Year: | 1969 |
Competition: | New South Wales Rugby Football League |
Teams: | 12 |
Count: | 11th |
Mpcount: | 15th |
Matches: | 136 |
Points: | 4258 |
Attendance: | 1788112 |
Top Point Scorer: | Eric Simms (265) |
Top Try Scorer: | Ken Irvine (17) |
Player Of The Year: | Denis Pittard (Rothmans Medal) |
Prevseason Link: | 1968 NSWRFL season |
Prevseason Year: | 1968 |
Nextseason Link: | 1970 NSWRFL season |
Nextseason Year: | 1970 |
The 1969 New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership was the 62nd season of Sydney's professional rugby league football competition, Australia's first. Twelve teams, including six Sydney-based foundation teams and another six from the Sydney area competed for the J.J. Giltinan Shield and WD & HO Wills Cup during the season, which culminated in a grand final between Balmain and South Sydney.
South Sydney fullback Eric Simms' tally of 265 points for the season from 112 goals, 19 field-goals and one try topped the season point scoring record that had been set in the 1935 season by Dave Brown.
The 1969 season's Rothmans Medallist was South Sydney's Denis Pittard.
The 1969 season also saw the retirement from the League of future Australian Rugby League Hall of Fame inductee, John Raper.
Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | F1 | F2 | F3 | GF | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Balmain | SOU +9 | CRO +18 | EAS +14 | PEN +1 | MAN +5 | CBY −4 | NEW +15 | WES +9 | PAR +2 | STG +5 | NOR +8 | SOU −17 | CRO +3 | EAS +2 | PEN −4 | MAN −3 | CBY +24 | NEW +10 | WES −7 | PAR +5 | STG +9 | NOR +2 | X | SOU −1 | MAN +1 | SOU +9 | |
Canterbury-Bankstown | NEW +18 | WES −21 | PAR +16 | STG +10 | NOR +6 | BAL +4 | CRO +27 | EAS −5 | PEN −5 | MAN −8 | SOU −20 | NEW −8 | WES +5 | PAR −9 | STG +4 | NOR −1 | BAL −24 | CRO +11 | EAS −15 | PEN −2 | MAN +12 | SOU −28 | |||||
Cronulla-Sutherland | NOR −11 | BAL −18 | SOU −39 | EAS −10 | PEN −20 | MAN −9 | CBY −27 | NEW +16 | WES −1 | PAR −7 | STG −4 | NOR +8 | BAL −3 | SOU −5 | EAS −5 | PEN +3 | MAN −7 | CBY −11 | NEW +11 | WES −10 | PAR +8 | STG −6 | |||||
Eastern Suburbs | STG +13 | NOR −9 | BAL −14 | CRO +10 | SOU −4 | PEN +3 | MAN −7 | CBY +5 | NEW +7 | WES −11 | PAR −12 | STG −4 | NOR 0 | BAL −2 | CRO +5 | SOU −27 | PEN +1 | MAN −28 | CBY +15 | NEW −18 | WES −17 | PAR −8 | |||||
Manly-Warringah | WES +11 | PAR +2 | STG −21 | NOR +18 | BAL −5 | CRO +9 | EAS +7 | PEN +1 | SOU −12 | CBY +8 | NEW −5 | WES +1 | PAR +16 | STG −1 | NOR −10 | BAL +3 | CRO +7 | EAS +28 | PEN +9 | SOU −4 | CBY −12 | NEW +7 | STG +9 | X | BAL −1 | ||
Newtown | CBY −18 | SOU −14 | WES −18 | PAR −25 | STG −3 | NOR −9 | BAL −15 | CRO −16 | EAS −7 | PEN 0 | MAN +5 | CBY +8 | SOU −20 | WES +6 | PAR −1 | STG −18 | NOR +6 | BAL −10 | CRO −11 | EAS +18 | PEN +7 | MAN −7 | |||||
North Sydney | CRO +11 | EAS +9 | PEN +3 | MAN −18 | CBY −6 | NEW +9 | WES −3 | PAR +4 | STG −23 | SOU +9 | BAL −8 | CRO −8 | EAS 0 | PEN +29 | MAN +10 | CBY +1 | NEW −6 | WES −5 | PAR +3 | STG −8 | SOU −20 | BAL −2 | |||||
Parramatta | PEN +11 | MAN −2 | CBY −16 | NEW +25 | WES +6 | SOU −27 | STG +1 | NOR −4 | BAL −2 | CRO +7 | EAS +12 | PEN −2 | MAN −16 | CBY +9 | NEW +1 | WES +6 | SOU +9 | STG −25 | NOR −3 | BAL −5 | CRO −8 | EAS +8 | |||||
Penrith | PAR −11 | STG −24 | NOR −3 | BAL −1 | CRO +20 | EAS −3 | SOU −1 | MAN −1 | CBY +5 | NEW 0 | WES +6 | PAR +2 | STG −1 | NOR −29 | BAL +4 | CRO −3 | EAS −1 | SOU −22 | MAN −9 | CBY +2 | NEW −7 | WES −10 | |||||
South Sydney | BAL −9 | NEW +14 | CRO +39 | WES +10 | EAS +4 | PAR +27 | PEN +1 | STG −4 | MAN +12 | NOR −9 | CBY +20 | BAL +17 | NEW +20 | CRO +5 | WES +7 | EAS +27 | PAR −9 | PEN +22 | STG +21 | MAN +4 | NOR +20 | CBY +28 | X | BAL +1 | X | BAL −9 | |
St. George | EAS −13 | PEN +24 | MAN +21 | CBY −10 | NEW +3 | WES −2 | PAR −1 | SOU +4 | NOR +23 | BAL −5 | CRO +4 | EAS +4 | PEN +1 | MAN +1 | CBY −4 | NEW +18 | WES +11 | PAR +25 | SOU −21 | NOR +8 | BAL −9 | CRO +6 | MAN −9 | ||||
Western Suburbs | MAN −11 | CBY +21 | NEW +18 | SOU −10 | PAR −6 | STG +2 | NOR +3 | BAL −9 | CRO +1 | EAS +11 | PEN −6 | MAN −1 | CBY −5 | NEW −6 | SOU −7 | PAR −6 | STG −11 | NOR +5 | BAL +7 | CRO +10 | EAS +17 | PEN +10 | |||||
Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | F1 | F2 | F3 | GF |
width=20 abbr="Position×" | width=175 | Team | width=20 abbr="Played" | Pld | width=20 abbr="Won" | W | width=20 abbr="Drawn" | D | width=20 abbr="Lost" | L | width=20 abbr="Points for" | PF | width=20 abbr="Points against" | PA | width=20 abbr="Points difference" | PD | width=20 abbr="Points" | Pts | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | South Sydney | 22 | 18 | 0 | 4 | 489 | 222 | +267 | 36 | ||||||||||
2 | Balmain | 22 | 17 | 0 | 5 | 410 | 304 | +106 | 34 | ||||||||||
3 | St. George | 22 | 14 | 0 | 8 | 411 | 323 | +88 | 28 | ||||||||||
4 | Manly-Warringah | 22 | 14 | 0 | 8 | 355 | 298 | +57 | 28 | ||||||||||
5 | Western Suburbs | 22 | 11 | 0 | 11 | 315 | 288 | +27 | 22 | ||||||||||
6 | Parramatta | 22 | 11 | 0 | 11 | 323 | 338 | -15 | 22 | ||||||||||
7 | North Sydney | 22 | 10 | 1 | 11 | 343 | 362 | -19 | 21 | ||||||||||
8 | Canterbury-Bankstown | 22 | 10 | 0 | 12 | 316 | 349 | -33 | 20 | ||||||||||
9 | Eastern Suburbs | 22 | 8 | 1 | 13 | 307 | 409 | -102 | 17 | ||||||||||
10 | Penrith | 22 | 6 | 1 | 15 | 311 | 398 | -87 | 13 | ||||||||||
11 | Newtown | 22 | 6 | 1 | 15 | 279 | 421 | -142 | 13 | ||||||||||
12 | Cronulla-Sutherland | 22 | 5 | 0 | 17 | 301 | 448 | -147 | 10 | ||||||||||
width=20 abbr="Position" | width=250 | Team | width=20 abbr="Round 1" | 1 | width=20 abbr="Round 2" | 2 | width=20 abbr="Round 3" | 3 | width=20 abbr="Round 4" | 4 | width=20 abbr="Round 5" | 5 | width=20 abbr="Round 6" | 6 | width=20 abbr="Round 7" | 7 | width=20 abbr="Round 8" | 8 | width=20 abbr="Round 9" | 9 | width=20 abbr="Round 10" | 10 | width=20 abbr="Round 11" | 11 | width=20 abbr="Round 12" | 12 | width=20 abbr="Round 13" | 13 | width=20 abbr="Round 14" | 14 | width=20 abbr="Round 15" | 15 | width=20 abbr="Round 16" | 16 | width=20 abbr="Round 17" | 17 | width=20 abbr="Round 18" | 18 | width=20 abbr="Round 19" | 19 | width=20 abbr="Round 20" | 20 | width=20 abbr="Round 21" | 21 | width=20 abbr="Round 22" | 22 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 12 | 14 | 14 | 16 | 18 | 20 | 22 | 24 | 26 | 26 | 28 | 30 | 32 | 34 | 36 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
2 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 10 | 12 | 14 | 16 | 18 | 20 | 20 | 22 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 26 | 28 | 28 | 30 | 32 | 34 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
3 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 10 | 12 | 14 | 16 | 18 | 18 | 20 | 22 | 24 | 24 | 26 | 26 | 28 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
4 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 12 | 14 | 14 | 16 | 18 | 18 | 18 | 20 | 22 | 24 | 26 | 26 | 26 | 28 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
5 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 14 | 16 | 18 | 20 | 22 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 14 | 16 | 18 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 22 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
7 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 8 | 10 | 10 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 13 | 15 | 17 | 19 | 19 | 19 | 21 | 21 | 21 | 21 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
8 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 | 14 | 14 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 18 | 18 | 18 | 20 | 20 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
9 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 11 | 11 | 13 | 13 | 15 | 15 | 17 | 17 | 17 | 17 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 7 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 13 | 13 | 13 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 11 | 13 | 13 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 8 | 10 | 10 |
In the preliminary final, Balmain trailed 12-14 against Manly-Warringah until late in the match when winger George Ruebner charged for the corner post to snatch a win in dramatic fashion.
