New South Wales Rugby Football League season 1976
Encyclopedia
The 1976 New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership
was the sixty-ninth season of Sydney
's professional rugby league football competition, Australia's first. Twelve teams, including six of 1908's foundation clubs and another six from around Sydney, competed for the J. J. Giltinan Shield and WD & HO Wills Cup during the season, which culminated in a grand final
between the Manly-Warringah and Parramatta clubs. NSWRFL teams also competed for the 1976 Amco Cup
.
In a one-off match that would form the foundation of the modern World Club Challenge
, the previous season's premiers, Eastern Suburbs
played British Champions St Helens RLFC on the 29th of June at the Sydney Cricket Ground
. 26,865 turned out to see the Roosters beat the Saints 25 to 2.
This season Parramatta front-rower and captain Ray Higgs
won both the Rothmans Medal
and the Rugby League Week
player of the year award.
The 1976 season also saw the retirement from the League of future Australian Rugby League Hall of Fame
inductee, Graeme Langlands
.
, triumphing 23-17 in a bloody and brutal major semi-final against Manly. Manly earned a grand final berth the following week, surviving a Canterbury comeback to win 15-12.
In 1976, after 30 years of competition, Parramatta had reached their first grand final
since their admission into the NSWRFL premiership in 1947. Jim Porter scored first, getting Parramatta to a 5-0 lead. A penalty goal to Graham Eadie closed the score to 5-2 before Alan Thompson side-stepped through to send Phil Lowe in for Manly's first and only try. Scores were locked 7-7 at half time.
Geoff Gerard scored an unconverted try for the Eels early in the second half, then two penalties gave Manly an 11-10 lead.
Parramatta missed a critical opportunity to win the game and their first ever premiership with ten minutes of the match remaining: 15 metres out from a wide-open try line, Eels winger Neville Glover dropped the pass from John Moran which would given the Eels the match-winning try in the Paddington Hill corner.
Another penalty gave Manly a 13-10 lead. In the frantic dying minutes Parramatta threw everything they had at the Manly defence including the infamous "flying wedge
" of dubious legality which had Ron Hilditch at the apex of a phalanx of players driving him towards the line. The wedge was somehow stopped by Eadie a foot short of the try line.
The Manly defence held and the Sea Eagles secured their third premiership in five seasons, while the Eels would have to wait five more years for their first.
It was Bob Fulton's 213th and final match for Manly after a brilliant ten-year career with the club and the grand final victory was largely credited to his experience and brilliance. He was full of emotion as he accepted the J J Giltinan Shield and was able to end his playing career at Manly on the highest note. He would later return to the club as a successful coach in the 1980s but first he would finish his playing years and then commence coaching at the Eastern Suburbs Roosters
.
Manly's win was a triumph for the powerful triumvirate of Fulton, coach Frank Stanton and Secretary Ken Arthurson
who would all go on to higher honours in the game. For Stanton, it was his first success in a coaching career which was to bring two premierships and two Ashes-winning Kangaroo tour
s. Arthurson had brought to the club players of a calibre to enable five Grand Final appearances in the 1970s for four victories. He would go on to become the Chairman of the New South Wales Rugby League
and later the Australian Rugby League
.
Manly-Warringah 13 (Tries: Lowe. Goals: Eadie 5.)
Parramatta 10 (Tries: Porter, Gerard. Goals: Peard 2.)
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 sixty-ninth season of 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...
's professional rugby league football competition, Australia's first. Twelve teams, including six of 1908's foundation clubs and another six from around Sydney, competed for the J. J. Giltinan Shield and WD & HO Wills Cup 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 the Manly-Warringah and Parramatta clubs. NSWRFL teams also competed for the 1976 Amco Cup
1976 Amco Cup
The 1976 Amco Cup was a rugby league football tournament featuring teams from around the Australian states of New South Wales and Queensland.-Preliminary round:Bold text-Round 1:-Round 2:-Quarter finals:-Semi finals:-Final:...
