Group 17 Rugby League Explained

Group 17 Rugby League
Founded:1935
Inaugural:1959
Folded:2006
Re-Formed:2018
Teams:7
Championtag:Premiers
Champion: Rankins Springs
Season:2024
Most Champs: Hay Magpies
Count:12
Website:Western Riverina Community Cup
Proten Community Cup Rugby League on facebook

Group 17 is a rugby league competition based in the Riverina and Central West regions of New South Wales, Australia. The competition collapsed in 2006 and reformed in 2018 as the Western Riverina Community Cup with six teams. It is currently sponsored by a chicken farm company called Proten which has been sponsoring the whole competition since 2018.

The season runs from mid-May to late July, and features a knockout, six regular season rounds, and a three week finals series culminating in the Grand Final which is hosted by a different team each year.

History

Early History

Group 17 was formed in 1935 and originally centred around Griffith and Leeton, but was suspended during World War II.[1] However, when rugby league returned to normal competition after the war, Leeton, along with Griffith, Yenda, Yanco and others, joined the Wagga Wagga competition, Group 20. Group 20 later became the Griffith and District competition after the Wagga clubs joined Group 9.

Rugby league in the Western Riverina district began as an inter-town competition between Hillston, Merriwagga, Goolgowi and Hay. The competition was suspended during World War 2.

It reformed in 1947 as the 'Western Zone' with teams from Hay, Darlington Point, Goolgowi, Carrathool and two teams from Hillston, 'Town' and 'Country'. Tullibigeal joined during the 1950s, and won the 1965 Clayton Cup, the Country Rugby League's highest honour, but later departed to form the TLU Sharks with Lake Cargelligo in Group 20. In 1959, the league became known as Group 17, and featured two zones, with Zone 1 being centred around Hillston and Zone 2 around Hay.

1968 Clayton Cup "Final"

After both Euabalong and Darlington Point finished the 1968 season undefeated in Zones 1 and 2 respectively, and were left as the only two undefeated teams in the state, administrators were unsure of which side were more deserving of the coveted Clayton Cup as the best team in the Country Rugby League. The idea of settling who was the best overall Group 17 side had been resolved with a playoff match in the past, such as when Zone 1 side Tullibigeal defeated Hay (Zone 2) in 1967. Thus, a playoff final to determine the overall Group 17 Premier, and also the Clayton Cup winner, was set down for the 29th of September 1968 at Goolgowi.In a one-way encounter, the Darlington Point Red & Blacks completed a 20-0 shutout of the Euabalong Tigers side, were awarded the Clayton Cup, and settled the annual dispute over which of the two zones was stronger. The match remains the only one of its kind to this day, which is significant given that the Clayton Cup has been awarded annually since 1937, and various other tiebreakers have been used on every other occasion two teams finish with identical records as the best team in the state.

Darlington Point were considered too strong for the competition after the result and joined Group 20 the following year in 1969. In around 1969-70 the two Group 17 "Zones" merged to form a single competition.

1970s-2006

The Deniliquin Blue Heelers were the dominant force in the early 1970s winning three consecutive premierships from 1969-1971, before folding in 1975. Coleambally also left in 1972 and merged with Darlington Point to form a combined club in Group 20 known as the DPC Roosters. Tullibigeal and Lake Cargelligo also merged to form a combined side known as Tullibigeal-Lakes United, with the new club joining Group 20 in 1972.

Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, the competition sustained a decent standard, with eight clubs participating. More Clayton Cups were won by Group 17 clubs, with Rankins Springs (1993), Barellan (1999 and 2002) and Hillston (2006) all claiming the trophy. But by the 2000s, the Millennial Drought had caused many of the teams to be weakened, due to farming, the primary industry in the region, becoming not only unprofitable, but almost impossible. The competition collapsed after the 2006 season.

Western Riverina Community Cup Era (2018-present)

The competition was revived in 2018 as the Group 17 Western Riverina Community Cup, with six teams participating. The format involved a knockout and five rounds followed by semi-finals and a grand final. In each round, all three games were played at the same venue, similar to the NRL's Magic Round concept.[2] [3] The season increased to six games the following year, where it has remained.[4]

