Rugby league in Victoria
Encyclopedia
Rugby league football has been played and watched by people in the Australian state of Victoria since the early 20th century. While for most of its history there the game's popularity has been marginal due to Australian rules football
's dominance in southern states, rugby league's popularity has increased in recent years, due mainly to the introduction of a professional Melbourne-based team in the national competition.
Professional clubs visited Victoria from New South Wales
, but it was not until 1998 that the first professional club formed in Victoria, the Melbourne Storm
, an expansion club to join the National Rugby League
premiership.
The Australian Rugby League
reports that over $23 million has been invested by the Melbourne Storm and its partners in promoting and developing rugby league in Victoria since 2005 and the club has visited more than 550 schools across the state. Participation has grown significantly since 2006, with 13 amateur clubs now playing in the state, according to the Victorian Rugby League and more expected for the 2009 competition.
was likely to have first been introduced to Victoria by Tom Wills
in 1858 in a match between Scotch College and Melbourne Grammar School.
Club rugby was formally organised in Victoria when the Melbourne Rugby Union (MRU) formed in 1888. Some of the 1888-89 New Zealand Native football team matches were played in Victoria and England also sent a touring team which both switched between rugby and Victorian rules (Australian rules football). Melbourne sent its first rugby football
team to play in New South Wales
in 1889, but the game more or less disappeared in the state.
and rugby league
. Luring professional sportsmen, the new code of rugby league arrived in Australia in 1907 and came to dominate the sporting scene in Queensland
and New South Wales
. However, it was not immediately introduced into Victoria, where the VFL, which paid players, was already increasingly popular. Rugby union, however, continued to be played in Victoria by a small number of amateurs.
The 1914 Lions
tours from England included a match in Melbourne, the first rugby league game to be played in the state. The match between England and New South Wales drew 12,000 spectators.
The Victorian Rugby League
was running a rugby league premiership by the 1920s and also selected a representative Victorian XIII to tour domestically. In 1924 Victoria played against the visiting British Lions on the first game of their tour; losing 45-13 at Fitzroy Cricket Ground and lost again 47-18 against Toowoomba of Queensland. These efforts were in vain and rugby league disappeared from Victoria.
The occasional New South Wales Rugby League
(NSWRL) match was taken to Melbourne over the following decades - the most notorious being in 1979 when Manly and Wests initiated their 'fibros
v silvertails' battles.
The NSWRL had let Melbourne host a number of premiership games during the early 1990s. In 1991 the St Kilda Football Club unsuccessfully sought to have NSWRL games played at Moorabbin Oval
, later the Sydney Tigers
briefly played games at Princes Park in 1994. But attendances for Test matches and State of Origin games in the 1990s had been strong. The 1990 State of Origin played in Olympic Park
, attracted a crowd of 25,000. Another 160,000 was attracted in three matches at the MCG (1994, 1995 and 1997).
In 1991 the first match of the Test series between New Zealand and Australia was played in Melbourne.
However during 1993 ARL Chairman Ken Arthurson
made it clear that he remained positive about Melbourne and thought it had much to offer. Former Melbourne CEO Chris Johns
said; "John
and I had been with the Broncos from day one and we had learnt first-hand how the club had progressed in 10 years to become a 'super club'. Melbourne had three times the population of Brisbane and the people down there just love their sport".
Plans to enter Melbourne gained momentum in November 1994 when both the ARL and the organisers of the (then called) News Limited
rebel competition both began initiatives to fast track their own teams in the Victorian capital.
In 1996, the Australian Rugby League (ARL) decided to establish a Melbourne based team due to the high attendances at recent State of Origin matches. But in May 1997, Super League boss John Ribot
pushed for a Melbourne based club in the Super League competition, which was the rival against the ARL competition. Former Brisbane Broncos centre Chris Johns became the CEO of the club and Ribot stepped down from head of the Super League to set up the club. The club would be fully owned by News Limited
who had a position of influence through their ownership in the Herald Sun
, with part of its strategy to use Melbourne's most popular newspaper to provide contra media exposure for the new club. In September 1997, Melbourne announced that Chris Anderson would be their foundation coach, and then the Super League announced that their new team would be named the Melbourne Storm
and it would be based at Olympic Park Stadium
.