.
Season summary
Twenty-two regular season rounds were played from March till August resulting in a top four of Manly-Warringah, Parramatta, St. George and Eastern Suburbs who battled it out in the finals.In a one-off match that would form the foundation of the modern World Club Challenge
World Club Challenge
The World Club Challenge is an annual rugby league football match held between the champions of the Australasian National Rugby League and the European Super League competitions to determine the world's best rugby league club...
, the previous season's premiers, Eastern Suburbs
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...
played British Champions St Helens RLFC on the 29th of June at the 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...
. 26,865 turned out to see the Roosters beat the Saints 25 to 2.
This season Parramatta front-rower and captain Ray Higgs
Ray Higgs
Ray Higgs is an Australian former rugby league footballer of the 1970s. An Australian international and Queensland representative forward, he played club football for the Parramatta Eels and Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles in the New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership.Originally from Roma,...
won both the Rothmans Medal
Rothmans Medal
The Rothmans Medal was the premier individual award in both the New South Wales Rugby League and Brisbane Rugby League competitions, and later in the Australian Rugby League, which was given to the player voted by referees as the best and fairest in those competitions for that year.The award was...
and the Rugby League Week
Rugby League Week
Rugby League Week is the second highest selling Australian rugby league magazine, behind major competitor Big League...
player of the year award.
The 1976 season also saw the retirement from the League of future Australian Rugby League Hall of Fame
Australian Rugby League Hall of Fame
The Australian Rugby League Hall of Fame honors players who have shown exceptional skill at rugby league, all-time great coaches and referees, and other major contributors to the game who are Australian...
inductee, Graeme Langlands
Graeme Langlands
Graeme 'Changa' Langlands, MBE, is an Australian former rugby league footballer and coach of the 1960s and 70s. He retired as the most-capped player for the Australian national team with 45 from 1963 to 1975, and captained his country in 15 Test matches and World Cup games. Langlands was the...
.
Teams
| Balmain 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...  Ground: Leichhardt Oval Leichhardt Oval Leichhardt Oval is a football stadium in Leichhardt, New South Wales, Australia. It is a home ground for the Wests Tigers rugby league team. The stadium has a nominal capacity of 20,000, with recorded highest crowd figures of 23,000 in the 1981 KB Tooth final South Sydney Rabbitohs versus... Coach: Paul Broughton Paul Broughton Paul Broughton is an Australian rugby league football identity. A former player, coach and club chief executive, he is chairman of the Gold Coast Titans of the NRL. He also serves on the board of the North Queensland Cowboys.... Captain: Dennis Manteit Dennis Manteit Dennis Manteit is an Australian former rugby league footballer of the 1960s. He played in Queensland for Brothers and in New South Wales for the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs and Balmain Tigers, whom he captained in 1976. Manteit also played representative football for Queensland team and for the... |
Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs Ground: Belmore Sports Ground Belmore Sports Ground Belmore Sports Ground, formerly known as Belmore Oval, is a multi-purpose stadium in Belmore, New South Wales, Australia. The park covers and from 1951 has contained the Belmore Bowling Recreation Club green. It is close to Belmore railway station.... Coach: Malcolm Clift Malcolm Clift Malcolm Clift is an Australian former rugby league player and coach for the Canterbury Bulldogs and, briefly, Leeds Rhinos... Captain: Tim Pickup Tim Pickup Timothy Alexander Pickup was an Australian Rugby League player for the North Sydney Bears, Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs, New South Wales and Australian national side in the 1970's... |
Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks 1976 Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks season The 1976 Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks season was the 10th in the club's history. They competed in the NSWRFL's 1976 Premiership as well as the 1976 Amco Cup.-Ladder:... Ground: Endeavour Field Coach: John Raper Captain: Greg Pierce Greg Pierce Greg Pierce is an Australian rugby league identity - a former player and coach and a current administrator. He played at Lock forward for the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks in the National Rugby League competition and for Australian national side... Roger Millward Roger Millward Roger Millward MBE is an English former rugby league footballer and coach of the mid to late 20th century. A goal-kicking , he gained a high level of prominence in the sport in England by playing for Hull KR and Castleford, as well as representing Great Britain... |
