The McClelland Trophy — The AFL’s Minor Premiership

The McClelland Trophy goes to the team that finishes top of the home-and-away ladder — the so-called “minor premiership”. Named after AFL Commission chairman Jack McClelland, the trophy carries less prestige than the actual VFL/AFL premiership but represents a meaningful achievement: 23+ matches at the top of the league. Recent winners include Geelong, Brisbane Lions, Collingwood, and Melbourne; multiple “minor premiers” have failed to convert to actual premierships, leading to ongoing debate about the trophy’s value.

The History: Jack McClelland and the Minor Flag

The McClelland Trophy was instituted in honour of Jack McClelland, a long-serving AFL administrator and Commission chairman. The trophy formalised what had previously been an informal recognition — the team finishing first on the ladder at the end of the home-and-away season.

The trophy was originally known as the McClelland Trophy in honour of Sir Maurice McClelland (different person, also AFL administrator) before being renamed for the current Jack McClelland. The naming has had brief evolution; the modern trophy is firmly the McClelland.

Recent McClelland Trophy Winners

• 2024: Sydney Swans (top of home-and-away)
• 2023: Collingwood (top of home-and-away)
• 2022: Geelong (top of home-and-away, premiership won)
• 2021: Melbourne (top of home-and-away, premiership won)
• 2020: Port Adelaide (top of home-and-away, premiership not won)
• 2019: Geelong (top of home-and-away, premiership not won)
• 2018: West Coast Eagles (top of home-and-away, premiership won)
• 2017: Adelaide Crows (top of home-and-away, premiership not won — Tigers won)
• 2016: Sydney Swans (top of home-and-away, premiership not won — Dogs won)
• 2015: Fremantle (top of home-and-away, premiership not won — Hawks won)

The Minor Premiership Curse

The “Minor Premiership Curse” is a long-running joke in AFL circles: McClelland Trophy winners often fail to convert to actual premierships. The 2015–2017 era saw the trophy winner lose in finals each year, fuelling the curse narrative.

However, the curse is somewhat overstated. Strong McClelland Trophy winners — Geelong 2007 (won the flag by 119 points), West Coast 2018 (won the flag), Geelong 2022 (won the flag), Melbourne 2021 (won the flag) — frequently do convert.

The deeper truth: the McClelland Trophy guarantees a top-four finish and a home qualifying final, but the AFL’s modern finals system means even strong minor premiers can lose in any single match. The curse is more about the small-sample-size of finals football than any structural flaw in the trophy.

Trivia for the Pub

• The McClelland Trophy goes to the team finishing top of the home-and-away ladder.
• It is named after AFL administrator Jack McClelland.
• The trophy is also called the “minor premiership”.
• Winning the McClelland Trophy guarantees a top-four finish and home qualifying final.
• The “minor premiership curse” is a long-running joke.
• Geelong has won the McClelland Trophy multiple times.
• Sydney Swans, Brisbane Lions, and Collingwood are also recent winners.
• The McClelland Trophy is presented at the end of the home-and-away season.
• Some minor premiers have lost preliminary finals at home — perhaps the most painful possible outcome.
• The trophy carries less prestige than the actual premiership but is meaningful for clubs that consistently top the ladder.

The Rumours

The persistent rumour: making the McClelland Trophy more prestigious. Has been canvassed; the actual premiership remains the gold standard.

The other rumour: cash bonus for McClelland Trophy winners. The AFL has provided various financial bonuses for ladder positions; explicit McClelland Trophy bonus has not been formalised.

The Verdict

The McClelland Trophy is the AFL’s “minor flag” — meaningful but secondary. Win it, and you’ve topped the home-and-away ladder, earned a top-four position, and secured a home qualifying final. But the actual premiership requires winning four (or sometimes three) finals matches, and the McClelland Trophy guarantee disappears in the heat of finals.

For clubs that consistently top the ladder but fail to convert (Geelong 2007 being a notable counter-example, where the Cats both won the McClelland and the flag), the trophy is a bittersweet recognition of strength that didn’t translate to ultimate success. The 2015–2017 era — Fremantle, Sydney, Adelaide all winning McClelland but losing in finals — became cautionary tales.

The trophy itself is a smaller piece of metalware than the AFL premiership cup, but it sits in clubs’ trophy cabinets as evidence of regular-season excellence. Long live the minor premiership.