New South Wales Rugby Football League season 1957
Encyclopedia
1957's New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership
was the fiftieth season of the rugby league
competition based in Sydney
. Ten teams from across the city competed for the J. J. Giltinan Shield during the season, which culminated in a grand final
between St. George and Manly-Warringah.
Under 27 year-old coach Ken Arthurson, Manly were playing in their second grand final. The match began with Saints pounding the (then called) 'Seagulls' with some heavy tackling. Brian Clay in particular targeted Manly's Rex Mossop, often trapping the dual international forward with the ball. 'Poppa' Clay had a fearsome reputation in defence and at one point in the he knocked the Manly captain George Hunter senseless.
Manly were up to the task in the first half with the score locked at 4-all for 30 minutes. Straight after half time, the flood gates opened following a magnificent run up the centre by second rower Norm Provan. He palmed off Manly defenders, ran deep into their territory, high stepped past fullback Ron Willey and slipped the ball to Poppa Clay who scored under the posts.
A second Dragons try followed within three minutes and the game began to slip away from the Manly side. The Larry Writer reference quotes Manly coach Arthurson: "The sheer physical strength of the St. George team is in itself a formidable thing to overcome. Our fellows tried everything, but St. George had so much more to give. Those big fellows are so clever.".
Harry Bath kicked eight goals from eight attempts establishing a standing record for the most goals in a grand final and the most number of points scored in a grand final (16). His fellow ball playing forward and tactician Ken Kearney had returned for this, the first of five successful seasons as coach (four as captain-coach).
St. George 31 (Tries: Clay 2, Ryan, Fifield, Lumsden. Goals: Bath 8.)
Manly 9 (Tries: Burke. Goals: Willey 3.)
New South Wales Rugby League premiership
The New South Wales Rugby League premiership was the first rugby league football club competition established in Australia. Run by the New South Wales Rugby League from 1908 until 1994, the premiership was the state's and later the country's elite rugby league competition...
was the fiftieth season of the rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
competition based in Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
. Ten teams from across the city competed for the J. J. Giltinan Shield during the season, which culminated in a grand final
Grand Final
Grand Final is a predominantly Australian sport term used to describe a match that decides a league champion.It originated in Victoria and South Australia and has become specifically significant Australian culture...
between St. George and Manly-Warringah.
Teams
 Balmain Tigers The Balmain Tigers are a rugby league football club based in the inner-western Sydney suburb of Balmain. They were a founding member of the New South Wales Rugby League and one of the most successful in the history of the premiership, with eleven titles... |
 |
 Sydney Roosters The Sydney Roosters are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the Eastern Suburbs of Sydney. The club competes in the National Rugby League and is one of the oldest and most successful clubs in Australian rugby league history, having won twelve New South Wales Rugby League... |
 Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles The Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles are an Australian professional rugby league club based on the Northern Beaches of Sydney. They compete in the National Rugby League's Telstra Premiership, the premier rugby league competition of Australasia... |
 Newtown Jets The Newtown Jets are an Australian rugby league football club based in Newtown, a suburb of Sydney's inner west. They currently compete in the NSWRL Premier League competition, having left the top grade after the 1983 NSWRFL season... |
 North Sydney Bears The North Sydney Bears are an Australian rugby league football club based in North Sydney, New South Wales. They currently compete in the New South Wales Cup, having exited the National Rugby League following the 1999 NRL season after 92 years of top-grade competition. The Bears are based on... |
 Parramatta Eels The Parramatta Eels are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the Sydney suburb of Parramatta. The Parramatta District Rugby League Football Club was formed in 1947, with their First Grade side playing their first season in the New South Wales Rugby Football League... |
