Brisbane Rugby League premiership

Brisbane Rugby League
Sport Rugby league
Inaugural season 1922
Ceased 1997
Replaced by Queensland Cup
Country  Australia
Last premiers Redcliffe Dolphins (1997)
Most titles Fortitude Valley Diehards (16 titles)
Related competition Queensland Cup

The Brisbane Rugby League Premiership was a rugby league football club competition in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It was first held in 1922 and for every year until 1997.

Prior to 1922, the competition was conducted under the auspices of the Queensland Rugby League. Until the 1980s it was the premier sporting competition in Brisbane, attracting large crowds and broad media coverage. The Brisbane Rugby League however, had been in slow decline for some 15 years as large numbers of its players left to compete in the more lucrative Sydney Rugby League premiership, and began to lose popular interest with the creation of the Brisbane Broncos in 1988. The Brisbane Rugby League premiership was replaced by the Queensland Cup before the 1998 season.

History

Establishment of the Queensland Rugby League

The Queensland Rugby Football League (QRFL) was formed in 1908 by seven former rugby union players who were dissatisfied with the administration of the Queensland Rugby Union (QRU). The new organisation was attacked by both the local press and the QRU for introducing professionalism, which they claimed would destroy the sport. The "founding fathers" of the QARFL included John Fihelly, an Australian Labor Party Member of Parliament who became Minister for Railways and Deputy Premier.

The first official club competition kicked off in Brisbane on 8 May 1909. Norths played against Souths before a handful of spectators at Brisbane Cricket Ground.[1] Matches were played under the auspices of the Queensland Amateur Rugby Football League (later renamed Queensland Rugby League). The foundation clubs were:

Schism: establishment of the Brisbane Rugby League

In 1922 the Brisbane Rugby Football League (Brisbane Rugby Football League, later Brisbane Rugby League) was formed out of dissatisfaction with the way the Queensland Rugby League ran the game. Those involved took particular exception to the salary being earned by Harry Sunderland as secretary of the Queensland Rugby League. The Brisbane Rugby League took control of the local competition. Competing in the Brisbane Rugby League competition that year were Brothers, Carltons, Coorparoo, University, Valley and Past Grammars. Although the Queensland Rugby League attempted to regain control of the Brisbane Rugby League competition in 1923 and 1924, the Brisbane Rugby League remained steadfast and the dispute simmered into the next decade. so dire did the situation become, that by the late 1920s, the Queensland Rugby League commenced its own competition involving Ipswich clubs and two supporting Brisbane clubs.

Until 1932 Brisbane Exhibition Ground was the home of rugby league in the city. The complicated arrangement between the Brisbane Rugby League, Queensland Rugby League and Royal National Association (who administered the Exhibition Ground) led to Brisbane Cricket Ground being used for rugby league matches.

In 1933 district football was introduced to provide community support and player equalisation. This meant that players had to live within a certain distance of their club. Accordingly, Brisbane was divided into Eastern Suburbs (incorporating Coorparoo and Wynnum), Southern Suburbs (incorporating Carltons), Western Suburbs, Northern Suburbs (incorporating Past Grammars), Fortitude Valley and Past Brothers (whose players had to prove that they had attended a Christian Brothers school). In 1934, the University Amateur Rugby League Club folded and disappeared from the competition.

In 1953 the friction between the Queensland Rugby League and Brisbane Rugby League ended, with the Brisbane Rugby League being replaced by the Brisbane division of the Queensland Rugby League.[2] Former Brisbane Rugby League chairman and Queensland Rugby League secretary Ron McAullife eventually secured the use of Lang Park as a permanent home for rugby league in Queensland. Teams that joined the Brisbane Rugby League competition around this time were South Coast (1952–1953), Wynnum-Manly (1951) and Redcliffe (1960).

A record crowd at Lang Park of 19,824 saw Northern Suburbs defeat Fortitude Valley in the Brisbane Rugby League grand final in September 1961.[3]

Decline

In 1967 the Queensland Rugby League removed the residential qualifications for players in Brisbane Rugby League clubs, meaning that players did not have to reside in their certain suburbs to play for their teams. This reduced community support for teams, and club decisions began to be made on a more commercial basis.