Clubs

DesignClubNicknameYearsHome GroundNo of PremiershipsPremiership Years
BarellanRams1950s–2004, 2018–presentBarellan Sports Ground91973–74, 1976, 1978, 1981, 1984, 1999, 2002–03
DeniliquinBlueheelers1960s–1977, 2025–presentRotary Park, Deniliquin 31969–71
Goolgowi-MerriwaggaRabbitohs1955–2006, 2018–presentGoolgowi Recreation Ground81965–66, 1977, 1985, 1992, 2004–05, 2019
HillstonBluebirds1955–2006, 2018–presentStan Peters Oval, Hillston81979–80, 1983, 1986–88, 1996, 2006
IvanhoeRoosters1950s–2004, 2018–presentSahara Oval, Ivanhoe0None
NarranderaLizards2001, 2018–presentNarrandera Sports Ground 22022–23
Rankins SpringsDragons1955–2006, 2018–presentRankins Springs Recreation Ground71962, 1993, 1997, 2000, 2018, 2021, 2024

Previous Clubs

Past participants in the Group 17 competition included:

Bold indicates that the club fielded a team in the 2006 First-Grade competition.

Grand Finals

Group 17 Zone 2 Grand Finals 1959-1972!Season!Premiers!Score!Runners-up!Coach!Report!Minor Premiers
1959 Hay Magpies Ivanhoe Roosters
1960 Hay Magpies Darlington Point
1961 Hay Magpies Goolgowi Rabbitohs
1962 Rankins Springs Dragons Darlington Point
1963 Darlington Point Hay Magpies
1964 Darlington Point Hay Magpies
1965 Goolgowi Rabbitohs Rankins Springs Dragons
1966 Goolgowi Rabbitohs5–3 Hay Magpies
1967 Hay Magpies17–9 Coleambally
1968 Darlington Point32–12 Hay MagpiesWilliam "Bill" Watson Darlington Point
1969 Deniliquin Blue Heelers Coleambally
1970 Deniliquin Blue Heelers26–14 Goolgowi RabbitohsBarry Cottam
1971 Deniliquin Blue Heelers26–14 Goolgowi RabbitohsBarry Cottam
1972 Hay Magpies26–9 Deniliquin Blue HeelersB. Curtis
Group 17 Grand Finals 1973–present! Season! Premiers! Score! Runners-up! Coach! Report! Minor Premiers
1973 Barellan Rams41–2 Goolgowi RabbitohsR. Murdoch
1974 Barellan Rams27–8 Hay MagpiesR. Murdoch
1975 Hay Magpies25–11 Goolgowi RabbitohsM. Johnston
1976 Barellan Rams9–3 Goolgowi-Merriwagga RabbitohsGreg Smith
1977 Goolgowi-Merriwagga Rabbitohs23–19 Hay MagpiesGreg Byrnes
1978 Barellan Rams9–5 Hillston BluebirdsJ. Campbell
1979 Hillston Bluebirds16–10 Rankins Springs DragonsG. Saddler
1980 Hillston Bluebirds27–19 Rankins Springs DragonsJohn Sheridan
1981 Barellan Rams27–3 Hillston BluebirdsP. O'Brien
1982 Hay Magpies23–15 Hillston BluebirdsKevin Goldspink
1983 Hillston Bluebirds38–36 Weethalle KangaroosLaurie TownsendTAN[5] Hay Magpies
1984 Barellan Rams14–2 Goolgowi RabbitohsMick TrembathTAN[6] Goolgowi Rabbitohs
1985 Goolgowi Rabbitohs8–6 Hay MagpiesMick Turner Goolgowi Rabbitohs
1986 Hillston Bluebirds16–5 Barellan RamsRay Schaefer Hillston Bluebirds
1987 Hillston Bluebirds34–29 Ivanhoe RoostersRay Schaefer Hillston Bluebirds
1988 Hillston Bluebirds18–6 Goolgowi-Merriwagga RabbitohsRay Schaefer Hay Magpies
1989 Hay Magpies20–18 Goolgowi-Merriwagga RabbitohsNeil-John Nisbet Hay Magpies
1990 Hay Magpies26–14 Goolgowi-Merriwagga RabbitohsNeil-John Nisbet Goolgowi Rabbitohs
1991 Hay Magpies14–6 Hillston BluebirdsNeil-John Nisbet Hay Magpies
1992 Goolgowi Rabbitohs14–0 Rankins Springs DragonsJohn BarzanTAN[7] Goolgowi Rabbitohs
1993 Rankins Springs Dragons34–16 Hay MagpiesStuart VearingTAN[8] Rankins Springs Dragons
1994 Hay Magpies27–18 Hillston BluebirdsChris AylettTAN[9] YT[10] Ivanhoe Roosters
1995 Hay Magpies38–10 Rankins Springs DragonsJack ByrnesTAN[11] YT[12] Barellan Rams
1996 Hillston Bluebirds22–8 Whitton BullsJohn TownsendTAN[13] Whitton Bulls
1997 Rankins Springs Dragons50–10 Whitton BullsSteve SchmetzerTAN[14] Rankins Springs Dragons
1998 Whitton Bulls20–12 Barellan RamsJames Mason and Shane BamblettTAN[15] Whitton Bulls
1999 Barellan Rams38–22 Rankins Springs DragonsJohn Waide Barellan Rams
2000 Rankins Springs Dragons34–20 Barellan RamsStuart VearingTAN[16] Barellan Rams
2001 Whitton Bulls32–28 Rankins Springs DragonsJohn Pannowitz (Co-coach)TAN[17] Whitton Bulls
2002 Barellan Rams10–7 Whitton BullsClint HaldenTAN[18] Barellan Rams
2003 Barellan Rams22–2 Rankins Springs Dragons Hay Magpies
2004 Goolgowi Rabbitohs26–12 Barellan RamsGreg BorgerTAN[19] Goolgowi Rabbitohs
2005 Goolgowi Rabbitohs31–28 Hillston BluebirdsGreg BorgerTAN[20] Goolgowi Rabbitohs
2006 Hillston Bluebirds32–0 Rankins Springs DragonsSteve Parr Hillston Bluebirds
2007–17 hiatus due to drought & not enough clubs
2018 Rankins Springs Dragons16–10 Goolgowi RabbitohsJamie Parsons & Joshua CurpheyYT[21] TAN[22] Rankins Springs Dragons
2019 Goolgowi Rabbitohs22–6 Narrandera LizardsAlex Brown & John Michael CahillTAN[23] Goolgowi Rabbitohs
2020 season cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic
2021 Rankins Springs Dragons 10–8 Goolgowi RabbitohsJamie Parsons & John Power Goolgowi Rabbitohs
2022 Narrandera Lizards20–14 Ivanhoe RoostersKye LongfordBFBF[24] RG[25] Ivanhoe Roosters
2023 Narrandera Lizards20–14 Ivanhoe RoostersKye LongfordBFBF[26] Narrandera Lizards
2024 Rankins Springs Dragons20–18 Narrandera LizardsDamian Walker & Josh JohnstonBFBF[27] Narrandera Lizards
The use of (*) indicates that the premiers for that season won the Clayton Cup as the premier team in NSWCRL competitions statewide (regionally, excludes Sydney) for that year.

