1985 NSWRL season
| 1985 New South Wales Rugby League | |
|---|---|
| Teams | 13 |
| Premiers |
 Canterbury-Bankstown (5th title) |
| Minor premiers |
 St. George (15th title) |
| Matches played | 163 |
| Points scored |
5416 (total) 33.227 (per match) |
| Attendance |
1,450,162 (total) 8,897 (per match) |
| Top point scorer(s) |
 Mick Cronin (204) |
| Top try scorer(s) |
Steve Linnane (17) |
The 1985 New South Wales Rugby League premiership was the seventy-eighth season of professional rugby league football in Australia. Thirteen teams competed for the J J Giltinan Shield and Winfield Cup during the season, which culminated in a grand final between the Canterbury-Bankstown and St. George clubs. This season NSWRL teams also competed for the 1985 National Panasonic Cup.
Season summary
Twenty-six regular season rounds were played from March till September, resulting in a top five of St. George, Balmain, Canterbury, Parramatta and Penrith battling it out in the finals
The 1985 season's Rothmans Medallist was Balmain's lock, Wayne Pearce. The Dally M Award was given to Penrith's halfback, Greg Alexander, while Rugby League Week gave its player of the year award to Parramatta's lock, Ray Price.
Teams
The lineup of clubs remained unchanged from the previous year, with thirteen contesting the 1985 premiership, including five Sydney-based foundation teams, another six from Sydney, one from greater New South Wales and one from the Australian Capital Territory
Ladder
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | B | PF | PA | PD | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | St. George |
24 | 18 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 470 | 264 | +206 | 42 |
| 2 |  Balmain |
24 | 18 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 494 | 304 | +190 | 40 |
| 3 | Canterbury-Bankstown |
24 | 16 | 2 | 6 | 2 | 435 | 267 | +168 | 38 |
| 4 | Parramatta |
24 | 16 | 0 | 8 | 2 | 458 | 311 | +147 | 36 |
| 5 |  Penrith |
24 | 13 | 1 | 10 | 2 | 460 | 379 | +81 | 31 |
| 6 |  Manly-Warringah |
24 | 13 | 1 | 10 | 2 | 404 | 345 | +59 | 31 |
| 7 |  Eastern Suburbs |
24 | 10 | 3 | 11 | 2 | 374 | 389 | -15 | 27 |
| 8 |  Cronulla-Sutherland |
24 | 11 | 0 | 13 | 2 | 440 | 404 | +36 | 26 |
| 9 |  South Sydney |
24 | 10 | 0 | 14 | 2 | 373 | 419 | -46 | 24 |
| 10 |  Canberra |
24 | 8 | 2 | 14 | 2 | 432 | 534 | -102 | 22 |
| 11 |  North Sydney |
24 | 6 | 1 | 17 | 2 | 281 | 491 | -210 | 17 |
| 12 |  Western Suburbs |
24 | 5 | 2 | 17 | 2 | 311 | 661 | -350 | 16 |
| 13 |  Illawarra |
24 | 5 | 0 | 19 | 2 | 303 | 467 | -164 | 14 |
Finals
| Home | Score | Away | Match Information | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date and Time | Venue | Referee | Crowd | |||||
| Playoff | ||||||||
| Penrith Panthers |
10-7 | Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles |
3 September 1985 | Sydney Cricket Ground | Mick Stone | 16,428 | ||
| Qualifying Finals | ||||||||
| Parramatta Eels |
38-6 | Penrith Panthers |
7 September 1985 | Sydney Cricket Ground | Kevin Roberts | 18,939 | ||
| Balmain Tigers |
8-14 | Canterbury-Bankstown |
8 September 1985 | Sydney Cricket Ground | Mick Stone | 25,194 | ||
| Semi Finals | ||||||||
| Balmain Tigers |
4-32 | Parramatta Eels |
14 September 1985 | Sydney Cricket Ground | Kevin Roberts | 25,423 | ||
| St. George Dragons |
17-6 | Canterbury-Bankstown |
15 September 1985 | Sydney Cricket Ground | Mick Stone | 39,013 | ||
| Preliminary Final | ||||||||
| Canterbury-Bankstown |
26-0 | Parramatta Eels |
22 September 1985 | Sydney Cricket Ground | Kevin Roberts | 34,915 | ||
| Grand Final | ||||||||
| St. George Dragons |
6-7 | Canterbury-Bankstown |
29 September 1985 | Sydney Cricket Ground | Kevin Roberts | 44,569 | ||
Grand Final
| St George | Position | Canterbury-Bankstown |
|---|---|---|
| Glenn Burgess | FB | Michael Potter |
| Steve Morris | WG | Matthew Callinan |
| Michael O'Connor | CE | Chris Mortimer |
| Michael Beattie | CE | Andrew Farrar |
| Denis Kinchela | WG | Peter Mortimer |
| Steve Linnane | FE | Michael Hagan |
| Perry Haddock | HB | Steve Mortimer (c) |
| Pat Jarvis | PR | Peter Kelly |
| Phil Ritchie | HK | Billy Johnstone |
| Craig Young (c) | PR | Peter Tunks |
| Graeme Wynn | SR | Brian Battese |
| Billy Noke | SR | Steve Folkes |
| Graeme O'Grady | LK | Paul Langmack |
| Chris Johns | Reserve | David Gillespie |
| Chris Guider | Reserve | Greg Mullane |
| Stephen Funnell | Reserve | Mark Bugden |
| Alan Neil | Reserve | |
| Roy Masters | Coach | Warren Ryan |
The 1985 Grand Final was played at the sydney Cricket Ground before a crowd of 44,569.[2] Canterbury continually put St George fullback Burgess under the test of the high-ball in his in-goal area, which, under the rules of the time, resulted in a line drop-out with the Bulldogs regaining possession. Prop Peter Kelly used the blindside to send winger Peter Mortimer over out wide for a 6-0 half time lead.
Bulldogs half and skipper Steve Mortimer seized control of the match and centre Andrew Farrar clinched it with a field goal in the 72nd minute to take the score to 7-0. A last light of hope appeared for the Dragons when Steve Morris scored and Michael O'Connor converted with five minutes left on the clock. In the end a practised and clinical approach from Canterbury shut out the Dragons who had been the minor premiers.
No Australian rugby league grand final since has been decided by a single point.
Canterbury-Bankstown 7
Tries: P Mortimer. Goal: Farrar. Field Goal: Farrar.
St. George 6
Tries: Morris. Goal: O'Connor.
Man-of-the-match: Steve Mortimer
References
- ↑ "History". northsydneybears.com.au. North Sydney Bears. Retrieved 3 July 2014.
- ↑ D'Souza, Miguel. "Grand Final History". wwos.ninemsn.com.au. AAP. Retrieved 8 September 2013.
- Rugby League Tables - Season 1985 The World of Rugby League
- Results:1981-90 at rabbitohs.com.au
- 1985 J J Giltinan Shield and Winfield Cup at rleague.com
- NSWRL season 1985 at rugbyleagueproject.com
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