| 1944 NSWRFL season | |
| Teams | 8 |
| Premiers | Balmain (8th title) |
| Minor premiers | Newtown (4th title) |
| Matches played | 60 |
| Points scored | 2159 (total) 35.983 (per match) |
| Top point scorer(s) | Tom Kirk (185) |
| Top try scorer(s) | Sid Goodwin (22) |
The 1944 New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership was the thirty-seventh season of Sydney's top-level rugby league football competition, Australia's first. Eight teams from across the city contested the premiership during the season which culminated in Balmain's victory over Newtown in the grand final.[1]
Contents |
| Balmain | Canterbury-Bankstown | Eastern Suburbs | Newtown |
| North Sydney | South Sydney | St. George | Western Suburbs |
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Newtown | 14 | 11 | 0 | 3 | 379 | 220 | +159 | 22 |
| 2 | Balmain | 14 | 10 | 1 | 3 | 402 | 171 | +231 | 21 |
| 3 | St. George | 14 | 9 | 0 | 5 | 230 | 238 | -8 | 18 |
| 4 | South Sydney | 14 | 7 | 1 | 6 | 193 | 287 | -94 | 15 |
| 5 | North Sydney | 14 | 5 | 1 | 8 | 204 | 202 | +2 | 11 |
| 6 | Western Suburbs | 14 | 4 | 2 | 8 | 180 | 246 | -66 | 10 |
| 7 | Eastern Suburbs | 14 | 4 | 0 | 10 | 227 | 360 | -133 | 8 |
| 8 | Canterbury-Bankstown | 14 | 3 | 1 | 10 | 206 | 297 | -91 | 7 |
Newtown looked set for back-to-back titles after finishing as minor premiers. Both Newtown and Balmain won their respective semi-finals with the Bluebags blitzing St George by 55-7. However injuries and war duties then ravaged the side including the key losses of Len Smith and Herb Narvo who had starred for them all season. Balmain thus overcame Newtown 19-16 in the Final, enabling Newtown a "right of challenge'.
| Home | Score | Away | Match Information | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date and Time | Venue | Referee | Crowd | |||||
| Semi Finals | ||||||||
| Newtown | 55 - 7 | St. George | 26 August 1944 | Sydney Cricket Ground | Tom McMahon | 34,883 | ||
| Balmain | 15 - 6 | South Sydney | 2 September 1944 | Sydney Cricket Ground | Jack O'Brien | 28,237 | ||
| Final | ||||||||
| Newtown | 16 - 19 | Balmain | 9 September 1944 | Sydney Cricket Ground | Tom McMahon | 41,807 | ||
| Grand Final | ||||||||
| Newtown | 8 - 12 | Balmain | 16 September 1944[2] | Sydney Cricket Ground | Jack O'Brien | 24,186 | ||
| Newtown Bluebags | Position | Balmain Tigers |
|---|---|---|
| Tom Kirk | FB | Dave Parkinson |
| Sid Goodwin | WG | Arthur Patton (c) |
| Lin McLean | CE | Joe Jorgenson |
| Bruce Ryan | CE | Tom Bourke |
| Norm Jacobson | WG | Keith Parkinson |
| Tom Nevin | FE | Stan Ponchard |
| Jack Kadwell | HB | Pat Devery |
| Charlie Montgomery | PR | Jack Hampstead |
| Jimmy Brailey | HK | George Watt |
| Frank Farrell (c) | PR | Colin Campbell |
| Keith Phillips | SR | Athol Smith |
| Len Ryan | SR | Sid Ryan |
| Charles Cahill | LK | Dawson Buckley |
| Arthur Folwell | Coach | Norm "Latchem" Robinson |
Newtown exercised their "right of challenge" as minor premiers and called for a Grand Final. In a low scoring affair Balmain's representative centre Joe Jorgenson kicked two late penalty goals to give the Tigers a 12-8 win and their 8th title.
Balmain 12 (Tries: Devery, K Parkinson. Goals: Jorgenson 3)
defeated
Newtown 8 (Tries: Farrell, McLean. Goals: Kirk)
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