This coincided with the commencement of television broadcasts of Brisbane Rugby League games in the same year. The money made from jersey sponsorships and advertising hoardings at grounds was not able to compete with poker machine money available to Sydney Rugby League clubs in the Sydney Rugby League, and an increasing number of players left the Brisbane Rugby League. This also affected the popularity of the Bulimba Cup which had been held between the cities of Brisbane, Ipswich and Toowoomba since the 1930s.

The effect of television coverage on attendances became pronounced by the mid-1970s and crowds began to desert the Brisbane Rugby League competition. Clubs found themselves in financial hardship, and the public began to support the Sydney Rugby League which by then was being broadcast in Queensland. In 1978 the premiership trophy, the Kirks Cup was replaced by the Winfield Cup.

The Queensland Rugby League commissioned Eric White Associates to investigate the administrative structure of the game in Queensland in 1977. One of the recommendations was the creation of a statewide competition. The Winfield State League was created in 1982. The State League competition ran in parallel to the Brisbane Rugby League competition from 1982 to 1995. Also, like with Sydney's competition, Brisbane's competition was also called the Winfield Cup during the 1980s, due to sponsorship from Winfield cigarettes. The Queensland Cup would eventually replace both the State league and the Brisbane Rugby League premiership in 1998.

In the 1980s, two further teams were added to the Brisbane Rugby League competition: Ipswich (1986) and Logan (1987).

In 1986 the New South Wales Rugby League decided to allow a team from Brisbane to enter the Sydney Rugby League premiership. The Brisbane Broncos debuted in the Sydney Rugby League premiership in 1988. As the Broncos began to represent Brisbane at rugby league in the public eye the Brisbane Rugby League competition entered the terminal phase of its decline. Indeed, 1987, the year before the Broncos commenced playing, was the last year that a Brisbane Rugby League player would be selected to play for Queensland in the State of Origin series.

The Brisbane Rugby League premiership was fully superseded by the Queensland Cup competition in 1998. Redcliffe won the last Brisbane Rugby League Grand Final in 1997 defeating Easts 35–6.

Rebirth

On September 26, 2014, the South East Queensland Division announced that they will be scrapping the existing FOGS Cup structure and reforming the Brisbane Rugby League as the state's secondary competition.[4]

Teams

Club First Year Last Year Seasons
Premiers Runners-Up Minor Premiers
Eastern Suburbs 1917 1997 8 16
Fortitude Valley 1909 1995 17 14
Ipswich Jets 1986 1997 0 2
Logan Scorpions 1987 1997 0 0
Northern Suburbs 1920 1997 13 9
Brothers Old Boys 1917, 1920 1918, 1929 1 4
Past Brothers 1930 1997 9 10
Redcliffe Dolphins 1947 1997 4 6
Southern Suburbs 1919 1997 8 8
University of Queensland 1920 1929 2 0
University Amateur RLFC 1930 1934 0 0
Western Suburbs 1915 1997 10 8
Wynnum-Manly 1951 1997 4 1

The Brisbane Rugby League was also represented by a representative side whose players were selected from Brisbane Rugby League clubs' first grade teams.

Grand Final results

Queensland Rugby League premiership (1909–1921)

Season Grand Final Information Minor Premiers
Premiers Score Second
1909 Fortitude Valley 22–4 South Brisbane
1910 Ipswich 17–2 Toombul
1911 Valley-Toombul 13–2 Ipswich B
1912 Natives 10–0 South Brisbane
1913 West End 5–3 Natives
1914 Fortitude Valley 18–8 West End
1915 Fortitude Valley 10–9 Wests
1916 Wests 4–2 Fortitude Valley
1917 Fortitude Valley 13–5 Merthyrs
1918 Fortitude Valley 16–12 Merthyrs
1919 Fortitude Valley 28–2 Cooparoo
1920 Wests Panthers 16–8 Christian Brothers
1921 Carltons 12–10 Cooparoo

