National Rugby League season 2004
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| 2004 National Rugby League season | |
|---|---|
 Logo of the NRL |
|
| Teams | 15 |
| Premiers |  Bulldogs (8th title) |
| Minor Premiers |  Sydney (16th title) |
| Matches played | 189 |
| Points scored | 9086 (average 48.074 per match) |
| Attendance | 2,942,231 (average 15,567 per match) |
| Top scorer(s) | Hazem El Masri (342 points) |
15 clubs contested the 7th NRL season, with the Bulldogs defeating the Sydney Roosters in the grand final and claiming their eighth premiership in club history. It was the Roosters' second grand final loss in a row.
Contents |
[edit] Season Summary
2004 was also notable for the emergence of players Sonny Bill Williams (Bulldogs) and Karmichael Hunt (Brisbane Broncos), and their performances, mature beyond their years, would be critical to the fortunes of their clubs. The North Queensland Cowboys qualified for the finals for the first time in their ten-year history, and shocked everybody by finishing just one game short of the grand final. During the finals, they won their first ever game against Queensland rivals, Brisbane, thus ending the career of Broncos stalwart Gorden Tallis. Also retiring in 2004 were Brad Fittler, Ryan Girdler (Penrith), Kevin Campion (North Queensland), Scott Sattler (Wests Tigers) and Robbie O'Davis (Newcastle).
The Bulldogs won a dramatic grand final against the Sydney Roosters 16-13, with Willie Mason winning the Clive Churchill Medal.
The beginning of the season was largely overshadowed with several Bulldogs players questioned by police in relation to an alleged rape of a 20-year old Coffs Harbour woman. An independent investigator, former New South Wales chief of detectives, would later fail to find any evidence of misconduct on behalf of the players, and no charges were pressed.
It would not be the last unsavoury headline for rugby league in 2004, with a crowd indicident at a Bulldogs-Roosters game on March 26, whilst two New South Wales State of Origin players were stood down from the squad on May 21 for unprofessional conduct.
Several players and coaches also made the headlines for the wrong reasons. Jamie Lyon walked out on the Parramatta club after the first round citing burnout and dissatisfaction with living in Sydney, and would later be linked with Manly in 2006. Daniel Anderson and Paul Langmack would have their contracts terminated at the New Zealand Warriors and South Sydney Rabbitohs respectively.
Andrew Johns would be injured in Newcastle's third game of the season against Parramatta, and subsequently miss the remainder season. The Knights missed the finals of the NRL for the first time since 1996.
[edit] Ladder
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | B | PF | PA | PD | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sydney |
24 | 19 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 710 | 368 | +342 | 42 |
| 2 | Canterbury |
24 | 19 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 760 | 491 | +269 | 42 |
| 3 |  Brisbane |
24 | 16 | 1 | 7 | 2 | 602 | 533 | +69 | 37 |
| 4 |  Penrith |
24 | 15 | 0 | 9 | 2 | 672 | 567 | +105 | 34 |
| 5 |  St George Illawarra |
24 | 14 | 0 | 10 | 2 | 624 | 415 | +209 | 32 |
| 6 |  Melbourne |
24 | 13 | 0 | 11 | 2 | 684 | 517 | +167 | 30 |
| 7 |  North Queensland |
24 | 12 | 1 | 11 | 2 | 526 | 514 | +12 | 29 |
| 8 |  Canberra |
24 | 11 | 0 | 13 | 2 | 554 | 613 | -59 | 26 |
| 9 |  Wests Tigers |
24 | 10 | 0 | 14 | 2 | 509 | 534 | -25 | 24 |
| 10 |  Newcastle |
24 | 10 | 0 | 14 | 2 | 516 | 617 | -101 | 24 |
| 11 |  Cronulla |
24 | 10 | 0 | 14 | 2 | 528 | 645 | -117 | 24 |
| 12 |  Parramatta |
24 | 9 | 0 | 15 | 2 | 517 | 626 | -109 | 22 |
| 13 |  Manly |
24 | 9 | 0 | 15 | 2 | 615 | 754 | -139 | 22 |
| 14 |  New Zealand |
24 | 6 | 0 | 18 | 2 | 427 | 693 | -266 | 16 |
| 15 |  South Sydney |
24 | 5 | 2 | 17 | 2 | 455 | 812 | -357 | 16 |
[edit] 2004 Finals Series
| Home¹ | Away¹ | Referee | Venue | Crowd | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| QF | Penrith | 31 | St Geo. Illa. | 30 | S.Hampstead | Penrith Stadium | 21 963 |
| QF | Brisbane | 14 | Melbourne | 31 | S.Clark | Suncorp Stadium | 31 100 |
| QF | Canterbury | 22 | North Qld | 30 | T.Mander | Telstra Stadium | 18 371 |
| QF | Syd.Roosters | 38 | Canberra | 12 | P.Simpkins | Aussie Stadium | 18 375 |
| SF | North Qld | 10 | Brisbane | 0 | T.Mander | Dairy Farmers Stadium² | 24 989 |
| SF | Canterbury | 43 | Melbourne | 18 | P.Simpkins | Aussie Stadium | 23 750 |
| PF | Penrith | 14 | Canterbury | 30 | T.Mander | Aussie Stadium | 37 868 |
| PF | Syd.Roosters | 19 | North Qld | 16 | P.Simpkins | Telstra Stadium | 43 048 |
| GF | Syd.Roosters | 13 | Canterbury | 16 | T.Mander | Telstra Stadium | 82 127 |
¹ Home field advantage applies only for quarter-finals, with remaining games played at neutral venues, unless otherwise notified. The home team in each instance is the higher ranked team on the competition table. ² Game relocated to Dairy Farmers Stadium, the Cowboys' home ground, from Aussie Stadium. Cowboys designated home team despite the Broncos finishing higher on the table.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- NRL official website
- [http://www.nrl.has.it Rugby League Tables and Statistics
