1927 NSWRFL season

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1927 New South Wales Rugby Football League
Teams 9
Premiers South Sydney colours.svg South Sydney[1] (7th title)
Minor premiers South Sydney colours.svg South Sydney (7th title)
Matches played 75
Points scored 2183 (total)
29.107 (per match)
Top point scorer(s) South Sydney colours.svg Alf Blair (94)
Top try scorer(s) South Sydney colours.svg Benny Wearing (19)

The 1927 New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership was the twentieth season of Sydney's top-level rugby league football club competition, Australia's first. Nine teams from across the city contested during the season, which culminated in South Sydney's victory over St. George in the premiership final.

Season summary

The 1927 season saw a new record for length of a player's suspension. Balmain's Bill Maizey was suspended for 12 months for punching Easts player George Clamback.

The season was also the last as a player in the NSWRFL for future Australian Rugby League Hall of Fame inductee, Frank Burge.

Teams

  • Balmain, formed on 23 January 1908 at Balmain Town Hall
  • Eastern Suburbs, formed on 24 January 1908 at Paddington Town Hall
  • Glebe, formed on 9 January 1908
  • Newtown, formed on 14 January 1908
  • North Sydney, formed on 7 February 1908
Balmain home jersey 1908.svg
Balmain
20th season
Ground: Birchgrove Oval
Coach: Alf Fraser
Captain: Norm Robinson
Eastern Suburbs
20th season
Ground: RAS Showground
Coach:
Captain: Arthur Oxford
Glebe
20th season
Ground: Wentworth Park
Captain: Tom McGrath
Newtown Jets home jersey 1908.svg
Newtown
20th season
Ground: Marrickville Oval
Coach: Albert "Ricketty" Johnston
Captain(s): Charles Kell, Tom Ellis
North Sydney Bears home jersey 1908.svg
North Sydney
20th season
Ground: North Sydney Oval
Coach:
Captain: Leo O'Connor
St. George
7th season
Ground: Earl Park
Captain-Coach: Frank Burge
South Sydney
20th season
Ground: Sydney Cricket Ground
Captain-coach: Alf Blair
University home jersey 1925.svg
University
8th season
Coach:
Captain: Frank O'Rourke, Sammy Ogg
Western Suburbs
20th season
Ground: Pratten Park
Coach: Clarrie Prentice
Captain: Frank McMillan

Ladder

File:NSWRL 1921-1929.png
The geographical locations of the teams that contested the 1927 premiership across Sydney.
Team Pld W D L B PF PA PD Pts
1 South Sydney colours.svg South Sydney 16 14 0 2 2 402 162 +240 32
2 St. George colours.svg St. George 16 12 1 3 2 284 141 +143 29
3 Western Suburbs colours.svg Western Suburbs 16 9 0 7 2 222 182 +40 22
4 Eastern Suburbs colours.svg Eastern Suburbs 16 8 2 6 2 215 216 -1 22
5 Newtown colours.svg Newtown 16 8 0 8 2 189 259 -70 20
6 North Sydney colours.svg North Sydney 16 6 1 9 2 174 256 -82 17
7 Balmain colours.svg Balmain 16 5 2 9 2 210 238 -28 16
8 Glebe colours.svg Glebe 16 4 0 12 2 176 297 -121 12
9 University colours.svg University 16 3 0 13 2 199 320 -121 10

Finals

All four finalists had been decided before the end of the final round and by coincidence faced each other in the penultimate round. 1926 wooden spooners St. George had a massive turnaround in 1927, with a chance to become minor premiers in the final round when they played South Sydney who were just one point ahead of them on the ladder. However looking for their third successive title, South Sydney prevailed 22-9 in front of a large crowd of 26,649 at the Sydney Cricket Ground, and as a result took the minor premiership. On the same day, Western Suburbs and Eastern Suburbs played each other for third spot, with Western Suburbs winning 8-6.

In the semi-finals, both South Sydney and St. George overcame their opponents and were able to set up a rematch of their Round 18 game just two weeks earlier.

Semi-finals Final
10 September 1927 - Earl Park
  St. George colours.svg St. George 26  
  Eastern Suburbs colours.svg Eastern Suburbs 11  
 
17 September 1927 - Royal Agricultural Society Showground
      South Sydney colours.svg South Sydney 20
    St. George colours.svg St. George 11
10 September 1927 - Royal Agricultural Society Showground
  South Sydney colours.svg South Sydney 38
  Western Suburbs colours.svg Western Suburbs 6  

Final

South Sydney Posit. St. George
Harry Kadwell FB Jack McCormack
Benny Wearing WG Stan Brain
Vic Lawrence CE George Carstairs
Sid Harris CE Lennie Guest
Harry Finch WG Frank Saunders
Alf Blair (Ca./Co.) FE Arnold Traynor
Michael O'Connor HB Bill Benson
David Watson PR Clarrie Tye
Alby Carr HK Arthur Justice
Chas Fennell PR Tom Killiby
George Treweek SR Bill Hardman
Edward Root SR Frank Burge (Ca./Co.)
Harry Cavanough LK Aub Kelly

Playing on a quagmire at the Royal Agricultural Society Grounds in front of a modest crowd of 12,124 St. George contested their first ever premiership decider in their seventh year in the top league. They confronted the might of South Sydney who were reigning premiers in the two prior years and minor premiers at the end of the 1927 regular season.

The two teams had already met earlier in the season at the Sydney Cricket Ground when Souths defeated Saints 17-14 in front of a massive crowd of 31,500. With heavy rain falling throughout the match, refereed by former Rabbitoh and international Webby Neill Souths took a 13-6 lead to the half time break. The Rabbitohs won the decider scoring four tries to three to take their third successive premiership and becoming the third club to do so. Souths

South Sydney 20 (Tries: Carr, Root, Wearing, Finch. Goals: Blair 2, Kadwell 2)

defeated

St George 11 (Tries: Justice, Carstairs, Saunders. Goal: Saunders )


References