Eastern Suburbs Roosters Ground: Coach: Jack Gibson Jack Gibson (rugby league) Jack Arthur Gibson OAM was an Australian rugby league identity – a player, commentator and most notably a coach... Captain: Arthur Beetson Arthur Beetson Arthur Henry "Artie" Beetson, OAM , was an Australian rugby league footballer and coach. He represented Australia and Queensland from 1964 to 1981. His position was at prop. Beetson became the first Indigenous Australian to captain his country in any sport. and is frequently cited as the best... |
| Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles 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...  Ground: Brookvale Oval Brookvale Oval Brookvale Oval is a sporting ground located within Brookvale Park at Brookvale, New South Wales, Australia. The ground is owned by Warringah Council and is primarily used by the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles rugby league team... Coach: Frank Stanton Frank Stanton (rugby league) Frank "Biscuits" Stanton is an Australian former rugby league player and a successful club and national representative coach. His playing and club coaching career was with the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles... Captain: Bob Fulton Bob Fulton Robert "Bob" Fulton AM is an Australian rugby league football identity. Fulton played, coached, selected for and has commentated on the game with great success at the highest levels and has been named amongst Australia's greatest rugby league players of the 20th century.As a player Fulton won... |
Newtown Jets 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...  Ground: Coach: Clarrie Jeffreys Captain: John Floyd |
North Sydney Bears 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...  Ground: North Sydney Oval North Sydney Oval -Development:* The first cricket pitch was laid on 6 December 1867, making it one of the oldest cricket grounds in Australia.* The first structure built, in 1879, was a simple pavilion overlooking the cricket ground... Coach: Noel Kelly Noel Kelly (rugby league) Noel Kelly is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer and coach, who played at club, state and national level. He has been named amongst the country's finest footballers of the 20th century... Captain: Bruce Walker Bruce Walker (rugby league) Bruce Walker is an Australian former rugby league footballer of the 1970s and 80s. An Australian Kangaroos and Queensland State of Origin representative second-row or lock forward, he played club football in Brisbane with Eastern Suburbs before moving to Sydney to play with Norths and later... |
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...  Ground: Coach: Terry Fearnley Terry Fearnley Terry Fearnley is an Australian former rugby league footballer and later coach. He was a long serving member of the NSWRFL's Eastern Suburbs team & , playing 144 matches for them at a bleak period in that club's existence. Injury kept him out of the 1960 grand final, one of the few successful... Captain: Ray Higgs Ray Higgs Ray Higgs is an Australian former rugby league footballer of the 1970s. An Australian international and Queensland representative forward, he played club football for the Parramatta Eels and Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles in the New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership.Originally from Roma,... |
| 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...  Ground: Penrith Park Coach: Barry Harris Barry Harris Barry Doyle Harris is an American bebop jazz pianist and educator.-Biography:Harris left Detroit for New York City in 1960... Captain: Mike Stephenson Mike Stephenson Michael "Mike" Stephenson, also commonly known as Stevo, is an English Rugby League World Cup winning Rugby League, and presenter/commentator on British satellite television channel Sky Sports who also represented Great Britain in the sport.Stevo, the nickname that he is commonly known as on TV... |
South Sydney Rabbitohs 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...  Ground: Redfern Oval Redfern Oval Redfern Oval is a football ground located in Sydney suburb of Redfern, New South Wales. The South Sydney Rabbitohs Rugby League Football Club played at Redfern Oval between 1948 and 1987... Coach: Johnny King Johnny King Johnny King is an Australian former rugby league footballer and coach. He was a winger with the St. George Dragons for the last seven years of their eleven consecutive premiership-winning run from 1956 to 1966. He was a representative in the Australian national team from 1966–1970, earning... Captain: Gary Stephens |
