Finally launching State-of-Origin football at Subiaco Oval changed the entire landscape of Aussie Rules around the nation.

Just 10 years after Western Australia hammered staunch interstate rival Victoria by 15 goals in the first ever State-of-Origin match 40 years ago, a national competition was launched and flourishes today as the nation's premier sporting business.

It settled long-standing arguments on which great footy state produced the best players after many of WA's top stars had been lured to Victoria through the 1960s and early 70s.

Some of WA's greatest-ever footy products like Barry Cable, Graham Moss, Ross Glendinning, George Young and Ron Alexander played for their home state back from Melbourne, while possibly the finest player of all time, Graham Farmer, coached the famous black and golds.

The first State-of-Origin confrontation so dramatically led to widespread change through Australia's football that the inaugural showdown must be duly recognised as the most significant occasion at Subiaco Oval in the past 110 years.

West Coast and Fremantle triumphs of the modern era, as well as tracing back through some of WA's finest grand finals and interstate conquests, feature prominently in recalling top moments at our state's footy headquarters, as Subiaco Oval prepares to shut up shop for good on Sunday.

TOP 22: SUBIACO OVAL

(1) State-of-Origin, October 8, 1977: The best from the west smashed the Vics by 94 points, 23.13 (151) to 8.9 (57), after years of argument on just who would be BEST if everyone played with their original home states. This CHANGED the Australian football landscape forever more. One argument was settled. We had a national competition just a decade later and nationally it's rugby league that now owns State-of-Origin.

(2) Perth wins 1955 Grand Final: Defending stoutly against a howling westerly sea breeze and winning a first flag since 1907, the Demons' Merv McIntosh played quite probably the most outstanding individual game in Grand Final history with his defence in the last term to win the Simpson Medal.

(3) West Coast arrive on the national stage in March 1987 with a stunning come-from-behind victory over established VFL power side Richmond. The new Eagles stormed home with 9.4 to 1.5 into the traditional prevailing breeze after trailing the Tigers by 33 points at the final change.

(4) Swan Districts win first ever flag in 1961 under new coach Haydn Bunton, coming from last a season earlier with just two wins. Top sporting all-rounder Keith Slater turns in a blinder, beating the great Graham Farmer in the ruck and against overwhelming odds to topple East Perth in a remarkable piece of WA sporting history.

(5) Subiaco breaks the WAFL's longest premiership drought of 49 years with an outstanding coaching triumph from Ross Smith in 1973 to beat raging favourites West Perth.

(6) Fremantle shattered a West Coast stranglehold on Western Derbies - by now the state's biggest sporting rivalry - on 18 July 1999, with their first victory over their staunch enemy. After losing the first nine derbies, the Dockers triumphed with a 47-point thumping on the back of six classy goals from star import Tony Modra.

(7) First ever Western Derby in May 1995 saw West Coast demolish Fremantle by 14 goals. Known as the "Mother's Day Massacre", Eagle Brett Heady booted five goals as best-afield.

(8) A State-of-Origin thriller in June 1984 saw WA win a thriller by just four points 21.16 (142) to 21.12 (138), with John Todd in charge and Steve Malaxos as captain. That duo then led an Australian team to Ireland as national coach and skipper.

(9) WA triumphs in the last genuine State-of-Origin in 1986 and a year ahead of the expanded VFL, with the great Brian Peake booting seven goals as a shock full-forward selection and tactical move from coach Ron Alexander.

(10) The infamous "Demolition Derby" on July 30 of 2000 saw a ruthless Dockers outfit win ugly fights and then the match by just a point, coming from four goals down deep into the third term. Tough Dockers defender Dale Kickett copped nine weeks for his heavy-fisted destruction of West Coast and zany forward Clive Waterhouse bagged seven goals as best-afield.

