3,000 attend Richmond’s annual meeting. Reform Party candidates win all positions contested. George Peckham-Beachcroft is elected the new secretary and James McDermott is elected Treasurer. Only William Maybury is returned from the old committee. He was placed on both tickets owing to the disqualification of Bill Burns.
Tue. 18
Percy George resigns as Richmond’s assistant secretary. Geo. McIntosh replaces him on April 9.
Charles Backhouse’s application for the position of assistant trainer is turned down as he had “no previous experience”.
Fri. 21
A draft copy of Richmond’s first ever written constitution is passed at a meeting before the members.
It is stated that former treasurer Archibald McNair refuses to hand the club’s 1911 cash book to the new committee.
The committee decides to retain the basic 1910-1911 guernsey design but lower and broaden the yellow band.
April
Wed. 3
The League decides that all players are to be numbered and that Richmond players are to wear white numbers on a black ground.
Future Richmond president Alfred Wood secures the rights to publish the names and numbers of League footballers. The publication first released in 1912 will be The Football Record.
Sat. 6
Alec. Edmond officiates at Richmond’s intra-club, Captain v. Vice Captain practice match because the appointed VFL umpire does not show.
Monday 8
Ernest 'Mick' Carter, who played for Richmond in 1 game in 1910, wins the 1912 Stawell Gift.
Thursday 11
The club advertises for a coach.
Friday 12
The Sport reports that Richmond had approached former player Charlie Ricketts to captain and coach the club.
_ Charlie Pannam is appointed coach of Richmond. It is stated that he intends to inaugurate a new system of training in which Richmond plays practice games against Beverley every Tuesday and Thursday evening.
Saturday 13
Richmond 11.9.75 def Richmond Districts 2.11.23 on the Friendly Societies Cricket Ground.
It the first time the Richmond Football Club experiments with numbers on back of guernseys.
Players: Sweetland, Freeman (South Yarra), O'Neil (Frankston), Caffrey (Leopold), O'Donoghue (Leopold), Wells (Port Melbourne Railway United), Vantricich (Burwood), Sinclair (Bairnsdale), Loughman (Telephone Exchange), Hay (Burnie), Plummer (Newcastle),Weatherill, Christie, Kilgour were all new men trying out.
Sat. 20
Beverley’s captain, Norman Yeo declines an offer on behalf of all Richmond players to captain the club.
Sat. 27
Former captain Billy Schmidt, who was denied a clearance to St. Kilda, plays for the Saints against Richmond.
Bill Burns plays his first game for Richmond since July 10, 1909.
Tue. 30
Billy Schmidt is cleared to St. Kilda after divulging confidential information regarding a proposed swap with South Melbourne’s Charlie Ricketts.
May
Wed. 1
Bill Burns is reregistered as a Richmond player.
Sat. 4
Richmond’s Bill Burns kicks the winning goal in the dying minutes against South Melbourne and Burns is chaired off to the cheers of the 14,000 strong crowd.
Richmond was assisted by South’s terrible inaccuracy. South kicks two goals and twenty three behinds. The scoreboard loses track of South’s behinds.
Tue. 7
The Globe Theatre screens film of the Richmond v. South Melbourne game. It includes “orange time, coach advising the players” and “Hughie James laughing”.
Sat. 11
University 9-9 (63) defeats Richmond 6-12 (48) at the MCG. It would be University’s last win in League football.
Thr. 16
Committee announces that all players must train regularly or risk reduced expenses.
Thr. 23
Ted Ohlson injures his ankle at training and vice captain Tom Heaney announces his retirement.
Sat. 25
Newly elected vice captain Edward Farrell captains Richmond in Ted Ohlson’s absence.
Mon. 27
The former Richmond footballer William Carkeek makes his Test cricket debut against South Africa at Old Trafford (Manchester, England).
June
Sat. 8
Ted Ohlson breaks his shoulder.
