In accordance with Olympic eligibility rules, participants were restricted to amateurs, which forced organisers to select squads made up of young stars, ageing veterans and suburban-league athletes.

VAFA captain Geoff Hibbins was adjudged by media as the victorious side's best player, while Dick Fenton-Smith and Ray Pettigrove shared leading goal-kicker honours with four goals each.

[1] Despite its popularity still largely confined to the western and southern states of Australia, it was described as the country's "national code", as such warranting the privilege of being shown on the world stage.

Andrew acknowledged the challenges of playing the match in December, during the sport's off-season, but reinforced that all discussions had been "only of a preliminary nature" and that details would be fleshed out in the coming months and years.

[8] Burdened by the fact that the League would be unable to showcase its brightest talents to a global audience, the VFL had planned to present an exhibition match between its own professional players that would run concurrently with the Games though not a part of the official program, but this would not eventuate.

[9] Format suggestions were still being put forward as late as 1956; The Argus' sports editor Percy Taylor revealing in January that an "Australia vs. the rest" type match-up was a possibility.

[10] However, such a clash would have been unfathomably one-sided, with the popularity of Australian football outside of its home country having waned into insignificance following the conclusion of World War II, which, in turn, saw a large decrease in the number of expat competitions overseas.

[15][16][17] The VAFA, growing frustrated by the common theme of having its best amateur players 'poached' by the VFL and VFA to play for money, saw the opportunity to upstage its professional counterparts on an elevated public platform.

[20] Fresh from the 1956 VFL Grand Final just a month earlier, where he retired at the conclusion of the match after Melbourne smashed Collingwood,[21] Cordner was the logical choice to lead the combined team.

One of the League's most formidable ruckmen at his peak, finishing runner-up in the club best-and-fairest award in his penultimate season, Cordner would be a valuable asset to the combined team through both skill and leadership.

Only the Richmond pair of Brian Davie and Frank Dunin had more than 30 League games to their name at that point, with eight of the squad members only having made their debut in that year's season.

One of the headline players was Box Hill forward Dave Plunkett, who in his first season of Association football had kicked more than 25 goals to help his side to a maiden finals appearance.

[25] Although the VFL/VFA combined team would be assumed favourites, given that its players competed in competitions of a higher standard, news articles suggested a "shock" upset result could equate.

The 50-foot structure was to be left standing until the conclusion of the closing ceremony as part of Games protocol, despite the fact that it sat awkwardly in the forward pocket, well in from the boundary line.

[33][19] The plinth installed for the inside lane of the running track also posed problems for the footballers, who were at risk of tripping if they did not identify the sharp rise in height of the surface.

[19] While the official Olympic Report of 1956 praised the quality of the match, describing it as being played "in the true amateur spirit, with an abundance of vigour and speed, plenty of good kicking and high marking",[37] the media was less favourable.

[48][49] Coach of the combined team, dual Collingwood premiership player and secretary of the ANFC Bruce Andrew, would be an inaugural inductee into the Australian Football Hall of Fame in 1996, just months before his death.

[53] Box Hill's Dave Plunkett was named at centre half-forward in the club's "Greatest Ever Team", announced in 2000, after a career spanning 115 games and 91 goals.

[54] Foreshadowing a move to commercialise and promote the sport, Alf Potter and Gordon Bennett of HSV commissioned a 'trial run' of filming the demonstration match for television purposes.