The 1980
New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership
The New South Wales Rugby League premiership was the first rugby league football club competition established in Australia and contributor to today's National Rugby League. Run by the New South Wales Rugby League (initially named the New Sout ...
was the 73rd season of
Sydney
Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
's professional
rugby league
Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 112 ...
football competition, Australia's first. Twelve clubs, including six of
1908
Events
January
* January 1 – The British ''Nimrod'' Expedition led by Ernest Shackleton sets sail from New Zealand on the ''Nimrod'' for Antarctica.
* January 3 – A total solar eclipse is visible in the Pacific Ocean, and is the 46 ...
's foundation teams and another six from around Sydney competed for the
J.J. Giltinan Shield
The J.J. Giltinan Shield is an Australian rugby league trophy, awarded annually to the National Rugby League minor premiers. It was named after James J. Giltinan who was central to the founding of rugby league in Australia. Giltinan died in 195 ...
and
WD & HO Wills
W.D. & H.O. Wills was a British tobacco manufacturing company formed in Bristol, England. It was the first British company to mass-produce cigarettes, and one of the founding companies of Imperial Tobacco along with John Player & Sons.
The com ...
Cup during the season, which culminated in a
grand final
Primarily in Australian sports, a grand final (sometimes colloquially abbreviated to "grannie") is a game that decides a sports league's premiership (or championship) winning team, i.e. the conclusive game of a finals (or play-off) series. Sy ...
between the
Canterbury-Bankstown
Canterbury-Bankstown is a customary region of Sydney, Australia, in the south-western suburbs. The area is located around the Bankstown railway line, to the west of the St George region and to the south of the Inner West region. The suburbs o ...
and
Eastern Suburbs Eastern Suburbs may refer to:
Places
*Eastern Suburbs (Mumbai), India
*Eastern Suburbs (Sydney), Australia
**Eastern Suburbs railway line, Sydney, Australia
Sports clubs
;Association football
*Eastern Suburbs AFC, Auckland, New Zealand
* Eastern ...
clubs. NSWRFL clubs also competed in the
1980 Tooth Cup
The 1980 Tooth Cup was the 7th edition of the NSWRFL Midweek Cup, a NSWRFL-organised national club Rugby League tournament between the leading clubs and representative teams from the NSWRFL, the BRL, the CRL, the QRL and the NZRL.
A total ...
and players from NSWRFL clubs were selected to represent the
New South Wales team.
Season summary
Twenty-two regular season rounds were played from March till August, resulting in a top five of Easts, Canterbury, Wests, St. George and Souths who battled it out in the finals.
The 1980 season also saw the retirement from the League of future
Australian Rugby League Hall of Fame
The Australian Rugby LeaguHall of Fame'' honours players who have shown exceptional skill at rugby league, all-time great coaches and referees, and other major contributors to the game who are Australian.
It was officially established in 2002, ...
inductee,
Arthur Beetson
Arthur Henry "Artie" Beetson OAM (21 January 1945 – 1 December 2011 .
Mid-way through the season, players contracted to NSWRFL clubs were selected to represent the
New South Wales team in two games against the
Queensland team in 1980. After that the experimental
1980 State of Origin game
The 1980 Rugby League State of Origin, State of Origin game was the first game between the Queensland Maroons and the New South Wales Rugby League team, New South Wales Blues rugby league teams to be played under "state of origin" selection rules. ...
was played, and NSWRFL clubs' players represented Queensland for the first time.
The 1980 season's
Rothmans Medal
The Rothmans Medal was the premier individual award in the New South Wales Rugby League and Brisbane Rugby League competitions, and later in the Australian Rugby League, which was given to the player voted by referees as the best and fairest in ...
list was Newtown prop
Geoff Bugden. The inaugural
Dally M Award
The Dally M Awards are the official annual player awards for the National Rugby League competition. As well as honouring the player of the year, who received the Dally M Medal, awards are also given to the premier player in each position, the be ...
, named in honour of rugby league's first "Master"
Dally Messenger
Herbert Henry Messenger, nicknamed "Dally" and sometimes "The Master" (12 April 1883 – 24 November 1959) was one of Australasia's first professional rugby footballers, recognised as one of the greatest-ever players in either code. He played f ...