The Melbourne Storm went on to win the 1999 NRL Premiership.
drew 54,833 spectators at Telstra Dome
. Also that season, Melbourne's television audience for the Storm's NRL grand final appearance was higher than Sydney's was for the Swans' second successive AFL grand final appearance.
The 2007 preliminary final between Parramatta
and Melbourne Storm
saw the largest ever crowd drawn by the Storm in Melbourne, 33,472. The Storm went on to the Grand Final where they succeeded in their second premiership, which was later stripped.
In 2007 the Victorian Government
confirmed that it would be building a new 31,500 rectangular stadium
at Olympic Park
, for rugby league, union and soccer.
The opening round of the 2008
season saw 20,084 spectators watch the Storm defeat New Zealand Warriors
in their first game at Telstra Dome
. Melbourne finished the 2008 season with a home average attendance of 12,474, considerably larger than their 2007 average of 11,711. They recorded their largest crowd average ever in the 2010 season at 14,670. For the 2008 Rugby League World Cup
, the only game in Melbourne against England
drew a crowd of 36,297 at the Telstra Dome. This was the second highest attended game in the competition, surpassed only by the final, played in Brisbane
that drew 50,559.
Over $23 million has been invested by the Melbourne Storm and its partners in promoting and developing rugby league in Victoria since 2005 and the club has visited over 550 schools across the state.
Melbourne hosted the 2010 ANZAC Test
for the opening of the newly-constructed AAMI Park. The match was attended by a sellout crowd of 30,000, which continues to be the venue's largest crowd to date.
Players such as Malo Feteirika, who is from New Zealand
, and Gareth Widdop, from England
, have come through the junior ranks in Melbourne. Melbourne Storm hopes to have some of its Melbourne-born and bred players making their senior debuts soon.
The junior team (which is largely made up of Victorian locals) were runners up to the Bulldogs in the SG ball in 2009.
governs rugby league in Victoria. Victoria is an Affiliated State of the overall Australian governing body the Australian Rugby League
.
, the Central Highlands Rugby League
and the Goulburn Murray Rugby League
. Prior to 2008 and the introduction of the National Youth Competition, Melbourne Rugby League games were played as curtain raiser
s to senior Melbourne Storm games at Olympic Park.
They won their first championship in 2009
(NRL) is Australia's top level competition for the sport of rugby league. The Melbourne Storm
are Victoria
's only side in the League, having been initially created on the initiative of Super League
for inclusion in their competition in 1997. However they did not start playing until the NRL's commencement in 1998 and have since then become a powerful side, winning three consecutive minor premierships in 2006, 2007 and 2008. They have also won the premiership in 1999
, 2007
and 2009
.
However in 2010, the Storm were stripped of the 2007 and 2009 premierships and the 2006–2008 minor premierships. They again won the minor premiership in 2011
.
Jake Webster
: (Melbourne Storm
, Gold Coast Titans
& Hull KR
)
Timana Tahu
: (Newcastle Knights
, Parramatta Eels
& NSW Waratahs).
Craig Polla-Mounter
: (Canterbury).
Peter Wallace
(Penrith Panthers
& Brisbane Broncos
)
The only junior Victorian players to date to graduate to the NRL have been Jeremy Smith (Melbourne Storm
& St George Illawarra) who played for the Altona Roosters and English-born Gareth Widdop
(Melbourne Storm
) who also played for the Altona Roosters. Drury Low
(Canberra Raiders
) played for the Waverley-Oakleigh Panthers junior club.
The 2011 Melbourne Storm
under-20 competition squad currently includes seven local Victorian juniors, namely Mahe Fonua, Matt Constantinou, Lucas Grech, Robbie Kurth, Young Tonumaipea, Herschel Gideon and Joseph Kamana. Also the 2011 SG Ball team is made up predominantly of local juniors from Melbourne.
