New South Wales Rugby League season 1985
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| New South Wales Rugby League season 1985 | |
 |
|
| Teams | 13 |
| Premiers |  Canterbury-Bankstown (5th title) |
| Minor premiers |  St. George (15th title) |
| Matches played | 163 |
| Points scored | 5416 (average 33.227 per match) |
| Attendance | 1,450,162 (average 8,897 per match) |
| Top points scorer(s) |  Mick Cronin (204 points) |
| Top try scorer(s) | Steve Linnane (17 tries) |
The 1985 New South Wales Rugby League premiership was the seventy-eighth season of professional rugby league football in Australia. The lineup of clubs remained unchanged from the previous year, with thirteen contesting during the season for the Winfield Cup, including five Sydney-based foundation teams, another six from Sydney, one from greater New South Wales and one from the Australian Capital Territory. During the season NSWRL teams also competed for the 1985 National Panasonic Cup.
Contents |
[edit] Teams
 Balmain Tigers |
 Canberra Raiders |
 Canterbury Bulldogs |
 Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks |
 Eastern Suburbs Roosters |
 Illawarra Steelers |
 Manly Sea Eagles |
 North Sydney Bears |
 Parramatta Eels |
 Penrith Panthers |
 South Sydney Rabbitohs |
 St. George Dragons |
 Western Suburbs Magpies |
[edit] Ladder
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | B | PF | PA | PD | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | St. George |
24 | 18 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 470 | 264 | +206 | 42 |
| 2 |  Balmain |
24 | 18 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 494 | 304 | +190 | 40 |
| 3 | Canterbury-Bankstown |
24 | 16 | 2 | 6 | 2 | 435 | 267 | +168 | 38 |
| 4 | Parramatta |
24 | 16 | 0 | 8 | 2 | 458 | 311 | +147 | 36 |
| 5 |  Penrith |
24 | 13 | 1 | 10 | 2 | 460 | 379 | +81 | 31 |
| 6 |  Manly-Warringah |
24 | 13 | 1 | 10 | 2 | 404 | 345 | +59 | 31 |
| 7 |  Eastern Suburbs |
24 | 10 | 3 | 11 | 2 | 374 | 389 | -15 | 27 |
| 8 |  Cronulla-Sutherland |
24 | 11 | 0 | 13 | 2 | 440 | 404 | +36 | 26 |
| 9 |  South Sydney |
24 | 10 | 0 | 14 | 2 | 373 | 419 | -46 | 24 |
| 10 |  Canberra |
24 | 8 | 2 | 14 | 2 | 432 | 534 | -102 | 22 |
| 11 |  North Sydney |
24 | 6 | 1 | 17 | 2 | 281 | 491 | -210 | 17 |
| 12 |  Western Suburbs |
24 | 5 | 2 | 17 | 2 | 311 | 661 | -350 | 16 |
| 13 |  Illawarra |
24 | 5 | 0 | 19 | 2 | 303 | 467 | -164 | 14 |
[edit] Finals
| Home | Score | Away | Match Information | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date and Time | Venue | Referee | Crowd | |||||
| Playoff | ||||||||
 Penrith Panthers |
10 - 7 |  Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles |
3 September 1985 | Sydney Cricket Ground | Mick Stone | 16,428 | ||
| Qualifying Finals | ||||||||
 Parramatta Eels |
38 - 6 | Penrith Panthers |
7 September 1985 | Sydney Cricket Ground | Kevin Roberts | 18,939 | ||
 Balmain Tigers |
8 - 14 |  Canterbury-Bankstown |
8 September 1985 | Sydney Cricket Ground | Mick Stone | 25,194 | ||
| Semi Finals | ||||||||
| Balmain Tigers |
4 - 32 | Parramatta Eels |
14 September 1985 | Sydney Cricket Ground | Kevin Roberts | 25,423 | ||
 St. George Dragons |
17 - 6 | Canterbury-Bankstown |
15 September 1985 | Sydney Cricket Ground | Mick Stone | 39,013 | ||
| Preliminary Final | ||||||||
| Canterbury-Bankstown |
26 - 0 | Parramatta Eels |
22 September 1985 | Sydney Cricket Ground | Kevin Roberts | 34,915 | ||
| Grand Final | ||||||||
| St. George Dragons |
6 - 7 | Canterbury-Bankstown |
29 September 1985 | Sydney Cricket Ground | Kevin Roberts | 44,569 | ||
[edit] Grand Final
| St. George | Position | Canterbury-Bankstown |
|---|---|---|
| Glen Burgess | FB | Michael Potter |
| Steve Morris | WG | Matthew Callinan |
| Michael O'Connor | CE | Chris Mortimer |
| Michael Beattie | CE | Andrew Farrar |
| Denis Kinchela | WG | Peter Mortimer |
| Steve Linnane | FE | Michael Hagan |
| Perry Haddock | HB | Steve Mortimer (c) |
| Pat Jarvis | PR | Peter Kelly |
| Billy Noke | HK | Billy Johnstone |
| Craig Young (c) | PR | Peter Tunks |
| Graeme Wynn | SR | Brian Battese |
| Phil Ritchie | SR | Steve Folkes |
| Graeme O'Grady | LK | Paul Langmack |
| Chris Guider | Reserve | Greg Mullane |
| Stephen Funnell | Reserve | David Gillespie |
| Chris Johns | Reserve | Mark Bugden |
| Alan Neil | Reserve | |
| Roy Masters | Coach | Warren Ryan |
Canterbury continually put St George fullback Burgess under the test of the high-ball in his in-goal area, which, under the rules of the time, resulted in a line drop-out with the Bulldogs regaining possession. Prop Peter Kelly used the blindside to send winger Peter Mortimer over out wide for a 6-0 half time lead.
Bulldogs half and skipper Steve Mortimer seized control of the match and centre Andrew Farrar clinched it with a field goal in the 72nd minute to take the score to 7-0. A last light of hope appeared for the Dragons when Steve Morris scored and Michael O'Connor converted with five minutes left on the clock. In the end a practised and clinical approach from Canterbury shut out the Dragons who had been the minor premiers.
No Grand Final since has been decided by a single point.
Canterbury-Bankstown 7 (Tries: Peter Mortimer. Goal: Farrar. Field Goal: Farrar.)
St. George 6 (Tries: Morris. Goal: O'Connor.)
[edit] References
- Rugby League Tables - Season 1985 The World of Rugby League