Women's Nines Grand Finals

Group 17 Women's Nines Grand Finals 2022–present! Season! Premiers! Score! Runners-up! Coach! Report! Minor Premiers
2022 Narrandera Lizards16–0 Goolgowi RabbitohsOwen JonesBFBF RG Narrandera Lizards
2023 Barellan Rams16–14 Ivanhoe RoostersSam EverettBFBF[28] Barellan Rams
2024 Barellan Rams26–6 Ivanhoe RoostersBrittany EverettBFBF Barellan Rams

Reserve Grade Premiers

Group 17 Reserve Grade Premiers 1970-1994! Season! Premiers! Score! Runners-up! Minor Premiers
1970 Hay Magpies Hillston Bluebirds
1971 Goolgowi Rabbitohs Barellan Rams
1972 Hay Magpies Goolgowi Rabbitohs
1973 Barellan Rams Goolgowi Rabbitohs
1974 Barellan Rams Goolgowi Rabbitohs
1975 Finley Tigers Deniliquin Blue Heelers
1976 Ivanhoe Roosters Goolgowi Rabbitohs
1977 Barellan Rams Weethalle Kangaroos
1978 Weethalle Kangaroos Ivanhoe Roosters
1979 Hillston Bluebirds Barellan Rams
1980 Hillston Bluebirds Rankins Springs Dragons
1981 Barellan Rams Goolgowi Rabbitohs
1982 Hillston Bluebirds Goolgowi Rabbitohs
1983 Hay Magpies Barellan Rams
1984 Hay Magpies Goolgowi Rabbitohs
1985 Hay Magpies Goolgowi Rabbitohs
1986 Goolgowi Rabbitohs Barellan Rams
1987 Barellan Rams Rankins Springs Dragons
1988 Goolgowi Rabbitohs Barellan Rams
1989 Goolgowi Rabbitohs Hillston Bluebirds
1990 Weethalle/Three Ways United Rankins Springs Dragons
1991 Rankins Springs Dragons Weethalle Kangaroos
1992 Goolgowi Rabbitohs Hillston Bluebirds
1993 Rankins Springs Dragons10-6 Hay Magpies
1994 Hillston Bluebirds32-8 Barellan Rams