Brisbane Rugby League premiership (1922–1997)

Season Grand Final Information Second Grade Third Grade
Premiers Score Runners-Up
1922 Wests* 20–9 Coorparoo Coorparoo Carltons
1923 Coorparoo 13–2 Fortitude Valley Grammar Wests
1924 Fortitude Valley 11–8 Christian Brothers Carltons* Fortitude Valley
1925 Carltons 24–5 Cooparoo Coorparoo Norths
1926 Christian Brothers 6–5 Cooparoo Wests* Fortitude Valley*
1927 Past Grammars 13–11 Wests Grammars Coorparoo
1928 University 10–7 Carltons Christian Brothers Wests
1929 University 12–11 Coorparoo Carltons Coorparoo*
1930 Carltons 19–8 Fortitude Valley Coorparoo Wests*
1931 Fortitude Valley 27–9 Past Grammars Carltons* Wests*
1932 Wests 8–7 Past Grammars Carltons Fortitude Valley
1933 Fortitude Valley 9–3 Wests Wests* Wests
1934 Norths 7–4 Wests Wests* Wests
1935 Past Brothers 11–9 Fortitude Valley Fortitude Valley Past Brothers
1936 Wests 13–12 Fortitude Valley Fortitude Valley Fortitude Valley
1937 Fortitude Valley 9–7 Wests Norths Fortitude Valley
1938 Norths 16–10 Fortitude Valley Norths Fortitude Valley
1939 Past Brothers 11–9 Norths Souths Norths
1940 Norths 17–11 Past Brothers Easts Fortitude Valley
1941 Fortitude Valley 13–7 Norths Fortitude Valley Souths
1942 Past Brothers 20–11 Souths Railway Souths
1943 Past Brothers 13–7 Fortitude Valley Fortitude Valley Souths
1944 Fortitude Valley 16–12 Norths Fortitude Valley Souths
1945 Souths 21–11 Norths Souths Souths
1946 Fortitude Valley 5–2 Easts Souths Easts
1947 Easts 15–2 Souths Wests Past Brothers
1948 Wests 14–8 Easts Fortitude Valley Souths
1949 Souths 22–8 Easts Easts Easts
1950 Easts 14–10 Wests Norths Wests
1951 Souths 20–10 Easts Norths Wests
1952 Wests 15–14 Past Brothers Norths Norths
1953 Souths 21–4 Easts Norths Past Brothers
1954 Wests 35–18 Past Brothers Fortitude Valley Norths
1955 Fortitude Valley* 17–7 Past Brothers Past Brothers Wests
1956 Past Brothers 17–10 Wests Norths Fortitude Valley
1957 Fortitude Valley 18–17 Past Brothers Wests Fortitude Valley
1958 Past Brothers 22–7 Fortitude Valley Fortitude Valley Fortitude Valley
1959 Norths 24–18 Past Brothers Redcliffe Wests
1960 Norths 18–5 Fortitude Valley Easts Fortitude Valley
1961 Norths 29–5 Fortitude Valley Souths Fortitude Valley
1962 Norths 22–0 Fortitude Valley Redclifffe Fortitude Valley
1963 Norths 18–8 Souths Norths Fortitude Valley
1964 Norths 13–4 Past Brothers Norths Wests
1965 Redcliffe 15–2 Fortitude Valley Wests Easts
1966 Norths 9–6 Past Brothers Redcliffe Norths
1967 Past Brothers 6–2 Norths Norths Norths
1968 Past Brothers 21–4 Easts Norths Norths
1969 Norths 14–2 Fortitude Valley Norths Fortitude Valley
1970 Fortitude Valley 13–11 Norths Easts Fortitude Valley
1971 Fortitude Valley 18–10 Easts Norths Norths*
1972 Easts 16–15 Fortitude Valley Norths Wynnum-Manly
1973 Fortitude Valley 15–7 Redcliffe Past Brothers Norths*
1974 Fortitude Valley 9–2 Past Brothers Easts Fortitude Valley
1975 Wests 26–24 Redcliffe Wynnum-Manly Wynnum-Manly
1976 Wests 16–1 Easts Wests Wynnum-Manly
1977 Easts 17–13 Redcliffe Easts Wests
1978 Easts 14–10 Fortitude Valley Redcliffe Easts
1979 Fortitude Valley 26–0 Souths Past Brothers Wynnum-Manly
1980 Norths 17–15 Souths Souths Souths
1981 Souths 13–9 Redcliffe Redcliffe Redcliffe
1982 Wynnum-Manly 17–3 Souths Redcliffe Souths
1983 Easts 14–6 Redcliffe Souths Easts
1984 Wynnum-Manly 42–8 Souths Souths Redcliffe
1985 Souths 10–8 Wynnum-Manly Past Brothers Souths
1986 Wynnum-Manly 14–6 Past Brothers
1987 Past Brothers 26–8 Redcliffe
1988 Tweed-Vallys 17–14 Ipswich Jets
1989 Fortitude Valley 28–4 Ipswich Jets
1990 Fortitude Valley 17–16 Norths
1991 Easts 25–10 Wests
1992 Wests 40–10 Easts
1993 Wests 18–12 Easts
1994 Redcliffe 24–18 Wests
1995 Wynnum-Manly 32–24 Easts
1996 Redcliffe 16–12 Souths
1997 Redcliffe 35–6 Easts Redcliffe Redcliffe
  • * = undefeated