St. George Dragons 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,...  Ground: Jubilee Oval Captain-coach: Graeme Langlands Graeme Langlands Graeme 'Changa' Langlands, MBE, is an Australian former rugby league footballer and coach of the 1960s and 70s. He retired as the most-capped player for the Australian national team with 45 from 1963 to 1975, and captained his country in 15 Test matches and World Cup games. Langlands was the... |
Western Suburbs Magpies 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...  Ground: Lidcombe Oval Lidcombe Oval Lidcombe Oval is a playing field in the Western Sydney suburb of Lidcombe, and is part of Wyatt Park. Situated in Church Street, on the northern side of the railway line, it has a capacity of more than 20,000 and is used mainly for football matches of various codes... Coach: Don Parish Don Parish Don W. Parish is an Australian former rugby league football player and coach. A goal-kicking fullback or three-quarter, he represented Australia and New South Wales, and played club football in the NSWRFL Premiership for Western Suburbs.-Playing career:... Captain: Tom Raudonikis |
Ladder
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 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... |
22 | 16 | 0 | 6 | 499 | 252 | 32 |
| 2 |  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... |
22 | 14 | 2 | 6 | 347 | 238 | 30 |
| 3 |  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,... |
22 | 14 | 0 | 8 | 328 | 298 | 28 |
| 4 |  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... |
22 | 13 | 1 | 8 | 399 | 250 | 27 |
| 5 |  Canterbury-BankstownCanterbury 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... |
22 | 12 | 3 | 7 | 361 | 337 | 27 |
| 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... |
22 | 12 | 1 | 9 | 318 | 287 | 25 |
| 7 |  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... |
22 | 11 | 2 | 9 | 379 | 313 | 24 |
| 8 |  Cronulla-SutherlandCronulla Sharks The Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks are Australian professional Rugby league team based in Cronulla, in the Sutherland Shire, Southern Sydney, New South Wales... |
22 | 9 | 1 | 12 | 378 | 393 | |
| 19 | ||||||||
| 9 | Penrith 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... |
22 | 8 | 1 | 13 | 352 | 333 | 17 |
| 10 |  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... |
22 | 8 | 0 | 14 | 297 | 421 | |
| 16 | ||||||||
| 11 |  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... |
22 | 6 | 1 | 15 | 272 | 526 | |
| 13 | ||||||||
| 12 |  Newtown JetsNewtown 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... |
22 | 3 | 0 | 19 | 264 | 546 | |
| 6 | ||||||||
Finals
Parramatta were first into the Grand FinalGrand 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...
, triumphing 23-17 in a bloody and brutal major semi-final against Manly. Manly earned a grand final berth the following week, surviving a Canterbury comeback to win 15-12.
| Home | Score | Away | Match Information | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date and Time | Venue | Referee | Crowd | |||||
| Qualifying Finals | ||||||||
| 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... |
31-6 | 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,... |
28 August 1976 | 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... |
Greg Hartley | 28,264 | ||
| Eastern Suburbs 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... |
13-22 | Canterbury-Bankstown |
29 August 1976 | 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... |
Gary Cook | 27,203 | ||
| Semi Finals | ||||||||
| 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... |
17-23 | 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... |
4 September 1976 | 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... |
Greg Hartley | 30,999 | ||
| 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,... |
9-25 | Canterbury-Bankstown |
5 September 1976 | 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... |
Gary Cook | 27,261 | ||
| 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... |
15-12 | Canterbury-Bankstown |
11 September 1976 | 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... |
Gary Cook | 31,381 | ||
| Grand Final | ||||||||
| 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... |
10-13 | 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... |
18 September 1976 | 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... |
Gary Cook | 57,343 | ||
Grand Final
| Manly-Warringah | Position | Parramatta |
|---|---|---|