Group 17 Knockout - Ron Hunt Memorial Shield

Group 17 Knockout Winners 1974-1995!Season!Winner
1974 Barellan Rams
1975 Goolgowi Rabbitohs
1976 Goolgowi Rabbitohs
1977 Hay Magpies
1978 Barellan Rams
1979 Hillston Bluebirds
1980 Hillston Bluebirds
1981 Barellan Rams
1982 Euabalong Tigers
1983 Hay Magpies
1984 Barellan Rams
1985 Goolgowi Rabbitohs
1986 Barellan Rams
1987 Goolgowi Rabbitohs
1988 Hay Magpies
1989 Goolgowi Rabbitohs
1990 Rankins Springs Dragons
1991 Hay Magpies
1992 Goolgowi Rabbitohs
1993 Rankins Springs Dragons
1994 Hillston Bluebirds
1995 Rankins Springs Dragons

Best and Fairest Winners

First Grade

First Grade - Riverine Grazier Medal!Season! Player!Club
1971Ian Springali Hay Magpies
1972Geoff Langford Barellan Rams
1973Greg Byrnes Goolgowi Rabbitohs
Neil Scobie Hay Magpies
1974Mick O'Connor Deniliquin Blue Heelers
1975Ray Hardie Hillston Bluebirds
1976Gary Gray Griffith Three Ways United
1977Neil Scobie Hay Magpies
1978Mick Ireson Hay Magpies
1979Paul McCanna Rankins Springs Dragons
Jim Hanlon Hillston Bluebirds
1980
1981Greg Reko Hillston Bluebirds
David Robertson Rankins Springs Dragons
1982Robert Matthews Hay Magpies
1983Michael Lewis Weethalle Kangaroos
Neil-John Nisbet Hay Magpies
1984Warren Butler Barellan Rams
1985Jim Vitucci Goolgowi Rabbitohs
Robert Matthews Hay Magpies
1986Ray Schaefer Hillston Bluebirds
1987Danny Byrnes Hay Magpies
1988Robert Matthews Hay Magpies
1989Wayne Dunbar Hay Magpies
Col Pickersgill Rankins Springs Dragons
1990Jim Vitucci Goolgowi Rabbitohs
1991John Woods Hay Magpies
1992Stuart Vearing Rankins Springs Dragons
Wayne Basham Barellan Rams
1993Paul Glyde Rankins Springs Dragons
1994Stuart Vearing Rankins Springs Dragons
1995Stuart Vearing Rankins Springs Dragons
Charlie Prince Rankins Springs Dragons
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
Recess 2007-17
2018
2019
2020Not Awarded - COVID-19
2021
2022
2023William Charles Ivanhoe Roosters
2024Oswald Herrmann Barellan Rams

Women's 9s

!Season!Player!Club
2022
2023
2024Bobbi-Lee Goolagong Ivanhoe Roosters

Reserve Grade

Reserve Grade - Referees' Association Medal!Season!Player!Club
1971Ross Hulm Goolgowi Rabbitohs
1972Jock McRae Hay Magpies
1973David Coates Goolgowi Rabbitohs
1974Brian Peters Deniliquin Blue Heelers
1975Brian Peters Deniliquin Blue Heelers
1976Warren Clark Hillston Bluebirds
1977Leigh Heaslip Weethalle Kangaroos
1978Robert Clark Ivanhoe Roosters
1979Neil Baillie Hillston Bluebirds
1980David Robertson Rankins Springs Dragons
1981Max Hutchison Hillston Bluebirds
1982Lionel Garner Hay Magpies
1983Lester Apps Hillston Bluebirds
1984Rob Christian Rankins Springs Dragons
1985
1986David Beazley Goolgowi Rabbitohs
1987Geordie Groat Rankins Springs Dragons
1988Ian Sherer Hay Magpies
Wayne Kennedy Hillston Bluebirds
1989Wayne Parsons Rankins Springs Dragons
1990Wayne Parsons Rankins Springs Dragons
1991Glenn Judd Weethalle Kangaroos
1992Jamie Ziebath Goolgowi Rabbitohs
1993Paul Lamont Rankins Springs Dragons
Wayne Dunbar Hay Magpies
1994Troy Kennedy Hillston Bluebirds
1995Colin Thorpe Euabalong Tigers