 South Sydney Rabbitohs The South Sydney Rabbitohs are an Australian professional rugby league football team based in Redfern, a suburb of South-central Sydney, New South Wales. They participate in the National Rugby League premiership and are one of nine existing teams from the state capital... |
 St. George Dragons The St George Dragons was an Australian Rugby league football club in St George, Sydney, New South Wales that played in Australia's top-level Rugby league competition from New South Wales Rugby Football League in 1921 until 1998; in 1999 they formed a joint venture with the Illawarra Steelers,... |
 Western Suburbs Magpies The Western Suburbs Magpies are an Australian rugby league football club based in the western suburbs of Sydney, New South Wales. Formed in 1908, Wests, as they are commonly referred to, were one of the nine foundation clubs of the first New South Wales Rugby League competition in Australia... |
Ladder
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  St. GeorgeSt. George Dragons The St George Dragons was an Australian Rugby league football club in St George, Sydney, New South Wales that played in Australia's top-level Rugby league competition from New South Wales Rugby Football League in 1921 until 1998; in 1999 they formed a joint venture with the Illawarra Steelers,... |
18 | 15 | 0 | 3 | 417 | 232 | 30 |
| 2 | Manly Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles The Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles are an Australian professional rugby league club based on the Northern Beaches of Sydney. They compete in the National Rugby League's Telstra Premiership, the premier rugby league competition of Australasia... |
18 | 11 | 1 | 6 | 282 | 209 | 23 |
| 3 |  South SydneySouth Sydney Rabbitohs The South Sydney Rabbitohs are an Australian professional rugby league football team based in Redfern, a suburb of South-central Sydney, New South Wales. They participate in the National Rugby League premiership and are one of nine existing teams from the state capital... |
18 | 11 | 0 | 7 | 354 | 314 | 22 |
| 4 |  Western SuburbsWestern Suburbs Magpies The Western Suburbs Magpies are an Australian rugby league football club based in the western suburbs of Sydney, New South Wales. Formed in 1908, Wests, as they are commonly referred to, were one of the nine foundation clubs of the first New South Wales Rugby League competition in Australia... |
18 | 10 | 1 | 7 | 358 | 251 | 21 |
| 5 |  North SydneyNorth Sydney Bears The North Sydney Bears are an Australian rugby league football club based in North Sydney, New South Wales. They currently compete in the New South Wales Cup, having exited the National Rugby League following the 1999 NRL season after 92 years of top-grade competition. The Bears are based on... |
18 | 9 | 1 | 8 | 292 | 278 | 19 |
| 6 |  BalmainBalmain Tigers The Balmain Tigers are a rugby league football club based in the inner-western Sydney suburb of Balmain. They were a founding member of the New South Wales Rugby League and one of the most successful in the history of the premiership, with eleven titles... |
18 | 9 | 0 | 9 | 352 | 281 | 18 |
| 7 |  NewtownNewtown Jets The Newtown Jets are an Australian rugby league football club based in Newtown, a suburb of Sydney's inner west. They currently compete in the NSWRL Premier League competition, having left the top grade after the 1983 NSWRFL season... |
18 | 9 | 0 | 9 | 267 | 228 | 18 |
| 8 |  Eastern SuburbsSydney Roosters The Sydney Roosters are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the Eastern Suburbs of Sydney. The club competes in the National Rugby League and is one of the oldest and most successful clubs in Australian rugby league history, having won twelve New South Wales Rugby League... |
18 | 9 | 0 | 9 | 277 | 347 | |
| 18 | ||||||||
| 9 |  CanterburyCanterbury Bulldogs The Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Belmore, a suburb in the Canterbury-Bankstown region of Sydney. They compete in the National Rugby League premiership, as well as New South Wales Rugby League junior competitions... |
18 | 3 | 1 | 14 | 182 | 339 | |
| 7 | ||||||||
| 10 |  ParramattaParramatta Eels The Parramatta Eels are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the Sydney suburb of Parramatta. The Parramatta District Rugby League Football Club was formed in 1947, with their First Grade side playing their first season in the New South Wales Rugby Football League... |
18 | 2 | 0 | 16 | 189 | 491 | |
| 4 | ||||||||
Finals
| Home | Score | Away | Match Information | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date and Time | Venue | Referee | Crowd | |||||
| Semi Finals | ||||||||