Australian rules football
Australian rules football, officially known as Australian football, also called football, Aussie rules or footy is a sport played between two teams of 22 players on either...
's dominance in southern states, rugby league's popularity has increased in recent years, due mainly to the introduction of a professional Melbourne-based team in the national competition.
Professional clubs visited Victoria from New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
, but it was not until 1998 that the first professional club formed in Victoria, the Melbourne Storm
Melbourne Storm
The Melbourne Storm are an Australian professional rugby league club based in the city of Melbourne. They are the first fully professional rugby league team based in the Australian rules football-dominated state of Victoria....
, an expansion club to join the National Rugby League
National Rugby League
The National Rugby League is the top league of professional rugby league football clubs in Australasia. The NRL's main competition, called the Telstra Premiership , is contested by sixteen teams, fifteen of which are based in Australia with one based in New Zealand...
premiership.
The Australian Rugby League
Australian Rugby League
The Australian Rugby League is the governing body for the sport of rugby league in Australia. It is made up of state bodies, including the New South Wales Rugby League and the Queensland Rugby League...
reports that over $23 million has been invested by the Melbourne Storm and its partners in promoting and developing rugby league in Victoria since 2005 and the club has visited more than 550 schools across the state. Participation has grown significantly since 2006, with 13 amateur clubs now playing in the state, according to the Victorian Rugby League and more expected for the 2009 competition.
Rugby football the predecessor code
Rugby footballRugby football
Rugby football is a style of football named after Rugby School in the United Kingdom. It is seen most prominently in two current sports, rugby league and rugby union.-History:...
was likely to have first been introduced to Victoria by Tom Wills
Tom Wills
Thomas Wentworth "Tom" Wills was an Australian all-round sportsman, umpire, coach and administrator who is credited with being a catalyst towards the invention of Australian rules football....
in 1858 in a match between Scotch College and Melbourne Grammar School.
Club rugby was formally organised in Victoria when the Melbourne Rugby Union (MRU) formed in 1888. Some of the 1888-89 New Zealand Native football team matches were played in Victoria and England also sent a touring team which both switched between rugby and Victorian rules (Australian rules football). Melbourne sent its first rugby football
Rugby football
Rugby football is a style of football named after Rugby School in the United Kingdom. It is seen most prominently in two current sports, rugby league and rugby union.-History:...
team to play in New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
in 1889, but the game more or less disappeared in the state.
The modern code of rugby league
In 1895, rugby football underwent a schism in England over the issues of expenses and payment to injured players. This led it to split into rugby unionRugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
and 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...
. Luring professional sportsmen, the new code of rugby league arrived in Australia in 1907 and came to dominate the sporting scene in Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
and New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
. However, it was not immediately introduced into Victoria, where the VFL, which paid players, was already increasingly popular. Rugby union, however, continued to be played in Victoria by a small number of amateurs.
The 1914 Lions
Great Britain national rugby league team
The Great Britain national rugby league team represents the United Kingdom in rugby league football. Administered by the Rugby Football League , the team is nicknamed "The Lions" or "Great Britain Lions"....
tours from England included a match in Melbourne, the first rugby league game to be played in the state. The match between England and New South Wales drew 12,000 spectators.
The Victorian Rugby League
Victorian Rugby League
The Victorian Rugby League is responsible for administering the game of rugby league in the Australian state of Victoria. Victoria is an Affiliated State of the overall Australian governing body the Australian Rugby League...
was running a rugby league premiership by the 1920s and also selected a representative Victorian XIII to tour domestically. In 1924 Victoria played against the visiting British Lions on the first game of their tour; losing 45-13 at Fitzroy Cricket Ground and lost again 47-18 against Toowoomba of Queensland. These efforts were in vain and rugby league disappeared from Victoria.
