The Dockerty Cup is a men's annual soccer knock-out competition open to all Victorian clubs across the state's football league system. The tournament is named after Harry Dockerty, an early pioneer of soccer in Victoria.
Since 2014, the Dockerty Cup has also been a qualifying competition for the Australia Cup (formerly known as the FFA Cup), in which the four finalists enter the competition proper at the round of 32. The Dockerty Cup winner also qualifies for the following season's FV Community Shield in a one-off match against the reigning NPL Victoria champion.
History
The Dockerty Challenge Cup competition was established in 1909 by Harry Dockerty. It coincided with re-establishment of the Victoria's 'British Association' league in 1909 after the economic depression of the 1890s.
In 1909, the first Cup competition involved six teams (St Kilda SC, Prahran, Carlton United, Fitzroy District FC, Melbourne United and Williamstown). The first match took place at the Gardens Reserve in Williamstown on 24 July 1909.
In the final played on the East Melbourne Cricket Ground, league premiers Carlton United defeated St Kilda SC 2–1.
In 1914, Melbourne Thistle and Northumberland & Durham compete in two finals both ending in scoreless draws and the teams share the Cup.
The cup was not played in 1916–18 due to World War I but was played consecutively for the next 77 years from 1919 to 1996.
Following the 1996 season, the Dockerty Cup was in recess before returning in 2004 as the "Crazy John's Cup", although this only lasted for one season and the competition went back into recess for six years.
A Victorian cup competition was reintroduced in 2011 as the "Mirabella Cup" due to naming rights sponsorship. That arrangement lasted only one season, with the competition being named the "FFV State Knockout Cup" in 2012 and 2013. However, in both years, the winner was awarded with the Dockerty Cup trophy. Retrieved 2016-10-31 Retrieved 2016-10-31
From the 2014 season onwards, it is once again known as the Dockerty Cup.
Format Eligibility Participation in the Dockerty Cup is mandatory for the senior men's team from every Victorian club within the National Premier Leagues and the State Leagues, and optional for teams from the Regional Leagues. Because the competition serves as the preliminary rounds for the Australia Cup competition, only one team per Club is eligible. This means that the youth sides of Melbourne Victory Youth and Melbourne City Youth and Western United FC Youth are excluded from the competition, as their parent A-League sides separately participate in the competition.
Additionally if a Victorian club wins the NPL Championship – as occurred with Heidelberg United in the 2018 Dockerty Cup – they are excluded from the preliminary rounds as they have also qualified for the FFA Cup at the round of 32. Instead they join the Dockerty Cup competition in a special playoff round match held the week prior to the semi-finals.
Competition format The competition acts a classic single-elimination knock-out tournament, with one team progressing from each tie to the next round. Fixtures for each round are determined by a random draw, with teams entering the tournament on a staggered basis, depending on their respective positions in the league hierarchy. The team drawn first hosts the match, with the final being held at a neutral venue. No replays are currently utilised in the Dockerty Cup, with a drawn match going to 30 minutes of extra time and eventually a penalty shoot-out if necessary.
Qualification for subsequent competitions Australia Cup Since 2014, the Dockerty Cup has also served as preliminary competition for the FFA Cup, now known as the Australia Cup, from the first qualifying round to the Seventh Round. In 2022 five teams qualify as Victoria's representatives, at the round of 32.
In 2020, the FFA Cup competition was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia.
Federation Competition Total Australia Cup Victorian Entrants2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023202420252026 National A-League 2 2 2 2 2 2 – 3 3 2232 NPL Champions – – – – 1 – – – – –––– Australian Championship – – – – – – – – – –––1 Football Victoria Dockerty Cup 190 → 4 191 → 4 202 → 4 217 → 4 217 → 4 214 → 4 223 → 0 210 → 4 211 → 5 218 → 5219 → 5218 → 4220 → 4Total VictorianRound of 32 Qualifiers 6 6 6 6 7 6 – 7 8 7 777
FV Community Shield Since 2014 the Dockerty Cup winners also qualify for the following season's single-match FV Community Shield, the season opener played against the current NPL Victoria champions.