| South Sydney South Sydney Rabbitohs The South Sydney Rabbitohs are an Australian professional rugby league football team based in Redfern, a suburb of South-central Sydney, New South Wales. They participate in the National Rugby League premiership and are one of nine existing teams from the state capital... |
26-13 | Western Suburbs Western Suburbs Magpies The Western Suburbs Magpies are an Australian rugby league football club based in the western suburbs of Sydney, New South Wales. Formed in 1908, Wests, as they are commonly referred to, were one of the nine foundation clubs of the first New South Wales Rugby League competition in Australia... |
31 August 1957 | Sydney Cricket Ground Sydney Cricket Ground The Sydney Cricket Ground is a sports stadium in Sydney in Australia. It is used for Australian football, Test cricket, One Day International cricket, some rugby league and rugby union matches and is the home ground for the New South Wales Blues cricket team and the Sydney Swans of the Australian... |
Darcy Lawler | 46,957 | ||
| St. George St. George Dragons The St George Dragons was an Australian Rugby league football club in St George, Sydney, New South Wales that played in Australia's top-level Rugby league competition from New South Wales Rugby Football League in 1921 until 1998; in 1999 they formed a joint venture with the Illawarra Steelers,... |
21-7 | Manly-Warringah Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles The Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles are an Australian professional rugby league club based on the Northern Beaches of Sydney. They compete in the National Rugby League's Telstra Premiership, the premier rugby league competition of Australasia... |
7 September 1957 | Sydney Cricket Ground Sydney Cricket Ground The Sydney Cricket Ground is a sports stadium in Sydney in Australia. It is used for Australian football, Test cricket, One Day International cricket, some rugby league and rugby union matches and is the home ground for the New South Wales Blues cricket team and the Sydney Swans of the Australian... |
Darcy Lawler | 39,845 | ||
| Preliminary Final | ||||||||
| Manly-Warringah Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles The Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles are an Australian professional rugby league club based on the Northern Beaches of Sydney. They compete in the National Rugby League's Telstra Premiership, the premier rugby league competition of Australasia... |
15-11 | South Sydney South Sydney Rabbitohs The South Sydney Rabbitohs are an Australian professional rugby league football team based in Redfern, a suburb of South-central Sydney, New South Wales. They participate in the National Rugby League premiership and are one of nine existing teams from the state capital... |
14 September 1957 | Sydney Cricket Ground Sydney Cricket Ground The Sydney Cricket Ground is a sports stadium in Sydney in Australia. It is used for Australian football, Test cricket, One Day International cricket, some rugby league and rugby union matches and is the home ground for the New South Wales Blues cricket team and the Sydney Swans of the Australian... |
Darcy Lawler | 39,065 | ||
| Grand Final | ||||||||
| St. George St. George Dragons The St George Dragons was an Australian Rugby league football club in St George, Sydney, New South Wales that played in Australia's top-level Rugby league competition from New South Wales Rugby Football League in 1921 until 1998; in 1999 they formed a joint venture with the Illawarra Steelers,... |
31-9 | Manly-Warringah Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles The Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles are an Australian professional rugby league club based on the Northern Beaches of Sydney. They compete in the National Rugby League's Telstra Premiership, the premier rugby league competition of Australasia... |
21 September 1957 | Sydney Cricket Ground Sydney Cricket Ground The Sydney Cricket Ground is a sports stadium in Sydney in Australia. It is used for Australian football, Test cricket, One Day International cricket, some rugby league and rugby union matches and is the home ground for the New South Wales Blues cricket team and the Sydney Swans of the Australian... |
Darcy Lawler | 54,399 | ||
Grand Final
| St. George | Position | Manly-Warringah |
|---|---|---|
| Brian Graham | FB | Ron Willey Ron Willey Ron Willey was an Australian rugby league footballer and coach. He was a representative for the Australian national side. Post-playing, Willey had a long and successful first grade and State representative coaching career.-Club career:... |
| Tommy Ryan Tommy Ryan (rugby league) Tommy Ryan is an Australian former rugby league footballer. A prolific try scorer, He played in Sydney's New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership with the St. George club throughout the 1950s and also represented Australia.... |