| Graham Eadie Graham Eadie Graham "Wombat" Eadie , is an Australian former rugby league footballer of the 1970s and 80s who has been named amongst the nation's finest of the 20th century... |
FB | Mark Levy |
| Tom Mooney Tom Mooney (rugby league) Tom Mooney is an Australian former rugby league footballer of the 1970s. He played in Sydney's New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership as a winger for the Manly-Warringah and South Sydney clubs.... |
WG | Jim Porter Jim Porter Jim Porter is an Australian former rugby league footballer of the 1970s. He played club football in the New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership with the Eastern Suburbs Roosters and the Parramatta Eels, as well as representative football for the Australian national team... |
| Russel Gartner Russel Gartner Russel Gartner is an Australian former rugby league footballer of the 1970s and 80s. An international representative three-quarter, He played for Manly, Balmain and Easts in the NSWRFL premiership.-Biography:... |
CE | Ed Sulkowicz |
| Bob Fulton Bob Fulton Robert "Bob" Fulton AM is an Australian rugby league football identity. Fulton played, coached, selected for and has commentated on the game with great success at the highest levels and has been named amongst Australia's greatest rugby league players of the 20th century.As a player Fulton won... (c) |
CE | John Moran |
| Rod Jackson | WG | Neville Glover Neville Glover Neville Glover is an Australian former rugby league footballer of the 1970s and 80s. A New South Wales interstate and Australian international representative winger, he played his club football career in the NSWRL Premiership with the Parramatta Eels and Penrith Panthers.A Seven Hills junior,... |
| Alan Thompson Alan Thompson (rugby league) Alan Thompson is a former professional rugby league footballer and coach. He played for the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles in the New South Wales Rugby League competition. He primarily played at five-eighth.... |
FE | John Peard John Peard John "Bomber" Peard is an Australian former rugby league footballer and later coach. An Australian international representative five-eighth, he played for the Eastern Suburbs, St. George and Parramatta NSWRFL clubs in the 1960s and 70s... |
| Gary Stephens Gary Stephens Gary Stephens is an English former professional rugby league footballer of the 1960s, '70s and '80s, and coach of the 1980s and '90s who at representative level has played for Great Britain, England, and Yorkshire, and at club level for Castleford, Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles, Wigan, Halifax, and... |
HB | John Kolc |
| John Harvey John Harvey (rugby league) John Harvey is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer of the 1970s and 80s and coach of the 1990s. He played for Manly-Warringah and Eastern Suburbs and coached the Gold Coast Seagulls and Salford City Reds... |
PR | Graham Olling |
| Max Krilich Max Krilich Max Krilich is an Australian former rugby league footballer of the 1970s and 80s. He was a hooker for the Australia national team, playing in 13 Tests from 1978 to 1983 and as captain on 10 consecutive occasions in 1982 and 1983... |
HK | Ron Hilditch Ron Hilditch Ron Hilditch is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer and coach. An Australian international and New South Wales State of Origin representative forward, he played club football for the Parramatta Eels with whom he won the 1981 NSWRFL Premiership.-Playing career:An Australian... |
| Terry Randall Terry Randall Terry "Igor" Randall is an Australian former rugby league footballer who played for the Manly-Warringah club in the New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership. He also represented New South Wales and Australia... |
PR | Denis Fitzgerald Denis Fitzgerald Denis William Fitzgerald, OAM, is an Australian former rugby league footballer and former Chief Executive Officer of the Parramatta Eels.... |
| Steve Norton Steve Norton Steve 'Knocker' Norton is an English former rugby league footballer. He represented Yorkshire, England and Great Britain and played club football for Castleford before moving to Hull, and Wakefield Trinity. Norton was widely regarded as one of the greatest exponents of the game, with a distinctive... |
SR | Ray Higgs Ray Higgs Ray Higgs is an Australian former rugby league footballer of the 1970s. An Australian international and Queensland representative forward, he played club football for the Parramatta Eels and Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles in the New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership.Originally from Roma,... (c) |
