1928 NSWRFL season

Rugby league competition March 2024 1928 New South Wales Rugby Football League 125px 9 16x16px South Sydney 8th 16x16px St. George 1st 59 1597 16x16px Benny Wearing (94) 16x16px Jack Redmond (9) Newtown 3rd 1927 NSWRFL season 1927 1929 NSWRFL season 1929 The 1928 New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership was the twenty-first season of Sydney’s top-level rugby league club competition, Australia’s first. During the season, which lasted from April until September, nine teams from across the city contested the premiership, culminating in a final between Eastern Suburbs and South Sydney. Season summary No minor premiership was awarded, and hence no “right of challenge” arose from the finals. Only fourteen rounds of premiership matches were played, as against eighteen in 1926 and 1927. A dispute between the NSWRL and the Sydney Cricket Ground Trust over a number of issues lead to the League moving their match of the day to the neighbouring Sydney Sports Ground. This dispute wasn’t patched up until 1935. The first ever night rugby league match was played at the Sydney Showground, The match involved South Sydney and Eastern Sububs and was played on 22 December. Souths won 10–6. The match was played 9-a-side and took place without the approval of the NSWRL. Western Suburbs became the first Sydney club to use an animal for its nickname and logo. Wests, previously known as “The Fruitpickers” became “The Magpies”. Teams Balmain, formed on January 23, 1908, at Balmain Town Hall Eastern Suburbs, formed on January 24, 1908, at Paddington Town Hall Glebe, formed on January 9, 1908 Newtown, formed on January 14, 1908 North Sydney, formed on February 7, 1908 South Sydney, formed on January 17, 1908, at Redfern Town Hall St. George, formed on November 8, 1920, at Kogarah School of Arts Western Suburbs, formed on February 4, 1908 University, formed in 1919 at Sydney University Balmain100px|center21st seasonGround: Birchgrove OvalCoach: Alf FraserCaptain: Ray ElliottEastern Suburbs100px|center21st seasonGround: RAS ShowgroundCaptain: Arthur TobyGlebe100px|center21st seasonGround: Wentworth ParkCaptain-coach: Jack TooheyNewtown100px|center21st seasonGround: Marrickville OvalCaptain(s): Charles Kell, Keith EllisNorth Sydney100px|center21st seasonGround: North Sydney OvalCoach: Tom McMahonCaptain: Jimmy Johnson South Sydney100px|center21st seasonGround: Sydney Sports GroundCoach: Charlie LynchCaptain: Pat MaherAlan Whiticker Alan Whiticker Pat Maher http://www.rugbyleagueproject.org/players/pat-maher/summary.html rugbyleagueproject.org Shawn Dollin, Andrew Ferguson and Bill Bates 31 August 2014St. George100px|center8th seasonGround: Earl ParkCoach: Frank BurgeCaptain: Arthur JusticeUniversity100px|center9th seasonCoach: Bill KellyCaptain: A.S. LaneWestern Suburbs100px|center21st seasonGround: Pratten ParkCoach: Chris McKivatCaptain: Frank McMillan Earl Park riot The season of 1928 was infamous for the Earl Park riot. In a St George home game 21–3 victory over Balmain, Tony Russell of Balmain became involved in a running feud with George Carstairs, the St George captain. Referee Brannaghan began to lose control of the match when he sent off St George forward Harry Flower early in the second half but allowed Balmain players to stay on the field. After a later incident between Russell and Carstairs resulted in the latter being knocked unconscious and Brannaghan merely cautioning Russell, the crowd's aggravation grew and the situation escalated. The Earl Park crowd took matters into their own hands by storming the field in an attempt to injure Russell. Police arrived and intervened using handcuffs, batons and fists but not before Russell was badly beaten by the crowd. He suffered leg and head injuries and was put into the same ambulance as George Carstairs where it was reported that Russell attempted to assault Carstairs and ambulance officers had to