Home | Score | Away | Match Information | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
width=17% | Date and Time | width=17% | Venue | width=11% | Referee | width=7% | Crowd | ||
Semi-finals | |||||||||
align=left | Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles | 19–10 | align=left | St. George Dragons | 30 August 1969 | Sydney Cricket Ground | Keith Page | 40,977 | |
align=left | South Sydney Rabbitohs | 14–13 | align=left | Balmain Tigers | 6 September 1969 | Sydney Cricket Ground | Keith Page | 44,159 | |
Preliminary Final | |||||||||
align=left | Balmain Tigers | 15–14 | align=left | Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles | 13 September 1969 | Sydney Cricket Ground | Keith Page | 41,410 | |
Grand Final | |||||||||
align=left | South Sydney Rabbitohs | 2–11 | align=left | Balmain Tigers | 20 September 1969 | Sydney Cricket Ground | Keith Page | 58,825 |
South Sydney | Position | Balmain |
---|---|---|
WG | 2. George Ruebner | |
CE | 3. Allan Fitzgibbon | |
CE | 4. Terry Parker | |
5. Brian James | 5. Len Killeen | |
6. Keith Outten | ||
7. Bob Grant | HB | 7. Dave Bolton |
13. John Sattler (c) | PR | 13. Garry Leo |
12. Elwyn Walters | ||
11. Barry McTaggart | ||
SR | 10. John Spencer | |
SR | 9. Joe Walsh | |
8. Peter Provan (c) | ||
Reserve | 14. Sid Williams | |
Clive Churchill | Coach | Leo Nosworthy |
However, as a result their favouritism Souths were overconfident and showed insufficient respect to the young Tigers, who had shown early-season form in beating them in round 1, and to their rookie coach Leo Nosworthy, who presented a well-prepared and determined Balmain team.
The Tigers led 6–0 at halftime after two penalty goals by Len Killeen and a Dave Bolton field-goal. Souths refusal to kick on the last tackle played into Balmain's hands as novice replacement hooker Peter Boulton managed to consistently regain possession from the scrums. Balmain backed up with a robust defensive line and kept South pinned in their own half.
After the break a Bob McCarthy fumble after a mix up with Paul Sait saw Bolton swoop on the ball deep in Souths territory. From the ruck Terry Parker slipped a beautiful pass to replacement winger Sid Williams who juggled but held the ball to cross the line for the only try of the match. With a 9–0 lead early in the second half and a penalty count that continued to mount in their favour, Balmain took control of the game and appeared to begin a ploy of feigning injury whenever Souths looked to build rhythm, stopping the Rabbitohs' flow of play.[1] Hence the match is still referred to today as "the lay-down grand final".[2]
Souths' protests proved pointless as referee Keith Page (in his first Grand Final) was powerless to stop the Tigers tactics under the rules of the day, and Balmain secured and held an 11–2 lead to win their first premiership since 1947 and to give a fairy-tale career farewell for their captain and 159-game veteran Peter Provan.
With the merging of Balmain and Western Suburbs in 1999 to become the Wests Tigers, the 1969 premiership remains the eleventh and last for the Balmain Tigers.
Balmain 11 (Tries: Williams. Goals: Killeen 2. Field Goal: D Bolton 2)
South Sydney 2 (Goals: Simms 1.)
The following statistics are as of the conclusion of Round 22.Top 5 point scorers
width=50 | Points | width=200 | Player | width=30 | Tries | width=30 | Goals | width=30 | Field Goals |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
255 | Eric Simms | 1 | 108 | 18 | |||||
185 | Len Killeen | 9 | 73 | 6 | |||||
166 | Bob Batty | 2 | 77 | 3 | |||||
158 | Bob Landers | 6 | 70 | 0 | |||||
156 | Graeme Langlands | 4 | 72 | 0 |
width=50 | Tries | width=200 | Player |
---|---|---|---|
17 | Ken Irvine | ||
16 | Johnny King | ||
12 | Denis Pittard | ||
10 | Bob McCarthy | ||
10 | John McDonald | ||
10 | Barry Beath | ||
10 | George Ambrum |
width=50 | Goals | width=200 | Player |
---|---|---|---|
108 | Eric Simms | ||
77 | Bob Batty | ||
73 | Len Killeen | ||
72 | Graeme Langlands | ||
70 | Bob Landers |