Prize fund The prize fund for the 2018 Dockerty Cup is detailed below. Round No. of Clubsreceive fund Prize fund Play-off Loser 1 $2,500 Semi-finalists 2 $2,500 Runner-up 1 $5,000 Champion 1 $10,000 Total 5 $22,500
Media coverage In 2019 it was announced that Football Victoria had signed a three-year broadcast arrangement with YouTube and Facebook that will see the Dockerty Cup's semi-finals and final broadcast live.
Additionally each draw of the Dockerty Cup round's are broadcast live on Football Victoria YouTube channel, while a number of clubs will provide live score updates during each match either via the clubs official website, Facebook, or X.
Records and honours Dockerty Cup finals (current format since 2014) Year Winner (Titles) Score Runner-up Totalclubs Australia Cup (FFA Cup) Qualifiers 2014 Melbourne Knights (9) 1–0 South Springvale 190 Bentleigh Greens Melbourne Knights South Springvale St Albans Saints 2015 South Melbourne (8) 3–0 Oakleigh Cannons 191 Heidelberg United Hume City Oakleigh Cannons South Melbourne 2016 Bentleigh Greens (1) 1–0 Green Gully 202 Bentleigh Greens Green Gully Hume City Melbourne Knights 2017 Heidelberg United (1) Bentleigh Greens 217 Bentleigh Greens Heidelberg United Hume City South Melbourne 2018 Bentleigh Greens (2) 2–0 Heidelberg United 217 Avondale FC Bentleigh Greens Northcote City Port Melbourne Heidelberg United1 2019 Hume City (1) 1–0 Melbourne Knights 214 Bulleen Lions Hume City Melbourne Knights Moreland Zebras 2020 Dockerty Cup and 2020 FFA Cup cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia. 2021 Avondale FC (1) 1–0 Hume City 210 Avondale FC Hume City Port Melbourne South Melbourne 2022 Bentleigh Greens (3) 2–1 Oakleigh Cannons 211 Avondale FC Bentleigh Greens Green Gully Heidelberg United Oakleigh Cannons 2023 Oakleigh Cannons (1) 3–0 Heidelberg United 218 Goulburn Valley Suns Heidelberg United Melbourne Knights Northcote City Oakleigh Cannons 2024 South Melbourne (9) Oakleigh Cannons 219 Heidelberg United Hume City Melbourne Srbija Oakleigh Cannons South Melbourne2025South Melbourne (10)2–1Heidelberg United218Avondale FCHeidelberg UnitedNunawading CitySouth Melbourne2026Preston Lions (2)3–1Heidelberg United220Brunswick JuventusHeidelberg UnitedNorth Sunshine EaglesPreston LionsSouth Melbourne
List of Dockerty Cup winners (1909–2013)
Competition and Year WinnerDockerty Cup 1909 Carlton UnitedDockerty Cup 1910 Carlton UnitedDockerty Cup 1911 St KildaDockerty Cup 1912 WilliamstownDockerty Cup 1913 Yarraville (formerly Williamstown)Dockerty Cup 1914 Melbourne ThistleDockerty Cup 1915 Melbourne Thistle1916 to 1918 No competition due to World War 1Dockerty Cup 1919 Footscray Thistle Dockerty Cup 1920 Albert Park / Northumberland and DurhamDockerty Cup 1921 Northumberland and Durham Dockerty Cup 1922 Albert Park Dockerty Cup 1923 St Kilda Dockerty Cup 1924 Navy Dockerty Cup 1925 Melbourne ThistleDockerty Cup 1926 Navy Dockerty Cup 1927 Footscray Thistle Dockerty Cup 1928 Navy Dockerty Cup 1929 Footscray Thistle Dockerty Cup 1930 Footscray Thistle Dockerty Cup 1931 