The occasional New South Wales Rugby League
New South Wales Rugby League
The New South Wales Rugby League is the governing body of rugby league in New South Wales and is a member of the Australian Rugby League. It was formed in Sydney on 8 August 1907 and was known as the New South Wales Rugby Football League until 1984 when forward thinking marketing managers decided...
(NSWRL) match was taken to Melbourne over the following decades - the most notorious being in 1979 when Manly and Wests initiated their 'fibros
Fibro
Fibro, the shortened form of "Fibrous Cement" - or "Fibrous Asbestos Cement", FAC, is a building material made of compressed fibres cemented into rigid sheets....
v silvertails' battles.
The NSWRL had let Melbourne host a number of premiership games during the early 1990s. In 1991 the St Kilda Football Club unsuccessfully sought to have NSWRL games played at Moorabbin Oval
Moorabbin Oval
Moorabbin Oval, also known by its sponsorship name of Linen House Oval, is an Australian Rules Football ground in the city of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia at Linton Street in the suburb of Moorabbin....
, later the Sydney Tigers
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...
briefly played games at Princes Park in 1994. But attendances for Test matches and State of Origin games in the 1990s had been strong. The 1990 State of Origin played in Olympic Park
Olympic Park, Melbourne
The Melbourne Sports and Entertainment Precinct is a series of sports venues and stadia, located in Melbourne, Victoria, in Australia. The precinct is situated around 3 km east of the Melbourne city centre, between the suburbs of East Melbourne and Richmond, and close to the north-eastern bank of...
, attracted a crowd of 25,000. Another 160,000 was attracted in three matches at the MCG (1994, 1995 and 1997).
In 1991 the first match of the Test series between New Zealand and Australia was played in Melbourne.
The first professional team emerges
In August 1991 the NSWRL began to express interest for its 1993 competition, and made a request to the Victorian Rugby League to put forward a proposal. The local league showed significant hesitation, indicating that the game had little support to build upon.However during 1993 ARL Chairman 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...
made it clear that he remained positive about Melbourne and thought it had much to offer. Former Melbourne CEO Chris Johns
Chris Johns (rugby league)
Chris Johns is an Australian former rugby league footballer of the 1980s and 90s. He played in the centres, achieving representative honours for Australia and New South Wales. His club football career was spent with the St. George Dragons and Brisbane Broncos, as well as a spell in England with...
said; "John
John Ribot
John Ribot is an Australian sports administrator and former rugby league footballer of the 1970s and 80s. Once a Queensland State of Origin and Australian international representative winger, Ribot was the 1980 NSWRFL season's top try-scorer...
and I had been with the Broncos from day one and we had learnt first-hand how the club had progressed in 10 years to become a 'super club'. Melbourne had three times the population of Brisbane and the people down there just love their sport".
Plans to enter Melbourne gained momentum in November 1994 when both the ARL and the organisers of the (then called) News Limited
News Limited
News Limited is one of Australia's largest diversified media companies. The publicly listed company's interests span newspaper and magazine publishing, Internet, Pay TV, National Rugby League, market research, DVD and film distribution, and film and television production trading assets.News Limited...
rebel competition both began initiatives to fast track their own teams in the Victorian capital.
In 1996, the Australian Rugby League (ARL) decided to establish a Melbourne based team due to the high attendances at recent State of Origin matches. But in May 1997, Super League boss John Ribot
John Ribot
John Ribot is an Australian sports administrator and former rugby league footballer of the 1970s and 80s. Once a Queensland State of Origin and Australian international representative winger, Ribot was the 1980 NSWRFL season's top try-scorer...
pushed for a Melbourne based club in the Super League competition, which was the rival against the ARL competition. Former Brisbane Broncos centre Chris Johns became the CEO of the club and Ribot stepped down from head of the Super League to set up the club. The club would be fully owned by News Limited
News Limited
News Limited is one of Australia's largest diversified media companies. The publicly listed company's interests span newspaper and magazine publishing, Internet, Pay TV, National Rugby League, market research, DVD and film distribution, and film and television production trading assets.News Limited...
who had a position of influence through their ownership in the Herald Sun
Herald Sun
The Herald Sun is a morning tabloid newspaper based in Melbourne, Australia. It is published by The Herald and Weekly Times, a subsidiary of News Limited, itself a subsidiary of News Corporation. It is available for purchase throughout Melbourne, Regional Victoria, Tasmania, the Australian Capital...