, went to South Sydney's
Robert Laurie. ''
Rugby League Week
''Rugby League Week'' (frequently abbreviated to RLW) was the highest selling Australian rugby league magazine, ahead of major competitor ''Big League''. It was published weekly (on Wednesdays) during the Australian rugby league season, which ru ...
'' gave its player of the year award to Eastern Suburbs' halfback
Kevin Hastings
Kevin "Horrie" Hastings (born 5 January 1957) is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer who played as a and during the 1970s and 1980s.
Hastings played for the Eastern Suburbs in the New South Wales Rugby League (NSWRL), ...
.
Teams
Ladder
Finals
Chart
Grand Final
Canterbury's loss of long serving fullback Stan Cutler with a broken leg suffered in the major semi-final, and the Roosters' form in the preliminary final resulted in Easts being warm favourites. But the Bulldogs, boasting two sets of brothers in the Hughes and Mortimers came ready to play expansive football. The Roosters began well and
Noel Cleal
Noel Harvey "Crusher" Cleal (born 16 October 1958) is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer and coach. A destructive for the Manly Sea Eagles, he also represented New South Wales in the State of Origin Series and the Austra ...
was a constant threat but Canterbury's forwards led by Robinson and Coveney began to get on top. Canterbury's
Chris Anderson Chris Anderson may refer to:
Sports
* Chris Anderson (baseball) (born 1992), American baseball player
* Chris Anderson (cheese roller), 22-time winner of annual cheese rolling
* Chris Anderson (footballer, born 1925) (1925–1986), Scottish footb ...
scored the first try of the match after receiving a blatantly forward pass
[Haddan p217] from
Chris Mortimer
Chris Mortimer (born 19 August 1959 in Wagga Wagga, New South Wales)
is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer who played in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s for the Canterbury-Bankstown, Penrith, New South Wales and for the Aus ...
in the lead up. The Roosters hit back and only desperate cover defence from
Steve Mortimer
Stephen Charles Mortimer (born 15 July 1956), also nicknamed "Turvey", is an Australian former rugby league footballer who played as a . Mortimer played a Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs club record 272 first-grade games between 1976–88, winni ...
on Easts' winger Steve McFarlane prevented a Roosters try.
Ken Wright kicked two penalty goals for the tricolours, resulting in a 7–4 lead to the Bulldogs at half time.
After the break
Steve Gearin
Steve Gearin (born 29 March 1958) is an Australian former rugby league footballer who represented , and in the New South Wales Rugby League (NSWRL) during the 1970s and 1980s. A key member of the Bulldogs during the 'entertainers' era, one of ...
edged the Bulldogs clear with three successive goals after aggressive play from the Roosters – led by
John Tobin John Tobin may refer to:
People
* Sir John Tobin (1763–1851), Liverpool merchant
* John Tobin (dramatist) (1770–1804), author of ''The Honey Moon''
* John F. Tobin (1880–1954), American football player and coach
* Jack Tobin (1892–1969 ...
's focus on the Hughes brothers – was penalised by referee
Greg Hartley. The final Canterbury try by Gearin has been ranked amongst the best of all-time. Five minutes from full-time Greg Brentnall raced downfield and put up a high kick. Gearin followed through at speed and outjumped opposing winger David Michael, catching the ball on the full to score and secure a Bulldogs victory.
[Haddan pp214-217]
It was Canterbury's third premiership and had come after a wait of thirty-eight years. It was the last Grand Final to be played on a Saturday afternoon with the deciders since then being played on a Sunday.
Referee:
Greg Hartley
Canterbury-Bankstown 18 (Tries: Anderson, Gearin. Goals: Gearin 6 from 6)
Eastern Suburbs 4 (Goals: Wright 2)
Player statistics
The following statistics are as of the conclusion of Round 22.
Top 5 point scorers
Top 5 try scorers
Top 5 goal scorers
See also
*
1980 State of Origin
References
External links
* Haddan, Steve (2007) ''The Finals – 100 Years of National Rugby League Finals'', Steve Haddan Publishing, Brisbane
Rugby League Tables – Season 1980''The World of Rugby League''
1980 J J Giltinan Shield and WD & HO Wills Cup at rleague.com
{{National Rugby League seasons
New South Wales Rugby League premiership
NSWRFL season