"Footy's Great Divide"

Sean Fagan

A special feature article in the April 2009 issue of Inside Sport magazine.

Sean Fagan takes a look back at the 1800s, to reveal why Australia split its football loyalties into the English-born rugby code and the home-bred game of Australian rules football.

What was it in Australian football (Aussie rules) that made it the game of the southern states, and rugby gain the favour in NSW and Queensland?

For the first time, this article examines not just what happened, but why the split happened; it tells us how the football codes were played and supported in 1800s Australia, what made each code popular with some, and what made that same code disdained by others.

The feature also reveals who invented the word "thugby", and how the "aerial ping-pong" tag came to prominence.

Check out "Footy's Great Divide" in the April issue of Inside Sport magazine.

Rugby History Article © Sean Fagan