Sources

Years Item Via
1959–70Post: 19/07/2022Proten Community Cup Facebook
1967–69, 1971–96 Country Rugby League Annual Report State Library of NSW
1970 to 19951995 Carlton Group 17 Grand Final ProgramHard Copy
1983 to 2005The Area NewsMicrofilm copies at State Library of NSW
2003 to 2006 Rugby League Week Bound copies at State Library of NSW
2003 to 2006 Rugby League Week eResources at State Library of NSW
2018 to 2019 Various Newspaper Websites As referenced
2022Battlers For Bush FootyWebsite
2022The Riverine GrazierWebsite

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Group 9 History. 1939 . 22 October 2022 . 22 October 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221022091720/http://group9history.com.au/1939-2/ . dead .
  2. Web site: ProTen Community Cup bringing Rugby League Back to Group 17 after 12 years. 2 March 2018. Country Rugby League. Daily Advertiser. 13 June 2019.
  3. Web site: Smith . Tallon . 2022-11-04 . SPOTLIGHT: EVERY ROUND IS MAGIC ROUND . 2023-09-09 . Battlers For Bush Footy . en-GB.
  4. Web site: Log into Facebook. Facebook. 28 March 2023.
  5. News: Riverina League Scoreboard. The Area News. 23 Aug 1983. 23.
  6. News: Rugby League Scoreboard. The Area News. 28 Aug 1984. 19.
  7. News: Goolgowi too strong in wet. The Area News. 3 Sep 1992. 26.
  8. News: Dragons slay Magpies to take Group 17 title. The Area News. 6 Sep 1993. 21.
  9. News: Hay beats all the odds to win the flag. The Area News. 5 Sep 1994. 22.
  10. Web site: 1994 Group 17 Grand Final (Hay Magpies v Hillston Bluebirds). https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211219/wJnnCxsEZVY . 2021-12-19 . live. 8 Jan 2012. 1994. YouTube. 13 Jun 2019.
  11. News: Hay makes it a double. The Area News. 18 Sep 1995. 28.
  12. Web site: Hay Magpies vs Rankin Springs 1995 Group 17 Grand Final Part 8. https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211219/yTqf4OIRH7c . 2021-12-19 . live. 25 Jun 2013. 1995. YouTube. 13 Jun 2019.
  13. News: Hillston picks up the double. The Area News. 9 Sep 1996. 20.
  14. News: Springs too good. The Area News. 8 Sep 1997. 24.
  15. News: Whitton finally make it - Glory for Bulls as they take out Group 17 premiership. The Area News. 7 Sep 1998. 27.
  16. News: Rankin Springs runs away with Group 17 title. The Area News. 4 Sep 2000. 20. Stratton. Michael.
  17. News: Bulls charge over Dragons. The Area News. 10 Sep 2001. 24.
  18. News: Barellan holds on in thriller. The Area News. 11 Sep 2002. 28. Stratton. Michael.
  19. News: Rabbitohs premiers after 12-year drought. The Area News. 13 Sep 2004. 24. Malone. Matt.
  20. News: Rabbitohs clinch a three-point victory - Goolgowi scores back-to-back victories. The Area News. 29 Aug 2005. 28. Malone. Matt.
  21. Web site: Match Highlights: Rankins Springs Vs Goolgowi - Grand Final, 2018. https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211219/8g0_oJsISRw . 2021-12-19 . live. 24 July 2018. YouTube. Rankins Springs Dragons RLFC. 13 June 2019.
  22. Web site: Rankins Springs defeat Goolgowi in ProTen Community Cup grand final. Stratton. Michael. 22 Jul 2020. The Area News. 15 Apr 2020.
  23. Web site: Goolgowi defeat Narrandera in the ProTen Community Cup. Stratton. Michael. 28 Jul 2019. The Area News. 15 Apr 2020.
  24. Web site: Smith . Tallon . 2022-11-03 . Narrandera seeing double after Lizards crawl to community cup championships . 2023-04-13 . Battlers For Bush Footy . en-GB.
  25. Web site: Narrandera seeing double after Lizards crawl to community cup championships . 2022-11-03 . The Riverine Grazier . en-US.
  26. Web site: Smith . Tallon . 2023-08-02 . "Narrandera’s the best team of all": Lizards go back-to-back in the Proten Community Cup . 2023-08-02 . Battlers For Bush Footy . en-GB.
  27. Web site: Smith . Tallon . 2024-07-23 . Proten Cup: Dragons defy halftime deficit to shock Lizards in epic finale, Rams win again . 2024-07-27 . Battlers For Bush Footy . en-GB.
  28. Web site: Smith . Tallon . 2023-08-02 . Rams for the win: Barellan take out Women’s Nines title undefeated in inaugural season . 2023-08-02 . Battlers For Bush Footy . en-GB.

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