In 1919, the VFL competition was comprised of nine teams of 18 on-the-field players each, with no "reserves", although any of the 18 players who had left the playing field for any reason could later resume their place on the field at any time during the match.
Each team played each other twice in a home-and-away season of 18 rounds (i.e., 16 matches and 2 byes).
Once the 18 round home-and-away season had finished, the 1919 VFL Premiers were determined by the specific format and conventions of the amended "Argus system".
Unhappy that its nine-team competition brings one bye each week, the VFL seeks expressions of interest from clubs wishing to join the VFL. Whilst there was talk of an Ex-Servicemen's Club and a Public Servants' Club, an application was actually lodged on behalf of a combined Ballarat Football League team, as well applications on behalf of the VFA clubs Brunswick Football Club, Footscray, Hawthorn, North Melbourne, Port Melbourne, and Prahran.
The VFL introduced a Second Eighteen competition between its constituent clubs.
At to the start of the 1919 season, the VFL had already donated ₤9,436-0-0 to the Patriotic Fund since the start of the war.
In their round 12 match against St Kilda, South Melbourne sets a record for highest score in a quarter, kicking 17.4 (106) in the last quarter of the match. No team has ever come within three goals of matching this record.
Other records were set in that same match: South Melbourne full-forward Harold Robertson kicked a record 14 goals in the match (a record until 1929); South Melbourne also kicked a record match score of 29.15 (189) (a record until 1931), with a record winning margin of 171 points (record until 1979), breaking the records set by Geelong in 1899.
In round 16, Collingwood defeat Carlton 17.11 (113) to 5.16 (46). No team had scored 100 points against Carlton since round 1 in 1904; thus Carlton had played 292 consecutive games without conceding 100 points.
References
Rogers, S. & Brown, A., Every Game Ever Played: VFL/AFL Results 1897-1997 (Sixth Edition), Viking Books, (Ringwood), 1998. ISBN 0-670-90809-6
Ross, J. (ed), 100 Years of Australian Football 1897-1996: The Complete Story of the AFL, All the Big Stories, All the Great Pictures, All the Champions, Every AFL Season Reported, Viking, (Ringwood), 1996. ISBN 0-670-86814-0