| 1971 NSWRFL season | |
| Teams | 12 |
| Premiers | South Sydney (20th title) |
| Minor premiers | Manly-Warringah (1st title) |
| Matches played | 136 |
| Points scored | 4477 (total) 32.919 (per match) |
| Attendance | 1,562,338 (total) 11,488 (per match) |
| Top try scorer(s) | Paul Cross (18) |
The 1971 New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership was the sixty-fourth season of Sydney's professional rugby league football competition, Australia's first. Twelve teams, including six foundation clubs and another six admitted post-1908, competed for the J. J. Giltinan Shield during the season, which culminated in a Grand Final match for the W.D. & H.O. Wills between the South Sydney and St. George clubs.
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The season saw the number of tackles in a set increased from four to six. In addition, the number of points awarded for a field goal was reduced from two to one.[1]
Each side met all others twice in twenty-two regular season rounds, resulting in the top four teams consisting of Manly-Warringah, South Sydney, St. George and Parramatta who fought out three finals for the right to play in the Grand Final.
The 1971 Rothmans Medal was won by South Sydney's five-eighth Denis Pittard while Rugby League Week awarded their player of the year award to South Sydney's halfback Bob Grant.
This season marked the end of a 23-year run where all but two of the premierships were won by St George or South Sydney.
| Balmain | Canterbury-Bankstown | Cronulla-Sutherland | Eastern Suburbs |
| Manly-Warringah | Newtown | North Sydney | Parramatta |
| Penrith | South Sydney | St. George | Western Suburbs |
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Manly-Warringah | 22 | 19 | 0 | 3 | 528 | 260 | +268 | 38 |
| 2 | South Sydney | 22 | 17 | 0 | 5 | 499 | 308 | +191 | 34 |
| 3 | St. George | 22 | 15 | 1 | 6 | 392 | 283 | +109 | 31 |
| 4 | Parramatta | 22 | 12 | 0 | 10 | 383 | 355 | +28 | 24 |
| 5 | Balmain | 22 | 11 | 0 | 11 | 366 | 398 | -32 | 22 |
| 6 | Canterbury-Bankstown | 22 | 11 | 0 | 11 | 355 | 422 | -87 | 22 |
| 7 | Cronulla-Sutherland | 22 | 10 | 0 | 12 | 352 | 310 | +42 | 20 |
| 8 | Penrith | 22 | 10 | 0 | 12 | 283 | 372 | -89 | 20 |
| 9 | Eastern Suburbs | 22 | 9 | 1 | 12 | 344 | 339 | +5 | 19 |
| 10 | Newtown | 22 | 7 | 1 | 14 | 282 | 401 | -119 | 15 |
| 11 | North Sydney | 22 | 5 | 1 | 16 | 265 | 446 | -181 | 11 |
| 12 | Western Suburbs | 22 | 4 | 0 | 18 | 336 | 471 | -135 | 8 |
Under the guidance of revolutionary head-coach Jack Gibson who was in 1971 beginning to embrace the attitude and training methods used in the United States' National Football League, St. George in 1971 had reached the Grand Final in all three grades.
| Home | Score | Away | Match Information | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date and Time | Venue | Referee | Crowd | |||||
| Semi Finals | ||||||||
| St. George | 19 - 8 | Parramatta | 28 August 1971 | Sydney Cricket Ground | Keith Page | 38,157 | ||
| Manly-Warringah | 13 - 19 | South Sydney | 4 September 1971 | Sydney Cricket Ground | Keith Holman | 50,261 | ||
| Preliminary Final | ||||||||
| Manly-Warringah | 12 - 15 | St. George | 11 September 1971 | Sydney Cricket Ground | Keith Page | 45,883 | ||
| Grand Final | ||||||||
| South Sydney | 16 - 10 | St. George | 18 September 1971 | Sydney Cricket Ground | Keith Holman | 62,838 | ||
| St. George | Position | South Sydney |
|---|---|---|
| Graeme Langlands (c) | FB | Eric Simms |
| Ken Batty | WG | Keith Edwards |
| Ron Chapman | CE | Paul Sait |
| Ken Maddison | CE | Bob Honan |
| Geoff Carr | WG | Ray Branighan |
| Tony Branson | FE | Denis Pittard |
| Billy Smith | HB | Bob Grant |
| Harry Eden | PR | John Sattler |
| Colin Rasmussen | HK | George Piggins |
| Grahame Bowen | PR | John O'Neill |
| Peter Fitzgerald | SR | Bob McCarthy |
| Barry Beath | SR | Gary Stevens |
| Ted Walton | LK | Ron Coote |
| Mick Dryden | Reserve | |
| Russell Cox | Reserve | |
| Jack Gibson | Coach | Clive Churchill |
Against a battle-hardened Souths side with a larger pack, the young Dragons went into the Grand Final as clear underdogs.
The first half was a gruelling affair with the only points coming from an Eric Simms field goal. At half-time Souths were in front by the unlikely scoreline of 1-0.
Souths raced ahead in the second half and at one stage held an 11-0 lead. The Dragons fought back with tries to Barry Beath and Ted Walton. Graeme Langlands added the extras, including a magnificent sideline conversion.
With the score at 11-10 and with only 12 minutes remaining, Saints looked to be getting on top of their more fancied rivals. However a match-winning try from Bob McCarthy showed the experience of the Rabbitohs, who won their fourth title in a five-year period. Souths hooker George Piggins was hailed as a hero, playing himself to a standstill in what was ultimately a closely fought encounter.
The premiership victory remains South Sydney's most recent to date.
South Sydney 16 (Tries: Branighan, Coote, McCarthy. Goals: Simms 3. Field Goal: Simms.)
St George 10 (Tries: Beath, Walton. Goals: Langlands 2.)
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