Saturday 15
Prior to the Richmond vs Geelong match at Punt Road, a curtain raiser is played of Combined Richmond Schools v Combined Geelong Schools
Mon. 24
Dave Smith, the son of Richmond’s first captain George Smith and a future Richmond player, makes his Test cricket debut against England at Lords (London, England).
Fri. 28
The Sport states that Richmond had distributed L23 amongst their local junior clubs so far this year.
Sat. 29
South Melbourne’s score of 19-12 (126) equals the highest score ever kicked against Richmond, set by North Melbourne in 1896.
July
Wed. 3
Les Oliver plays with a VFL team against the Bendigo Association at Bendigo.
Sat. 6
Beverley’s secretary William Lohse publicly thanks Richmond through The Richmond Guardian for its ten guinea donation and its policy of helping the “Bevs” win the 1912 Metropolitan premiership by not recruiting from its players.
Hughie James represents Victoria against South Australia at the MCG.
Tue. 9
The new committee resolves not to recognise the life memberships bestowed by the old committee on Jack Fayle and Charlie Taylor.
Sat. 13
Richmond defeats University and in so doing ends a nine game losing streak. It is the club’s longest since entering the League.
Sat. 20
Ted Ohlson returns from injury to captain Richmond, but injures his ribs in the second quarter. It will be his last game this season.
Tue. 30
Richmond’s players unanimously request that the VFL never appoint umpire Murphy to another Richmond game.
August
Thr. 1 An Athletic Meeting is held in the club’s training room. Former player Bill Lan Franchi (Lang) is scheduled to box.
Sat. 3
Bill Burns stands in for Ted Ohlson as captain.
A collection is taken at Richmond’s game against Essendon at East Melbourne to help the former player Jack Hutchinson who is ill.
Mon. 5
Richmond players and officials depart for Tasmania. It is the club’s first ever interstate trip. Among the twenty four players are two from Beverley. A team photo of them in Hobart appears in The Weekly Times
Sat. 10
Richmond 11-11 (77) defeats a combined Southern Tasmanian team 8-9 (57) before 4,000 spectators at Hobart.
Sat. 17
Vic Thorp kicks three goals from half forward. He would kick only seven goals in his 263 game career.
Mon. 19
A reunion of last year’s Richmond players and officials is attended by nearly 100 people. Hughie James presents Andrew Manzie with a case of cutlery and a biscuit barrel.
Wed. 21
The Richmond Footballers’ Cricket Club is formed at the Swan Hotel, Richmond.
Sat. 24
Melbourne 11-7-(73) def Richmond 9-9-(63)
Hughie James is a late omission from Richmond’s team to play Melbourne due to blood poisoning. Dye from a football sock seeped into an old foot injury.
The players present George Peckham-Beachcroft with a diamond ring as a reward for his management of the Tasmanian trip. Barney Herbert was presented with a gift to console him for being unable to go to Tassie with the team.
Sat. 31
Frank Crohan, a Richmond player from 1885, coaches a Richmond schoolboys team in a curtain raiser to Richmond’s game.
September
Sat. 7
Beverley defeats Leopold in a Metropolitan Amateur FA semi final at the MCG. The game was the curtain raiser to a VFL final and with about five minutes before time was to be called the Geelong and Carlton teams file out onto the ground and stroll over the playing space.
Sat. 14
Beverley 7-9 (51) defeats South Yarra 4-4 (28) at the MCG to win its first ever premiership.
Tue. 17
Many past and present Richmond players and officials attend Chris Bahen’s funeral.
October
Wed. 2
Richmond holds a Grand Ball at the Town Hall. It generates a 4 pounds profit.
November
__ 16
A Richmond Football Club Grand Bazaar at the Town Hall is opened by Victorian Governor Sir John Fuller. It runs for a fortnight and raises L374 8s. 6d. for the club.
December
__ 24
Barney Herbert receives his Victorian Police Force valour badge. He had tackled and disarmed a gunman single-handedly outside Jack Archer’s shop in November.