National Rugby League season 2007
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| National Rugby League season 2007 | |
 |
|
| Teams | 16 |
| Premiers |  Melbourne (2nd title) |
| Minor premiers | Melbourne (2nd title) |
| Matches played | 201 |
| Points scored | 8539 (average 42.483 per match) |
| Attendance | 3,331,994 (average 16,577 per match) |
| Top points scorer(s) |  Hazem El Masri (210 points) |
| Top try scorer(s) |  Matthew Bowen (22 tries) Israel Falou (22 tries) |
The 2007 National Rugby League premiership was the one hundredth season of professional rugby league football club competition in Australia, and the tenth run by the National Rugby League. Sixteen teams contested the 2007 Telstra Premiership, and with the inclusion of a new team, the Gold Coast Titans, the competition was the largest run since 1999.
The Melbourne Storm were the Minor Premiers in 2007, six points clear of second-placed Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles. The Storm eventually ran out 34-8 winners in the Grand Final, and were crowned champions for season 2007.
Contents |
[edit] Season summary
[edit] Schedule
The 2007 NRL Season kicked off on Friday 16 March 2007 with eight games to be played in each round. The 2007 season saw the return of Monday night football, with the first clash between the Sydney Roosters and South Sydney Rabbitohs on 19 March 2007. The opening round also saw two matches at Brisbane's Suncorp Stadium, one featured reigning champions Brisbane playing fellow Queensland side the Cowboys, while the second match introduced the newest club to be admitted to the competition, the Gold Coast Titans. The finals series was contested over a period of four weeks, culminating with the NRL Grand Final being held on Sunday 30 September 2007.
Teams had fewer byes in 2007 than in the 2006 competition. With an odd number of teams contesting between 2002 and 2006, the draw meant that at least one team would have to have a bye each weekend. With the inclusion of the 16th team for the 2007 season, the National Rugby League had the option of reverting back to the system used between 2000 and 2001 in which every team played in each round, however this option was not chosen. In 2007, teams had just a single bye during the year, grouped in periods that will assist clubs around representative fixtures.
[edit] Participants
Of the sixteen teams that participated in the regular season, ten teams were from New South Wales (nine from Sydney's metropolitan area), three from Queensland and one from each of Victoria, the ACT and New Zealand.
 Brisbane Broncos |
 Canberra Raiders |
 Canterbury Bulldogs |
 Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks |
 Gold Coast Titans |
 Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles |
 Melbourne Storm |
 Newcastle Knights |
 New Zealand Warriors |
 North Queensland Cowboys |
 Parramatta Eels |
 Penrith Panthers |
 South Sydney Rabbitohs |
 Sydney Roosters |
 St. George Illawarra Dragons |
 Wests Tigers |
Just two foundation clubs from New South Wales Rugby League season 1908 played in this, the 100th season of the competition: the Sydney Roosters (formerly known as Eastern Suburbs) and the South Sydney Rabbitohs. Of these two clubs, only the Sydney Roosters played their 100th full season, as the South Sydney Rabbitohs were in recess during 2000 and 2001. It should also be noted that two foundation clubs, the Balmain Tigers and the Western Suburbs Magpies, had played in every year since 1908, but the two sides merged to create the Wests Tigers who competed every year since the merger in 2000.
The top eight was not settled until the final round as the Brisbane Broncos and Wests Tigers were both on 24 points in 8th and 9th position respectively, with the Broncos ahead on points differential. Both teams lost their final regular season match and as a result of this, the South Sydney Rabbitohs made the top eight for the first time since 1989. The New Zealand Warriors secured a home final: the second match in the history of the National Rugby League Finals played outside of Australia. The first was the Warriors 2002 victory over the Canberra Raiders at Mt Smart Stadium.
On the other end of the ladder, the Newcastle Knights and Penrith Panthers were both in contention for the Wooden Spoon - the traditional label for last place. The Knights performed well in their last match and denied the Wests Tigers a spot in the top eight, winning by two points, whereas the Panthers were defeated by the New Zealand Warriors, seeing them finish last.