WG | Ray Ritchie |
| Ray Smith | CE | Ray Quinnell |
| Jack Fifield Jack Fifield -External links:... |
CE | Bill Lloyd |
| Eddie Lumsden Eddie Lumsden Eddie Lumsden is an Australian former rugby league player. He was a winger with the St. George Dragons during their eleven-year premiership winning run from 1956 to 1966, playing in nine grand finals.... |
WG | George Hugo |
| Peter Carroll | FE | Kevin Diett |
| Bob Bugden Bob Bugden Bob Bugden is an Australian former rugby league player. He was a halfback with the St. George Dragons in the first half of their 11-year consecutive premiership winning run from 1956 to 1966... |
HB | Peter Burke |
| Kevin Brown | PR | Roy Bull Roy Bull Roy Bull , was an Australian rugby league footballer of the 1940s and 50s who spent his whole career - as player, coach & administrator - with the Manly-Warringah club in Sydney. In addition to playing in three New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership grand finals, he was a representative... |
| Ken Kearney Ken Kearney Ken "Killer" Kearney was an Australian rugby footballer – a dual-code international player – and a rugby league coach. He represented the Wallabies in seven Tests and the Kangaroos in thirty-one Test matches and World Cup games. He captained Australia in nine rugby league Test matches in 1956 and... (Ca./Co.) |
HK | George Lenon |
| Bryan Orrock | PR | Denis Meaney Denis Meaney Denis Meaney was a professional rugby league player who played for Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles and Western Suburbs Magpies . He played prop for his whole career.-References:... |
| Harry Bath Harry Bath Harry Bath , was an Australian rugby league footballer and coach who rose to prominence in the mid-Twentieth Century... |
SR | Doug Daley |
| Norm Provan Norm Provan Norm "Sticks" Provan is an Australian former rugby league footballer and coach. A giant of a man, he was a second-row forward with the St. George Dragons during their 11-year consecutive premiership-winning run from 1956 to 1966... |
SR | Rex Mossop Rex Mossop Rex Peers Mossop was an Australian rugby league and rugby union footballer—a dual-code international, and an Australian television personality from 1964 until 1991.-Rugby union career:... |
| Brian Clay Brian Clay Brian Joseph 'Poppa' Clay was an Australian rugby league footballer of the 1950s and 60s. He was a five-eighth with the St. George Dragons during their 11-year consecutive premiership winning run from 1956 to 1966... |
LK | George Hunter George Hunter (rugby league) George Hunter was an Australian rugby league player of the 1940s, 50's and 60's, who also coached the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles first grade team... (c) |
| Coach | Ken Arthurson Ken Arthurson Kenneth Richard "Arko" Arthurson AM is an Australian rugby league football identity. Affectionately known as "The Godfather of Manly", he played, coached and was later an administrator at the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles club of the New South Wales Rugby League premiership... |
|
Under 27 year-old coach Ken Arthurson, Manly were playing in their second grand final. The match began with Saints pounding the (then called) 'Seagulls' with some heavy tackling. Brian Clay in particular targeted Manly's Rex Mossop, often trapping the dual international forward with the ball. 'Poppa' Clay had a fearsome reputation in defence and at one point in the he knocked the Manly captain George Hunter senseless.
Manly were up to the task in the first half with the score locked at 4-all for 30 minutes. Straight after half time, the flood gates opened following a magnificent run up the centre by second rower Norm Provan. He palmed off Manly defenders, ran deep into their territory, high stepped past fullback Ron Willey and slipped the ball to Poppa Clay who scored under the posts.
A second Dragons try followed within three minutes and the game began to slip away from the Manly side. The Larry Writer reference quotes Manly coach Arthurson: "The sheer physical strength of the St. George team is in itself a formidable thing to overcome. Our fellows tried everything, but St. George had so much more to give. Those big fellows are so clever.".
Harry Bath kicked eight goals from eight attempts establishing a standing record for the most goals in a grand final and the most number of points scored in a grand final (16). His fellow ball playing forward and tactician Ken Kearney had returned for this, the first of five successful seasons as coach (four as captain-coach).
St. George 31 (Tries: Clay 2, Ryan, Fifield, Lumsden. Goals: Bath 8.)
Manly 9 (Tries: Burke. Goals: Willey 3.)