, with part of its strategy to use Melbourne's most popular newspaper to provide contra media exposure for the new club. In September 1997, Melbourne announced that Chris Anderson would be their foundation coach, and then the Super League announced that their new team would be named the Melbourne Storm
Melbourne Storm
The Melbourne Storm are an Australian professional rugby league club based in the city of Melbourne. They are the first fully professional rugby league team based in the Australian rules football-dominated state of Victoria....
and it would be based at Olympic Park Stadium
Olympic Park Stadium
Olympic Park Stadium was a multi-purpose outdoor stadium located on Olympic Boulevard in inner Melbourne. The stadium was built as an athletics training venue for the 1956 Olympics, a short distance from the MCG, which served as the Olympic Stadium...
.
The Melbourne Storm went on to win the 1999 NRL Premiership.
The new millennium
In 2006 the deciding game of the State of Origin2006 Rugby League State of Origin series
The 2006 State of Origin series was the 25th year that the annual best-of-three series of interstate rugby league football matches contested between the Queensland and New South Wales representative teams was played under 'State of Origin' selection rules. It was decided in three matches which drew...
drew 54,833 spectators at Telstra Dome
Telstra Dome
Docklands Stadium is a multi-purpose sports and entertainment stadium in the Docklands precinct of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia...
. Also that season, Melbourne's television audience for the Storm's NRL grand final appearance was higher than Sydney's was for the Swans' second successive AFL grand final appearance.
The 2007 preliminary final between Parramatta
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...
and Melbourne Storm
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
saw the largest ever crowd drawn by the Storm in Melbourne, 33,472. The Storm went on to the Grand Final where they succeeded in their second premiership, which was later stripped.
In 2007 the Victorian Government
Government of Victoria
The Government of Victoria, under the Constitution of Australia, ceded certain legislative and judicial powers to the Commonwealth, but retained complete independence in all other areas...
confirmed that it would be building a new 31,500 rectangular stadium
Melbourne Rectangular Stadium
The Melbourne Rectangular Stadium is an outdoor sports stadium on the site of Edwin Flack Field on Olympic Boulevard in the Sports and Entertainment Precinct, in inner Melbourne, Victoria, Australia....
at Olympic Park
Olympic Park, Melbourne
The Melbourne Sports and Entertainment Precinct is a series of sports venues and stadia, located in Melbourne, Victoria, in Australia. The precinct is situated around 3 km east of the Melbourne city centre, between the suburbs of East Melbourne and Richmond, and close to the north-eastern bank of...
, for rugby league, union and soccer.
The opening round of the 2008
National Rugby League season 2008
The 2008 NRL season was the 101st season of professional rugby league club competition in Australia, and the eleventh run by the National Rugby League. For the second year, sixteen teams competed for the 2008 Telstra Premiership title. The season commenced with the first matches played on 14 March...
season saw 20,084 spectators watch the Storm defeat New Zealand Warriors
New Zealand Warriors
The New Zealand Warriors are a professional rugby league football club based in Auckland, New Zealand. They compete in the National Rugby League premiership and are the League's only team from outside Australia...
in their first game at Telstra Dome
Telstra Dome
Docklands Stadium is a multi-purpose sports and entertainment stadium in the Docklands precinct of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia...
. Melbourne finished the 2008 season with a home average attendance of 12,474, considerably larger than their 2007 average of 11,711. They recorded their largest crowd average ever in the 2010 season at 14,670. For the 2008 Rugby League World Cup
2008 Rugby League World Cup
The 2008 Rugby League World Cup was the thirteenth staging of the Rugby League World Cup since the inauguration of the tournament in 1954, and the first since the 2000 event...