(11) Fremantle's 2013 preliminary final win was a brutal, powerful, defensive lockdown on Sydney that gave the Dockers a berth in their first AFL Grand Final. With relentless defensive pressure and aggression at Swans opponents, the Dockers could have smashed the big clash completely open, with 17 inside 50s to just seven in the first quarter. Only poor goal-front finishing with 2.9 at the first break to 2.1 and then 7.11 to just 2.2 at half-time left the Swans in touch at all.

(12) A masterful roving performance from ball-winning genius Barry Cable - with six goals as well in 1966 - as he won his first of three straight Simpson Medals in a hat-trick of Perth flags and all at the expense of staunch rivals East Perth.

(13) Another magical rover set the 1979 derby Grand Final alight, with East Fremantle's Kevin Taylor bagging seven goals in an epic clash with South Fremantle. Records show 52,781 as an official attendance as thousands crashed into the ground over fences and rooftops, with queues still outside at the opening bounce.

(14) Bernie Naylor booted eight goals as South Fremantle belted West Perth by 59 points in the 1953 WAFL decider, one of three flags for the Bulldogs in five successive Grand Finals.

(15) Claremont almost blew it in 1964 for their first premiership since World War II with a fading four-point win over East Fremantle 14.18 (102) to 15.8 (98). The "Monts" led comfortably early with 4.9 to 1.2 at the first break and continued to stagger and leave "Old Easts" within touch with poor finishing for goal. Norm Rogers won the Simpson from a losing outfit that also had "Big Bob Johnson" boot eight goals with the runners-up. East Fremantle lost a third straight decider before winning a year later by four goals over Swan Districts.

(16) East Fremantle almost blew it a year later in 1965 and faced a heart-breaking fourth straight Grand Final defeat at the last change, trailing by four goals to Swan Districts. The Old Easts stormed home with a blistering nine-goal final term and resounding 24-point victory.

(17) Another remarkable comeback way back in 1952 at the height of a South Fremantle reign of supremacy and led by all-time great on-baller Steve Marsh. South trailed West Perth by five goals at the long interval and triggered a nine-goal to two resurgence, with Marsh booting four from midfield and the incomparable Naylor also bagging four.

(18) Subiaco scoring sensation Austin Robertson needed 15 goals to set a new league record on August 31 of 1968 in the last qualifying round to overtake the great Bernie Naylor's season-high of 156 majors. Robertson reached his magical personal tally with a stack of generous passing from his teammates, including an odd sideways kick from coach and massive possession winner Haydn Bunton. The dead-eye drop punt kicking specialist booted 15.11 as well as four rare out-on-the-full misses as the state's goal-kicking record was re-written.

(19) East Perth's emotional premiership in 1972 was something extremely special. In an astonishing run of near-misses, the Royals had lost seven deciders since winning the flag in 1959. With one of the most charismatic and controversial personalities in the state's football history Mal Brown at the helm, East Perth broke the ugly sequence with a 15-point win over Claremont, but not before surviving some nerve-wracking poor goal finishing in prevailing 9.17 (71) to 8.8 (56).

(20) South Fremantle legend Clive Lewington's unique feat in the 1950 premiership, in which the clever rover was then and remains the only captain and coach to also win the coveted Simpson Medal as best-afield in a flag-winning outfit.

(21) Vics cop double dose of WA magic in 1948... It was a rare and significant brief space of interstate dominance at football headquarters when Western Australia toppled arch rival Victoria in successive clashes within four days. The black and golds hammered the "Big V" at Subiaco on a Saturday afternoon by more than six goals, 16.16 (112) to 10.14 (74) and again the following Tuesday by 23 points 11. 17 (83) to 7.18 (60).

(22) West Coast shaped an historic first ever AFL premiership in 1992 with a gutsy 13-point victory over then reigning premiers Hawthorn in only the second final played outside of Victoria. It was a grinding confrontation and widely tipped that the winner would go on to win the flag. West Coast snatched home ground rights with a fourth-place finish and the Hawks fifth shaping the elimination confrontation with big-name Eagles Dean Kemp, Guy McKenna, Peter Matera and Don Pyke all firing and key forward Peter Sumich booting four goals.