Quotes

  • "Well that is a tragedy, to be honest with you. There's no club identity at all now. If you don't follow the Broncos well who do you follow? That means you've got to follow a New South Wales side. I think I'm sure that's what McAuliffe didn't want to happen. But when they brought in the Queensland side into the NSWRL that was the end of the Brisbane Rugby League, as far as that was concerned. It should never have happened because as it turned out, if we did lose players from Queensland to go to New South Wales we had the State of Origin. We've been winning the State of Origin, and you can imagine if we were keeping our players, the club competition would be just as good as what it was when I was playing. But that is a tragedy as far as I'm concerned is that the people miss that club identity." -Barry Muir, in 2001, on the decline of the Brisbane Rugby League and the rise of the New South Wales Rugby League premiership.
  • "Yeah well the crowd was great, they supported you wholeheartedly, they came along but it wasn't only down here on the football field it was on the streets up there. People would come up and talk to you, they'd stop you in the street and get your autograph and have a talk to you and wish you all the best and really support you in what you were doing and lifting the Club. There was four or five players here that were top-line footballers and we used to go up on the terrace and sell raffles in front of McCarthy's Jewellers store on the terrace and we'd do an hour there and then pop down to the Manly Hotel and do an hour there and then we'd pop down to Fishers (pub) and do an hour there. The players were prepared to do it because they were getting the support from this area and they would give it back on the playing field and however they could meet the people on the streets. I don't think anyone turned away from you, it was just one big happy family. We used to have like a barbecue after the game and there'd be 100 or 200 people that would turn up for the barbecue, we had it at various areas." -Lionel Morgan, in 2001, on the support of the Brisbane Rugby League in the Wynnum-Manly district.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Pramberg, Bernie (2009-05-02). "Leo Donovan special guest at Brisbane Rugby League celebrations". The Courier-Mail. Australia: Queensland Newspapers. Retrieved 2010-04-29.
  2. ↑ Gallaway, Jack (2003). Origin: Rugby League's greatest contest 1980–2002. Australia: University of Queensland Press. pp. 3–4. ISBN 978-0-7022-3383-8.
  3. ↑ "Norths thrash Valleys 29–5". The Sun-Herald. Australia. 1961-09-24. Retrieved 2010-04-22.
  4. ↑ "Brisbane Rugby League rebirth". Queensland Rugby League. Australia. 2014-09-26. Retrieved 2014-09-26.
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