, the only game in Melbourne against England
England national rugby league team
The England national rugby league team represent England in international rugby league football tournaments. The team has now seen a revival, having largely formed from the Great Britain team, who also represented Wales, Scotland and Ireland. The team is run under the auspices of the Rugby Football...
drew a crowd of 36,297 at the Telstra Dome. This was the second highest attended game in the competition, surpassed only by the final, played in Brisbane
Suncorp Stadium
Lang Park is the original name of the site located in the Brisbane suburb of Milton, Queensland, Australia, now occupied by the major sports facility known by its sponsorship name, Suncorp Stadium...
that drew 50,559.
Over $23 million has been invested by the Melbourne Storm and its partners in promoting and developing rugby league in Victoria since 2005 and the club has visited over 550 schools across the state.
Melbourne hosted the 2010 ANZAC Test
2010 ANZAC Test
The 2010 ANZAC Test was a rugby league test match played between Australia and New Zealand on 7 May 2010. The match coincided with the official opening of AAMI Park in Melbourne. The match was won by Australia with a score of 12–8.-The teams:...
for the opening of the newly-constructed AAMI Park. The match was attended by a sellout crowd of 30,000, which continues to be the venue's largest crowd to date.
Participation
There are 13 amateur clubs in the state according to the Victorian Rugby League; 7 of the clubs field junior teams. This does not count the numerous school teams who played as the undercard to Storm games prior to the under 20 competition.Players such as Malo Feteirika, who is from New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, and Gareth Widdop, from England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, have come through the junior ranks in Melbourne. Melbourne Storm hopes to have some of its Melbourne-born and bred players making their senior debuts soon.
The junior team (which is largely made up of Victorian locals) were runners up to the Bulldogs in the SG ball in 2009.
Victorian Rugby League
The Victorian Rugby LeagueVictorian Rugby League
The Victorian Rugby League is responsible for administering the game of rugby league in the Australian state of Victoria. Victoria is an Affiliated State of the overall Australian governing body the Australian Rugby League...
governs rugby league in Victoria. Victoria is an Affiliated State of the overall Australian governing body the Australian Rugby League
Australian Rugby League
The Australian Rugby League is the governing body for the sport of rugby league in Australia. It is made up of state bodies, including the New South Wales Rugby League and the Queensland Rugby League...
.
Victorian Rugby League competitions
The three main competitions are the Melbourne Rugby LeagueMelbourne Rugby League
The Melbourne Rugby League is the premier rugby league competition in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.-Teams:-Defunct Clubs:-External links:**...
, the Central Highlands Rugby League
Central Highlands Rugby League
The Central Highlands Rugby League is a Rugby League competition District in the Australian state of Victoria. It covers the area of Victoria centered around Ballarat and Ararat, as far north as Creswick, Warrnambool in the south west, Bacchus Marsh in the east, and Horsham in the...
and the Goulburn Murray Rugby League
Goulburn Murray Rugby League
The Goulburn Murray Rugby League is a rugby league competition in the Australian state of Victoria. It is located in the North of Victoria covering areas including Wodonga, Twin City, Wangaratta, Corowa, Shepparton, Benalla and Seymour.-Teams:...
. Prior to 2008 and the introduction of the National Youth Competition, Melbourne Rugby League games were played as curtain raiser
Curtain raiser
*A United States Air Force missile combat competition called Curtain Raiser, held in 1967*Curtain raiser - A short play or entertainment given before the main entertainment or event to fill out the bill or programme....
s to senior Melbourne Storm games at Olympic Park.
Representative Team
The Victorian state team play in the Affiliated States Championship along with the other three affiliated states (South Australia, Northern Territory and Western Australia) plus the Australian Police and Australian Defence Force. In 2007 Victoria came fourth in the ARL Affiliated States Championships in Perth.They won their first championship in 2009
National Rugby League Teams
The National Rugby LeagueNational Rugby League
The National Rugby League is the top league of professional rugby league football clubs in Australasia. The NRL's main competition, called the Telstra Premiership , is contested by sixteen teams, fifteen of which are based in Australia with one based in New Zealand...
