NRL State Championship

NRL State Championship

Sport	Rugby league
Instituted	2014
Inaugural season	2014
Countries	Australia  New Zealand  Papua New Guinea
Premiers	Canterbury Bankstown Bulldogs New South Wales Cup (2018)
Most titles	Northern Qld Pride Queensland Cup Ipswich Jets Queensland Cup Illawarra Cutters New South Wales Cup Penrith Panthers New South Wales Cup Canterbury Bankstown Bulldogs New South Wales Cup (1 title)
Website	www.NRL.com
Broadcast partner	Nine Network (Australia) Fox League (Australia) Sky Sport (New Zealand) ABC Grandstand (Australia)
Related competition	Intrust Super Cup QLD Intrust Super Premiership NSW National Rugby League

The National Rugby League State Championship is a rugby league game contested between the winners of the New South Wales Cup and the Queensland Cup and is organised by the NRL. It was introduced for the 2014 NRL season and was played immediately before the 2014 NRL Grand Final at Stadium Australia.

History

The origins of the NRL State Championship can be traced back to an idea from the Queensland media during the 1984 Brisbane Rugby League season when two of the greatest club sides Australia has ever seen had agreed to play a one-off match. Those were the days when the competitions of the Sydney Rugby League premiership and the Brisbane Rugby League premiership operated independently of each other with the only exception being State of Origin time, when players crossed paths. While the New South Wales media's general consensus was always that Sydney-based NSWRL was the premier and stronger of the two major rugby league competition, all seemed to be set for the one-off match before the NSWRL hierarchy stepped in and put a stop to the proposed match.

The 1984 Brisbane Rugby League Wynnum-Manly Seagulls team was unquestionably Queensland's best, the team defeated a Southern Suburbs Districts Magpies side coached by Wayne Bennett and boasting names such as Gary Belcher, Mal Meninga, Peter Jackson, Bob Lindner in the 1984 Brisbane Rugby League Grand Final by a record 42–8 scoreline. Many supporters north of the border believe they were also better than the 1984 Sydney Rugby League champion team the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs. The Brisbane media were so confident about the strength of this super Wynnum side that they suggested a challenge match between the Seagulls and the Sydney Premiers Canterbury Bankstown.

It was an idea liked by the QRL, but if the suggestion is that the NSWRL were the roadblock, Canterbury prop Peter Tunks said the Bulldogs players and officials were just as keen to make the game happen as their northern rivals. "There was talk in the media about it and we were keen to play it because they obviously had a pretty good side with Wally, Gene Miles, Greg Dowling but we loved playing anybody back in those days", Tunks said. "We knew that it was a decent comp in Brisbane but we obviously didn't think it was as strong as the Sydney comp because this was the be-all and end-all. At Canterbury, we really loved a challenge and we would have loved the opportunity of going up against a team full of great players like they had. It's like anything, to be the best you have to beat the best and that was our attitude but unfortunately it didn't come off. I don't know where we were supposed to play but it would have been good fun."^[1][2]

The NRL State Championship is marketed as "The best New South Wales club verses the best Queensland club". However, in both the New South Wales and Queensland Cups there are clubs based outside there respective states:

• New Zealand Warriors based in Auckland, Auckland Region, New Zealand (NSW Cup)
• Papua New Guinea Hunters based in Port Moresby, Central Province, Papua New Guinea (QLD Cup)
• Tweed Heads Seagulls based in Tweed Heads, New South Wales, Australia (QLD Cup)

In 2014 the Northern Qld Pride representing the Queensland Cup defeated the Penrith Panthers representing the New South Wales Cup in the first NRL State Championship Grand Final.

Results

From 2014 New South Wales Cup Premiers will play against the Queensland Cup Premiers as a curtain-raiser match on NRL Grand Final day, with the winner to be crowned the NRL State Champions. From 2014 until 2017 the match was played after the NRL National Youth Competition Grand Final and before the NRL Grand Final.^[3][4] From 2018 the match will be played after the NRL Women's Grand Final and before the NRL Men's Grand Final.

Season	Grand Final information					Man-of-the-Match medalist
	Premiers	Score	Runners-up	Venue	Crowd	Player	Club
2014[5]	Northern Pride 2014 QLD Cup Premiers	32-28	Penrith Panthers 2014 NSW Cup Premiers	ANZ Stadium	83,833 (C-R)	Javid Bowen	Northern Pride
2015[6]	Ipswich Jets 2015 QLD Cup Premiers	26-12	Newcastle Knights 2015 NSW Cup Premiers	ANZ Stadium	82,758 (C-R)	Matt Parcell	Ipswich Jets
2016[6]	Illawarra Cutters 2016 NSW Cup Premiers	54–12	Burleigh Bears 2016 QLD Cup Premiers	ANZ Stadium	83,625 (C-R)	Drew Hutchison	Illawarra Cutters
2017[6]	Penrith Panthers 2017 NSW Cup Premiers	42-18	PNG Hunters 2017 QLD Cup Premiers	ANZ Stadium	79,722 (C-R)	Kaide Ellis	Penrith Panthers
2018[6]	Canterbury Bulldogs 2018 NSW Cup Premiers	42-18	Redcliffe Dolphins 2018 QLD Cup Premiers	ANZ Stadium	82,688 (C-R)	Josh Cleeland	Canterbury Bankstown Bulldogs

Champions

• 2014 Northern Queensland Pride
• 2015 Ipswich Jets
• 2016 Illawarra Cutters
• 2017 Penrith Panthers
• 2018 Canterbury Bulldogs

Live media coverage

Live television coverage is broadcast by Australia's Fox Sports and Nine Network (including Nine's regional affiliates NBN Television, WIN Television and Imparja Television until 2015 and mid 2016)^[7] while live radio coverage is broadcast by Australia's ABC Grandstand around Australia via both the ABC Radio Mobile App (Digital Radio Stadion) and their network of FM and AM Local Radio Stations.^[8]

See also

References