intervene to restrain him. A week later, a NSWRL investigation blamed crowd violence and not the players or officials for the disturbance. Ladder 230px|thumb|right|The geographical locations of the teams that contested the 1928 premiership across Sydney. TeamPldWDLBPFPAPDPts116x16px St. George131201120098+10226216x16px Eastern Suburbs1211012192116+7626316x16px South Sydney138051216152+6418416x16px North Sydney126062157149+816516x16px Sydney University136071184176+814616x16px Western Suburbs124082174206-3212716x16px Glebe12408294149-5512816x16px Balmain134091180236-5610916x16px Newtown1210112112227-1156 Finals Heading into the finals, top placed St. George and Eastern Suburbs were in top form, with St. George losing their only match in round 3 and Eastern Suburbs losing to St. George in round 7 of the 14-week competition. With Saints and Easts finishing on 26 points each, no playoff for the minor premiership was staged to award a right of challenge in the finals,Finding The Premier Club https://web.archive.org/web/20060511185318/http://www.rl1908.com/clubcomps/play-offs.htm 2006-05-11 at rl1908.com thus negating the good work done by both sides during the premiership rounds and ultimately providing an easier route than otherwise for Souths to take the title away from both minor premiers. In the semi-finals, Eastern Suburbs beat fourth-placed North Sydney to make the final, whilst South Sydney beat St. George, whom they had lost to 9–8 just three weeks earlier. 7 September 1928 - Wentworth Oval 16x16px Eastern Suburbs 26 16x16px North Sydney 13 7 September 1928 - Earl Park 16x16px St. George 5 16x16px South Sydney 13 22 September 1928 - Agricultural 16x16px Eastern Suburbs 5 16x16px South Sydney 26 Final Eastern SuburbsPositionSouth Sydney13. Arthur TobyFB26. Alan Righton12. Les SteelWG12. Benny Wearing10. Larry HedgerCE17. Jack Why11. Nelson HardyCE15. Harry Finch31. Vic WebberWG27. Reg Williams8. Gordon FletcherFE16. Harry Kadwell15. Joe BuschHB11. Jim Breen (c) Arthur OxfordPR7. Harry Cavanough2. Dick BrownHK41. Alf Binder4. Harry KavanaghPR David Watson3. Tom FitzpatrickSR3. Edward Root21. Sam BryantSR6. George Treweek6. George HarrisLK13. Oscar Quinlivan CoachCharlie Lynch A crowd of 25,000 were at the Royal Agricultural Society Grounds to watch the final between South Sydney and Easts, refereed by Lal Deane. George Treweek scored Souths' first try, crashing over under the posts after Easts' fullback Toby fumbled the high kick. Wearing converted. Then Jack Why, Root and Brien combined to put Williams over and Souths took an 8–0 lead. Before the half-ended Wearing kicked a penalty goal from halfway and Quinlivan crossed for another Souths try and a 13–0 lead at the break. The second stanza started no better for Easts when Hardy took the ball close with the line wide open only to see his pass dropped. Harry Kadwell struck back for Souths who went to a 16–0 lead before the floodgates opened – Cavanough scored from the next kick-off and then Kadwell crossed again. Easts’ only try of the match was by Steel under the posts and was the last of the match with the bell sounding shortly after. Thus the Rabbitohs took their fourth successive title and become the first club to achieve this feat. South Sydney 26 (Tries: Harry Kadwell (2), George Treweek, Reg Williams, Oscar Quinlivan, Harry Cavanough. Goals: Benny Wearing 2, Oscar Quinlivan 2) defeated Eastern Suburbs 5 (Tries: Les Steel. Goal: Arthur Oxford) References External links Rugby League Tables - Notes AFL Tables Rugby League Tables - Season 1928 AFL Tables Premiership History and Statistics RL1908 Andrews, Malcolm (2006) The ABC of Rugby League Austn Broadcasting Corpn, Sydney Haddan, Steve [2007] The Finals - 100 Years of National Rugby League Finals, Steve Haddan Publishing, Brisbane Results: 1921-30 at rabbitohs.com.au The Earl Park Riot at eraofthebiff.com Category:New South Wales Rugby League premiership NSWRFL season