THIS week’s moments include five of the defining times of the game’s history, starting with the formation of the rules.

After playing the sport for a year, four men met at Jerry Bryant’s Parade Hotel in East Melbourne to establish 10 rules for the new Australian game. Then, as now, much debate followed the rules, which had been established to develop a ‘less rugged code’ suited to older rugby players.

Some years later, two VFL clubs were facing extinction and were looking down the barrel of a marger.

Fitzroy and Footscray were all set to merge until a last minute rally by Footscray supporters kept the flag afloat to avoid the merger. To this day the Western Bulldogs are hardly competing with the powerhouse Victorian clubs in terms of finances, but are looking significantly more healthy than in those dark days of 1989.

Football grounds had long been recognised as cricket grounds open for winter, but in 1966 the VFL began building its own stadium in the Melbourne farmland of Waverley.

Sir Kenneth Luke had wanted a ground dedicated solely to football that would provide a neutral venue and improved viewing areas for fans.

By 1970, VFL Park, later known as Waverley Park was born.

One of the most interesting games the stadium had ever hosted came in its final year as an AFL venue, when St Kilda surrendered a 63-point lead over Hawthorn early in the second quarter, to eventually lose by 13 points in what was the greatest comeback in VFL/AFL history.

The game of football has always been rather Victorian-centric, but in 1972 fans got a glimpse of how some on the other side of the continent played the game.

East Perth was taking on Carlton in the Australian Club Championships of 1972 when big Western Australian Mal Brown put forward his claim as the toughest man in football by belting every single Carlton player that came his way.

Last week, Williamstown’s 1990 VFA Grand Final win was voted the most memorable moment, with 59 per cent of the vote.