Essendon Football Club has become the first Victorian club in history to crack the 35,000 member barrier. As of noon today the club had 35,143 members - over 500 more members than the club-record membership figure of 34,556 set last season.

Essendon chief executive Peter Jackson said the membership figure was a great reward for the club's hard work both on and off the field. ""We strive to give our members the best value for money both on and off the field and this great result shows we are doing both pretty well at the moment,"" Jackson said.

""Obviously we have a high quality side to watch at the moment and last year's result would have had a lot to do with this figure. But I also think people have warmed to Colonial Stadium as a venue."" Jackson added that the wide range of membership packages on offer to supporters had also proved worthwhile. ""You have to cater for a wide cross-section of supporters and give them what they want - that has been a real key to this result. Client Relations is something we have worked extremely hard on and we will continue to do so in the future.""

Essendon's Membership over the past decade:

2001: 35,143

2000: 34,556

1999: 29,858

1998: 28,832

1997: 29,583

1996: 24,760

1995: 24,137

1994: 19,065

1993: 10,834

1992: 8,235