THE HISTORY OF REPRESENTATIVE / INTERSTATE FOOTBALL

QUEENSLAND - UNIFORMS
(1884-1914)

1884


1884 vs NSW
At least two players, including inaugural Queensland captain, Jack Gibson, wore the QFA jumper at left but the majority of the team wore the black and red uniforms of the Brisbane Football Club for this match. The uniforms were consistent but the Queensland players "donned every conceivable shape and colour of head-gear, from brown, white, and black 'wideawakes'* to yellow and green caps. This quite spoilt their appearance in the eyes of the spectators, and was very unfavourably commented upon." [Queensland Times, Ipswich Herald and General Advertiser, 21-8-1884, p.5]


*Wideawakes were a type of wide-brimmed hat made famous by the Quakers. (see image at right)

1886


For the 1886 tour of New South Wales the entire QFA team wore the uniforms of the Brisbane Football Club.

1888


Melbourne toured Queensland in June 1888 and the Queensland representative team wore new white uniforms with red hoops for the occasion.

1904-1907

Picture
1904
Picture
1906-1907

1904 vs NSW / 1906-1907 vs NSW
The re-birth of Australian football in Queensland in 1903 resulted in the formation of the Queensland Football League (QFL) and the resumption of annual interstate matches against New South Wales.

1904 - the first Queensland sporting team to wear maroon jerseys were the colony's rugby union team of 1895. The QFL's representative team of 1904 were the first Australian football team to follow suit.
1905 - the Courier Mail is the first paper to refer to the QFL State team as the "maroons".
1906-07 - the navy blue knicks were replaced by white; forming the classic Queensland colour combination of maroon and white that is still worn today.

1908 NATIONAL CARNIVAL


Australian football's inaugural national carnival was held in Melbourne in August of 1908 and marked the 50th anniversary of the game's formation.
Many states unveiled new uniform designs for the occasion (Victoria wore a "V" for the first time, Tasmania wore bottle green jumpers for the first time, South Australia adopted new lace-up jackets, etc).

For Queensland, this was the first time the "Q" appeared on the state jumper and was the first use of knee-length shorts (replacing the traditional knickerbockers that had been in use since the 1800s).

1910


- return to a maroon jumper with no "Q"
- white tops added to the socks for the first time

1914 NATIONAL CARNIVAL


- the "Q" returned to the front of the jumper (and was a different style from the 1908 version)
- small number panel added to the rear of the jumper
NEXT PAGE:
RELATED PAGES:
Written and researched by David Eastman
Artwork by Rob Meredith
First published 26/3/2017
Last updated 17/11/2018