(NRL) is Australia's top level competition for the sport of rugby league. The Melbourne Storm
Melbourne Storm
The Melbourne Storm are an Australian professional rugby league club based in the city of Melbourne. They are the first fully professional rugby league team based in the Australian rules football-dominated state of Victoria....
are Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
's only side in the League, having been initially created on the initiative of Super League
Super League (Australia)
Super League was an Australian rugby league football administrative body that conducted professional competition in Australasia for one season in 1997. Along with Super League of Europe, it was created by News Corporation during the Super League war which arose following an unsuccessful attempt to...
for inclusion in their competition in 1997. However they did not start playing until the NRL's commencement in 1998 and have since then become a powerful side, winning three consecutive minor premierships in 2006, 2007 and 2008. They have also won the premiership in 1999
National Rugby League season 1999
The 1999 NRL season was the 92nd season of professional rugby league football in Australia, and the second to be run by the National Rugby League. Seventeen teams competed for the NRL Premiership during the season which culminated in a grand final between the first grand final played at Stadium...
, 2007
National Rugby League season 2007
The 2007 NRL season was the one hundredth season of professional rugby league football club competition in Australia, and the tenth run by the National Rugby League...
and 2009
2009 NRL Grand Final
The 2009 NRL Grand Final was a rugby league football game played on 4 October 2009 at the ANZ Stadium in Sydney. It was the 12th annual championship game of the National Rugby League staged to decide the premiers of the 2009 NRL season....
.
However in 2010, the Storm were stripped of the 2007 and 2009 premierships and the 2006–2008 minor premierships. They again won the minor premiership in 2011
2011 NRL season
The 2011 NRL season was the 105th season of professional rugby league football club competition in Australia, and the fourteenth run by the National Rugby League. The NRL's main championship, called the 2011 Telstra Premiership due to sponsorship from Telstra, was contested by sixteen teams for the...
.
| Club | Location | Home Ground(s) | First season |
|---|---|---|---|
| Melbourne Storm Melbourne Storm The Melbourne Storm are an Australian professional rugby league club based in the city of Melbourne. They are the first fully professional rugby league team based in the Australian rules football-dominated state of Victoria.... |
Melbourne | AAMI Park (12 games) (31,500) | 1998 National Rugby League season 1998 The 1998 NRL season was the 91st season of professional rugby league football in Australia, and the inaugural season of the newly formed National Rugby League. After the Australian Rugby League and Super League organisations ran separate competitions parallel to each other in 1997, they joined to... |
Notable players
Among the Victorian-born players to play in the NRL have included:Jake Webster
Jake Webster
Jake Webster is a New Zealand National rugby league player. He plays the position of Centre and Wing for Hull Kingston Rovers Rugby League Club.-Australia:...
: (Melbourne Storm
Melbourne Storm
The Melbourne Storm are an Australian professional rugby league club based in the city of Melbourne. They are the first fully professional rugby league team based in the Australian rules football-dominated state of Victoria....
, Gold Coast Titans
Gold Coast Titans
Gold Coast Titans are an Australian professional rugby league football club, based in the Gold Coast, Queensland. The club competes in Australasia's elite rugby league competition, the National Rugby League premiership. It is the newest of the sixteen clubs in the league, having commenced its...
& Hull KR
Hull Kingston Rovers
Hull Kingston Rovers or Hull KR is an English professional rugby league football club based in Hull, England. The club formed in 1882 and currently competes in Super League, having won promotion from National League One in 2006...
)
Timana Tahu
Timana Tahu
Timana James Aporo Tahu is an Australian professional rugby league footballer and former rugby union player, a dual-code international, currently playing for the Newcastle Knights in the National Rugby League. He formerly played for the New South Wales Waratahs in the Super 14 competition...
