<P> In 1984, there was a revival of the International Rules representative series, which had first been played in the 1960s . The matches were played with a hybrid set of rules based on Australian rules football and Gaelic football . It also began to pave the way for Gaelic footballers to convert to Australian football; pioneered by Melbourne and known as the Irish experiment, Irish players Sean Wight and Jim Stynes began their successful VFL / AFL careers in the mid-1980s . Many Irish players have since played professional AFL football . </P> <P> On - field, the 1980s were dominated by Hawthorn, Essendon and Carlton: Hawthorn contested seven consecutive Grand Finals for four premierships; Carlton contested four Grand Finals for three flags; and Essendon contested three consecutive Grand Finals, all against Hawthorn, winning two, and establishing a bitter rivalry . In the process, Carlton and Essendon both passed Collingwood in terms of number of premierships won; since 1982, Carlton has continuously been the team with most premierships won, holding the position jointly with Essendon for much of that time . The 1989 Grand Final between Hawthorn and Geelong is considered one of the finest Grand Finals, with many strong physical encounters, a joint Grand Final record nine goals by Geelong's Gary Ablett, Sr., and Geelong coming back from a 36 - point deficit at three quarter time to fall six points short of victory . </P> <P> The league was officially renamed the Australian Football League in 1990 to reflect the new national perspective; the VFA later took over the Victorian Football League name in 1996 . Functionally, the AFL gave up control over its Victorian - based minor grades at the end of 1991--clubs continued to field reserves teams in the independent Victorian State Football League, while an entirely new under - 18s competition (the TAC Cup) was established with new, zone - based clubs . Without minor grades, the McClelland Trophy was now awarded to the senior minor premiers . </P> <P> Collingwood won the AFL Premiership in 1990, ending a 32 - year premiership drought, which featured a string of near misses known as the Colliwobbles that had seen the club lose eight Grand Finals . </P>

When did the vfl change to the afl