| Competition: | National Soccer League |
| Season: | 1977 |
| Dates: | 2 April — 26 September 1977 |
| Winners: | Eastern Suburbs 1st title |
| Matches: | 182 |
| Total Goals: | 498 |
| League Topscorer: | Dixie Deans (16 goals)[1] |
| Best Goalkeeper: | Allan Maher (12 clean sheets) |
| Biggest Home Win: | Adelaide City 10–3 Mooroolbark (5 September 1977) |
| Biggest Away Win: | Fitzroy United 1–8 Marconi Fairfield (20 June 1977) |
| Highest Scoring: | Adelaide City 10–3 Mooroolbark (5 September 1977) |
| Longest Wins: | 6 matches Fitzroy United |
| Longest Unbeaten: | 17 matches Eastern Suburbs |
| Longest Winless: | 12 matches Mooroolbark |
| Longest Losses: | 5 matches Brisbane Lions |
| Highest Attendance: | 15,000 (13 June 1977) |
| Lowest Attendance: | 300 Mooroolbark 1–3 Adelaide City (5 June 1977) |
| Nextseason: | 1978 |
The 1977 National Soccer League season was the first season of the National Soccer League of Australia. The league was not only the first national soccer league in Australia but the first of any of the forms of football in Australia. Clubs predominantly joined from the top leagues in each state, with the exception of Tasmanian and Western Australia, and Canberra City forming in 1977 to join the league. The inaugural champions were Eastern Suburbs.
Attempts had been made to start a national league several times during the 1960s and 1970s, however it wasn't until 1975 that the talk became serious. In April 1975, nine clubs from New South Wales, Queensland and South Australia agreed to form a national league in either 1976 or 1977. Frank Lowy, president of Hakoah-Eastern Suburbs and Alex Pongrass, St George-Budapest president led a concerted effort to bring in teams from Victoria over objections from the state association. Eventually, four Victorian clubs joined with the addition of a team from the Australian Capital Territory.[2] [3]
Table lists in alphabetical order.
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals[4] |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dixie Deans | Adelaide City | 16 |
| 2 | Terry Smith | Eastern Suburbs | 14 |
| 3 |  Murray Barnes | Eastern Suburbs | 12 |
| John Kosmina | West Adelaide | ||
| 5 | Gary Cole | Fitzroy United | 11 |
| 6 | Geoff Morris | Brisbane Lions | 10 |
| 7 | Branko Buljevic | Fitzroy United | 9 |
| Graham Norris | Western Suburbs | ||
| John Nyskohus | Adelaide City | ||
| Peter Sharne | Marconi Fairfield |
| Player | For | Against | Result | Date | Ref | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| | Eastern Suburbs | Adelaide City | 6–1 (H) | 7 May 1977 | [5] | |
| Eastern Suburbs | Brisbane Lions | 4–0 (A) | 5 June 1977 | [6] | ||
| | Marconi | Fitzroy | 8–1 (A) | 20 June 1977 | [7] | |
| | Brisbane Lions | Western Suburbs | 4–0 (H) | 25 July 1977 | [8] | |
| | South Melbourne | Mooroolbark | 4–2 (A) | 29 August 1977 | [9] | |
| Adelaide City | Mooroolbark | 10–3 (H) | 5 September 1977 | [10] | ||
| Adelaide City | Footscray | 4–3 (A) | 12 September 1977 | [11] |
| Rank | Player | Club | Clean sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alan Maher | Marconi Fairfield | 12 |
| 2 | Terry Eaton | Western Suburbs | 11 |
| 3 | Peter Blasby | Fitzroy United | 9 |
| Roger Romanowicz | Adelaide City | ||
| 5 | Gary Meier | Sydney Olympic | 8 |
| 6 | Dennis Boland | Footscray JUST | 7 |
 Osvaldo Borzi | Brisbane City | ||
| Jack Reilly | South Melbourne | ||
| 9 | Martyn Crook | West Adelaide | 6 |
 Phil Dando | Brisbane Lions |
Kevin Mullen (Eastern Suburbs) Alan Niven (Brisbane Lions) Dave Pillans (West Adelaide)| Award | Name | Club | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Player of the Year | Jimmy Rooney | Marconi | |
| Young Player of the Year | John Kosmina | West Adelaide | |
| Coach of the Year | Rale Rasic | Marconi |
Source:[12]