: (Newcastle Knights
Newcastle Knights
The Newcastle Knights are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in Newcastle, New South Wales. They compete in Australasia's premier rugby league competition, the National Rugby League premiership...
, Parramatta Eels
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...
& NSW Waratahs).
Craig Polla-Mounter
Craig Polla-Mounter
Craig Polla-Mounter is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer for the Bulldogs. He primarily played at halfback. Polla-Mounter participated in Canterbury's 1994, 1995 and 1998 Grand Finals, winning in 1995....
: (Canterbury).
Peter Wallace
Peter Wallace
Peter James "Wal" Wallace is an Australian professional rugby league footballer for the Brisbane Broncos of the NRL. A New South Wales City and State of Origin representative halfback, he also previously played for the Penrith Panthers club.-Early life:Wallace was born in Melbourne and moved to...
(Penrith Panthers
Penrith Panthers
The Penrith Panthers are an Australian professional rugby league football team based in the western Sydney suburb of Penrith. They compete in the National Rugby League premiership, the top rugby league football competition in Australasia. For the 2012 NRL season they will be coached by Ivan...
& Brisbane Broncos
Brisbane Broncos
The Brisbane Broncos are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the city of Brisbane, the capital of the state of Queensland. Founded in 1988, the Broncos play in Australasia's elite competition, the National Rugby League premiership. They have won six premierships and two...
)
The only junior Victorian players to date to graduate to the NRL have been Jeremy Smith (Melbourne Storm
Melbourne Storm
The Melbourne Storm are an Australian professional rugby league club based in the city of Melbourne. They are the first fully professional rugby league team based in the Australian rules football-dominated state of Victoria....
& St George Illawarra) who played for the Altona Roosters and English-born Gareth Widdop
Gareth Widdop
Gareth Widdop is an English professional rugby league footballer currently playing for Australian club Melbourne Storm of the National Rugby League...
(Melbourne Storm
Melbourne Storm
The Melbourne Storm are an Australian professional rugby league club based in the city of Melbourne. They are the first fully professional rugby league team based in the Australian rules football-dominated state of Victoria....
) who also played for the Altona Roosters. Drury Low
Drury Low
Drury Low is a New Zealand rugby league player who currently plays for the Canberra Raiders in the National Rugby League. His positions is on the wing.-Playing career:...
(Canberra Raiders
Canberra Raiders
The Canberra Raiders are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the national capital city of Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. They have competed in Australasia's elite rugby league competition, the National Rugby League premiership since 1982...
) played for the Waverley-Oakleigh Panthers junior club.
The 2011 Melbourne Storm
Melbourne Storm
The Melbourne Storm are an Australian professional rugby league club based in the city of Melbourne. They are the first fully professional rugby league team based in the Australian rules football-dominated state of Victoria....
under-20 competition squad currently includes seven local Victorian juniors, namely Mahe Fonua, Matt Constantinou, Lucas Grech, Robbie Kurth, Young Tonumaipea, Herschel Gideon and Joseph Kamana. Also the 2011 SG Ball team is made up predominantly of local juniors from Melbourne.
See also
- Rugby league in AustraliaRugby league in AustraliaRugby league football is one of the most popular sports in Australia. It is the dominant winter sport on the eastern seaboard of Australia, including the states of New South Wales and Queensland as well as the Australian Capital Territory, which together comprise around half of the country's...
- Sport in VictoriaSport in VictoriaThe state of Victoria, Australia, is known for its sporting culture. The Victorian capital, Melbourne is often referred to as the sporting capital of the world....
- Barassi LineBarassi LineThe Barassi Line was first suggested by Professor Ian Turner in his 1978 Ron Barassi Memorial Lecture to refer to a dividing line in Australia that divides areas where Australian rules is the dominant winter code of football from those where rugby football codes are most popular...
- Rugby union in VictoriaRugby union in VictoriaRugby union in Victoria describes the sport of rugby union being played and watched in the state of Victoria in Australia.The code was first introduced some time between the 1850s and 1880s but failed to gain popular following and has had a potted history....