[edit] Ladder
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | B | PF | PA | PD | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Melbourne |
24 | 21 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 627 | 277 | +350 | 44 |
| 2 |  Manly |
24 | 18 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 597 | 377 | +220 | 38 |
| 3 | North Queensland |
24 | 15 | 0 | 9 | 1 | 547 | 618 | -71 | 32 |
| 4 |  New Zealand |
24 | 13 | 1 | 10 | 1 | 593 | 434 | +159 | 29 |
| 5 |  Parramatta |
24 | 13 | 0 | 11 | 1 | 573 | 481 | +92 | 28 |
| 6 | Canterbury |
24 | 12 | 0 | 12 | 1 | 575 | 528 | +47 | 26 |
| 7 |  South Sydney |
24 | 12 | 0 | 12 | 1 | 408 | 399 | +9 | 26 |
| 8 |  Brisbane |
24 | 11 | 0 | 13 | 1 | 511 | 476 | +35 | 24 |
| 9 |  Wests Tigers |
24 | 11 | 0 | 13 | 1 | 541 | 561 | -20 | 24 |
| 10 |  Sydney |
24 | 10 | 1 | 13 | 1 | 445 | 610 | -165 | 23 |
| 11 |  Cronulla |
24 | 10 | 0 | 14 | 1 | 463 | 403 | +60 | 22 |
| 12 |  Gold Coast |
24 | 10 | 0 | 14 | 1 | 409 | 559 | -150 | 22 |
| 13 |  St. George Illawarra |
24 | 9 | 0 | 15 | 1 | 431 | 509 | -78 | 20 |
| 14 |  Canberra |
24 | 9 | 0 | 15 | 1 | 522 | 650 | -128 | 20 |
| 15 |  Newcastle |
24 | 9 | 0 | 15 | 1 | 418 | 708 | -290 | 20 |
| 16 |  Penrith |
24 | 8 | 0 | 16 | 1 | 539 | 607 | -68 | 18 |
[edit] Finals Series
[edit] Grand Final
The 2007 NRL Grand Final was played between minor premiers Melbourne Storm and second placed Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles at Telstra Stadium on September 30, in front of 81,392 spectators. It was the fourth NRL Grand Final played between the Minor Premiers and second place, and the first since the 2004 Grand Final. The pre-match entertainment included performances from Hoodoo Gurus and Shannon Noll. Player, coach and commentator Frank Hyde was honoured during the half-time break with a video-tribute as well as a minute's silence prior to the Premier League Grand Final.[1]
The Storm crossed early in the first half with a try to centre Anthony Quinn via a slick back-line movement that involved 3 decoy runners to lead 6–0. Another set play midway through the first half saw the Storm extend the scoreline to 10–0 with a barging try to five-eighth Greg Inglis. Seconds before halftime, Manly centre Steve Matai crossed in the corner to take the deficit back to six points. The half-time score read 10-4 to the Storm, with many surprised at how the scoreline was so close considering Melbourne's dominance.
The second half started with major controversy after Manly fullback Brett Stewart was knocked unconscious by a massive hit from Storm players Michael Crocker and Billy Slater attempting to catch a bomb. He did not return to the field. Straight after this, the Storm extended their lead to 14–4 with a try to Crocker. Two quick tries soon after by Storm players Matt King and Inglis took the score out to 22–4 and the game looked set for a Storm victory. King barged over with a trademark Storm decoy play, while Inglis scored the try of the match with a vintage long range 60m run and powerful fend to post his second.
Manly soon pegged the score back to 22–8 with a nice try to winger Chris Hicks but it seemed too little too late for the Sea-Eagles. Melbourne then scored two late tries to second-rower Clint Newton and another for Anthony Quinn to finally take the scoreline to 34–8. Storm captain Cameron Smith had a horror night with the boot, kicking 3 from 8, but this had no bearing on the final outcome.
Inglis was awarded the Clive Churchill Medal for best on field. It was the second ever premiership for the Storm and erased the heartache of losing the 2006 NRL Grand Final to the Brisbane Broncos. It was coach Craig Bellamy's first premiership title, and capped a remarkable season for the Storm, who lost only 3 matches and achieved their most successful season since their foundation. The 34–8 Grand Final score was the second highest grand final margin in Australian rugby league history.
This match was also the most-watched television program on Australian TV for 2007.
Melbourne 34 (Tries: Anthony Quinn 2, Greg Inglis 2, Michael Crocker, Matt King, Clint Newton. Conversions: Cameron Smith 3/7. Penalty Goals: Cameron Smith 0/1.)
Manly 8 (Tries: Steve Matai, Chris Hicks. Conversions: Matt Orford 0/2.)
[edit] Season advertising
The National Rugby League kept use of the Hoodoo Gurus' "That's My Team" for a fifth consecutive season, with they and their advertising agency MJW Hakuhodo continuing the use of the reworked track "What's My Scene" and the "That's My Dream" slogan. With a design change for the Telstra Premiership logo (after months of off-season deliberation on whether Telstra would sponsor the code again), the commercial was a fast-paced action clip, with key players from all teams superimposed to appear as if they are playing in front the famous landmarks of their team's area. They are as follows:
- Brisbane Broncos - Darren Lockyer in front of the Story Bridge.