Wonthaggi Magpies Dockerty Cup 1932 Footscray Thistle Dockerty Cup 1933 Brighton Dockerty Cup 1934 Royal CaledoniansDockerty Cup 1935 Melbourne Hakoah Dockerty Cup 1936 Royal Caledonians Dockerty Cup 1937 Brighton Dockerty Cup 1938 NobelsDockerty Cup 1939 Imperial Chemical Industries (formerly Nobels) Dockerty Cup 1940 Imperial Chemical Industries Dockerty Cup 1941 Moreland Dockerty Cup 1942 Prahran CityDockerty Cup 1943 BrightonDockerty Cup 1944 BrightonDockerty Cup 1945 Moreland-Hakoah Dockerty Cup 1946 Prahran CityDockerty Cup 1947 South Yarra Dockerty Cup 1948 Park RangersDockerty Cup 1949 Park Rangers Dockerty Cup 1950 Moreland Dockerty Cup 1951 J.U.S.T.Dockerty Cup 1952 Brighton Dockerty Cup 1953 Melbourne HakoahDockerty Cup 1954 Melbourne Hakoah Dockerty Cup 1955 Melbourne HakoahDockerty Cup 1956 Melbourne HakoahDockerty Cup 1957 Moreland Dockerty Cup 1958 Ringwood Wilhelmina
Competition and Year WinnerDockerty Cup 1959 George CrossDockerty Cup 1960 JuventusDockerty Cup 1961 PoloniaDockerty Cup 1962 George CrossDockerty Cup 1963 Footscray JUSTDockerty Cup 1964 SlaviaDockerty Cup 1965 SlaviaDockerty Cup 1966 Melbourne HakoahDockerty Cup 1967 Port Melbourne SlaviaDockerty Cup 1968 CroatiaDockerty Cup 1969 CroatiaDockerty Cup 1970 JuventusDockerty Cup 1971 JuventusDockerty Cup 1972 JuventusDockerty Cup 1973 Hakoah St.KildaDockerty Cup 1974 South Melbourne HellasDockerty Cup 1975 South Melbourne HellasDockerty Cup 1976 Footscray JUSTDockerty Cup 1977 JuventusDockerty Cup 1978 George CrossDockerty Cup 1979 Essendon CroatiaDockerty Cup 1980 Essendon CroatiaDockerty Cup 1981 Green Gully AjaxDockerty Cup 1982 Green GullyDockerty Cup 1983 Melbourne CroatiaDockerty Cup 1984 FawknerDockerty Cup 1985 Melbourne CroatiaDockerty Cup 1986 Green GullyDockerty Cup 1987 Brunswick United JuventusDockerty Cup 1988 South Melbourne HellasDockerty Cup 1989 South Melbourne HellasDockerty Cup 1990 Melbourne CroatiaDockerty Cup 1991 South Melbourne HellasDockerty Cup 1992 Preston MakedoniaDockerty Cup 1993 South MelbourneDockerty Cup 1994 Morwell FalconsDockerty Cup 1995 South MelbourneDockerty Cup 1996 Melbourne Knights1997 to 2003 not playedCrazy John's Cup 2004 Green Gully2005 to 2010 not playedMirabella Cup 2011 Northcote City SCFFV State Knockout Cup 2012 Dandenong ThunderFFV State Knockout Cup 2013 Green Gully
Overall Honours Club Winners Runners-up Winning yearsSouth Melbourne 10 4 1974, 1975, 1988, 1989, 1991, 1993, 1995, 2015, 2024, 2025Melbourne Knights 9 7 1968, 1969, 1979, 1980, 1983, 1985, 1990, 1996, 2014Melbourne Hakoah 8 7 1935, 1945, 1953, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1966, 1973Brunswick Zebras Juventus 6 7 1960, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1977, 1987Footscray Thistle 5 2 1919, 1927, 1929, 1930, 1932Brighton 5 3 1933, 1937, 1943, 1944, 1952Green Gully Cavaliers 5 1 1981, 1982, 1986, 2004, 2013Bentleigh Greens 3 1 2016, 2018, 2022Preston Lions 2 2 1992, 2026Heidelberg United 1 5 2017Oakleigh Cannons 1 3 2023Hume City 1 1 2019
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