| Phil Lowe Phil Lowe Phil Lowe is an English former Rugby League World Cup winning footballer of the 1960s, '70s and '80s. A Great Britain and England international representative second-row forward, he played club football in England for Hull Kingston Rovers and in Australia with Manly-Warringah, whom he helped to... |
SR | Geoff Gerard Geoff Gerard Geoff Gerard is an Australian former rugby league footballer of the 1970s and 80s. An Australian international and New South Wales State of Origin representative forward, he played his club football with Sydney clubs Parramatta, Manly-Warringah and Penrith, and also spent time with Engish clubs... |
| Ian Martin | LK | Ray Price |
| Gary Thoroughgood | Reserve | John Baker |
| Mark Willoughby | Reserve | Graeme Atkins Graeme Atkins Graeme Atkins is a former Australian rules footballer who played for North Melbourne and Collingwood in the Victorian Football League . Originally recruited from Swan Districts, Atkins played as a rover. He made his debut in Round 3 1982 against Fitzroy at the Junction Oval and he had 11 disposals... |
| Frank Stanton Frank Stanton (rugby league) Frank "Biscuits" Stanton is an Australian former rugby league player and a successful club and national representative coach. His playing and club coaching career was with the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles... |
Coach | Terry Fearnley Terry Fearnley Terry Fearnley is an Australian former rugby league footballer and later coach. He was a long serving member of the NSWRFL's Eastern Suburbs team & , playing 144 matches for them at a bleak period in that club's existence. Injury kept him out of the 1960 grand final, one of the few successful... |
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...
since their admission into the NSWRFL premiership in 1947. Jim Porter scored first, getting Parramatta to a 5-0 lead. A penalty goal to Graham Eadie closed the score to 5-2 before Alan Thompson side-stepped through to send Phil Lowe in for Manly's first and only try. Scores were locked 7-7 at half time.
Geoff Gerard scored an unconverted try for the Eels early in the second half, then two penalties gave Manly an 11-10 lead.
Parramatta missed a critical opportunity to win the game and their first ever premiership with ten minutes of the match remaining: 15 metres out from a wide-open try line, Eels winger Neville Glover dropped the pass from John Moran which would given the Eels the match-winning try in the Paddington Hill corner.
Another penalty gave Manly a 13-10 lead. In the frantic dying minutes Parramatta threw everything they had at the Manly defence including the infamous "flying wedge
Flying wedge
A flying wedge is a configuration created from a body moving forward in a triangular formation. This V-shaped arrangement began as a successful military strategy in ancient times when infantry units would move forward in wedge formations to smash through an enemy's lines...
" of dubious legality which had Ron Hilditch at the apex of a phalanx of players driving him towards the line. The wedge was somehow stopped by Eadie a foot short of the try line.
The Manly defence held and the Sea Eagles secured their third premiership in five seasons, while the Eels would have to wait five more years for their first.
It was Bob Fulton's 213th and final match for Manly after a brilliant ten-year career with the club and the grand final victory was largely credited to his experience and brilliance. He was full of emotion as he accepted the J J Giltinan Shield and was able to end his playing career at Manly on the highest note. He would later return to the club as a successful coach in the 1980s but first he would finish his playing years and then commence coaching at the Eastern Suburbs Roosters
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's win was a triumph for the powerful triumvirate of Fulton, coach Frank Stanton and Secretary 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...
who would all go on to higher honours in the game. For Stanton, it was his first success in a coaching career which was to bring two premierships and two Ashes-winning Kangaroo tour
Kangaroo Tour
Kangaroo Tour is the name given to Australian national rugby league team tours of Great Britain and France. The first Kangaroo Tour was in 1908. Traditionally, Kangaroo Tours took place every four years and involved a three-Test Ashes series against Great Britain and a number of tour matches...
s. Arthurson had brought to the club players of a calibre to enable five Grand Final appearances in the 1970s for four victories. He would go on to become the Chairman of the 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...
and later 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...
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Manly-Warringah 13 (Tries: Lowe. Goals: Eadie 5.)
Parramatta 10 (Tries: Porter, Gerard. Goals: Peard 2.)