- Bulldogs - Andrew Ryan and Luke Patten in Sydney Olympic Park.
- Canberra Raiders - Phil Graham in front of Parliament House.
- Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks - on the steps of North Cronulla Beach.
- Gold Coast Titans - Luke Bailey taking a hit-up on Surfers Paradise' Beach.
- Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles - on the Manly Beach Boulevarde.
- Melbourne Storm - running across Federation Square.
- Newcastle Knights - Danny Buderus scoring a try on the Newcastle Waterfront.
- North Queensland Cowboys - streets of Townsville.
- New Zealand Warriors - Steve Price in front of the city skyline of Auckland.
- Parramatta Eels - Eric Grothe, Jr. running down Church Street.
- Penrith Panthers - players on Mulgoa Road.
- St George Illawarra Dragons - Mark Gasnier running along the Seacliff Drive.
- South Sydney Rabbitohs - Roy Asotasi taking a hitup in the Sydney Harbour Tunnel.
- Sydney Roosters - players in front of the pavillion at Bondi Beach.
- Wests Tigers - Robbie Farah in Sydney Olympic Park.
As with previous seasons, all team captains featured prominently in the ads, holding aloft the premiership trophy as the advertisement closes, replicating the 2006 equivalent. Ironically only weeks after it was put to air, Newcastle Knights captain Andrew Johns' career was ended by a neck injury.
[edit] Sponsorship
Telecommunications giant Telstra once again hold the naming rights to the premiership season and for the seventh season the competition will be known as the "Telstra Premiership". For the second time however, a change has been made to the Telstra Premiership Logo, to coincide with the tel-co's own new logo. The logo is now much more similar to the original NRL logo in style.
Spirit producers Bundaberg Rum are sponsoring Monday night football - to be known as Bundaberg Monday Night Football. Electronics wholesaler Harvey Norman is expected to continue their support of the State of Origin Series, as is AAMI and their association with City vs Country Origin.
[edit] Dally M Awards
The Dally M Awards were introduced in 1980 by News Limited. The most prestigious of these awards is the Dally M Medal which is awarded to the Player Of The Year. The other prestigious award is the Provans Summons Medal which is the seasons best player as voted by the public. As well as honouring the player of the year the awards night also recognises the premier player in each position, the best coach, the best captain, representative player of the year and the most outstanding rookie of the season. The awards night and Player of the Year medal are named in honour of former Australian rugby league great Herbert Henry "Dally" Messenger. The top try-scorer and top point-scorer tallies are made at the end of the last round of the regular season and hence may be different to the overall top-scorers by the end of the finals.
| Award | Player | Club |
|---|---|---|
| Dally M Medal | Johnathan Thurston | North Queensland Cowboys |
| Provan-Summons Medal | Nathan Hindmarsh | Parramatta Eels |
| Rookie of the Year | Israel Folau | Melbourne Storm |
| Captain of the Year | Steve Price | New Zealand Warriors |
| Rep Player of the Year | Cameron Smith | Melbourne Storm |
| Coach of the Year | Craig Bellamy | Melbourne Storm |
| Top Tryscorer of the Year | Israel Folau Matt Bowen |
Melbourne Storm North Queensland Cowboys |
| Top Pointscorer of the Year | Hazem El Masri | Canterbury Bulldogs |
Team of the Year
| Award | Player | Club |
|---|---|---|
| Best Fullback | Matthew Bowen | North Queensland Cowboys |
| Best Winger | Jarryd Hayne | Parramatta Eels |
| Best Centre | Justin Hodges | Brisbane Broncos |
| Best Five-Eighth | Darren Lockyer | Brisbane Broncos |
| Best Halfback | Jonathan Thurston | North Queensland Cowboys |
| Best Lock | Dallas Johnson | Melbourne Storm |
| Best Second-Rower | Anthony Watmough | Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles |
| Best Prop | Steve Price | New Zealand Warriors |
| Best Hooker | Robbie Farah | Wests Tigers |
[edit] Footnotes
[edit] See also
- National Rugby League
- 2007 Rugby League State of Origin series
- 2007 Australian football code crowds
- 2007 NRL Finals Series
[edit] External links
- NRL official website
- Rugby League Tables and Statistics 2007
- Rugby League at FOXSPORTS.com.au
- Sports Australia League
- ABC 2007 NRL season
- LeagueUnlimited
