Rugby league in Queensland
Rugby league in Queensland | |
---|---|
Queensland | |
Nickname(s) | football, footy |
First played | 1908 in Brisbane |
Registered players | 67,911[1] 138,000+ (including variants)[2] |
Club competitions | |
Audience records | |
Single match | 58,912 1997 Super League Grand Final (ANZ Stadium, Brisbane) |
Rugby league in Queensland is the most watched winter sport in
Queensland is home to four professional clubs, the
Queensland origin legends include:
History
Rugby Football in Queensland
The earliest record of
Introduction of Rugby League and impact of Professionalism
On 16 May 1908 the first game of rugby league was played in the state when the
The advent of professional rugby league in New South Wales saw many Queensland rugby players leaving for Sydney to play rugby league.
First Competitions
In 1908, the Queensland Rugby Union banned its players from going to Sydney to play rugby league, which resulted in disgruntled players forming the
The league put down strong roots in the bush and in working class communities and these areas are still the heartland of the modern game of rugby league. Between 1914 and 1918 some major rugby union clubs switched to rugby league. By 1920, rugby union ceased to exist in Queensland.
In 1922 the Brisbane Rugby Football League (BRFL, later BRL) was formed out of dissatisfaction with the way the QRL ran the game. Those involved took particular exception to the salary being earned by Harry Sunderland as secretary of the QRL. It remained the premier competition in Queensland for 75 years and the premier level of rugby league in the state until 1988.
By the late-1970s, crowds began to desert the BRL competition. Clubs found themselves in financial hardship, and the public began to support the Sydney competition which by then was being broadcast in Queensland. However, a small resurgence in the popularity of the Brisbane competition occurred after Queensland dominated the Interstate Series under new
Demise of the BRL into a Second Tier Competition
From 1909 to 1987, the Queensland Rugby Football League Premiership and the Brisbane Rugby League were considered to be top tier competitions parallel to the
Local Competitions after the NSWRL Expansion
After the Broncos and Giants joined the NSWRL, the
The Brisbane Rugby League (2001) was re-established as a third-tier competition below the NRL and Queensland Cup. This completed a remarkable fall from grace for the local Brisbane competition in stature, from a top level competition alongside the NSWRL until 1987, to a second-tier league from 1988 to 1997 and then a third-tier league from 2001, although most BRL clubs joined the Queensland Cup exclusively in 1998 and their reserve grade teams compete in the current BRL competition along with community clubs.
Governing body
The Queensland Rugby League (QRL) is the governing body for the sport of rugby league in Queensland. It is a member of the
National Rugby League
The National Rugby League (NRL) is Australia's top-level competition for the sport of rugby league.
The first Queensland teams joined the
There are four Queensland based teams in the NRL: Brisbane Broncos, Dolphins, Gold Coast Titans, and North Queensland Cowboys.
The Gold Coast Chargers played in the 1988-1998 seasons and the South Queensland Crushers competed from 1995 to 1997.
Current
Club | Location | Home Ground(s) | First season |
---|---|---|---|
Brisbane Broncos | Brisbane, Queensland | Suncorp Stadium 52,500 (12 home games)
|
1988
|
Dolphins | Brisbane, Queensland | Suncorp Stadium 52,500 (7 home games)
Moreton Daily Stadium 11,500 (4 home games)
|
2023 |
Gold Coast Titans | Gold Coast, Queensland | Cbus Super Stadium 27,500 (12 home games)
|
2007
|
North Queensland Cowboys | Townsville, Queensland | North Queensland Stadium 25,000 (12 home games) | 1995
|
Former
Club | Location | Home Ground(s) | Seasons |
---|---|---|---|
Gold Coast Chargers | Gold Coast, Queensland | Carrara Stadium 22,000 (12 home games) | 1998
|
South Queensland Crushers | Brisbane, Queensland | Lang Park 22,000 (11 home games)
|
1997
|
Major competitions in Queensland
Queensland Cup
The Queensland Cup has been contested since 1996. Since 1998 the team winning the Queensland Cup is considered to be the premier club team in Queensland. This is because in 1996 and 1997 it was contested parallel to the
The Queensland Cup grew out of the Winfield State League. Since its formation in 1995, the Queensland Cup has been known as the Queensland Cup, Bundy Gold Cup, Channel 9 Cup. For sponsorship reasons it is currently known as the Intrust Super Cup.
FOGS Cup & FOGS Colts Challenge
Also known as the FOGS Cup & FOGS Colts Challenge, they are run by the Queensland Rugby League's
Foley Shield
The Foley Shield competition began in North Queensland in 1948. With the introduction of the Queensland Cup in 1996 the Foley Shield competition was scrapped, only to be reintroduced in 2000. Since the revamp in 2000 it has only contested by the three largest cities in North Queensland; Cairns, Mackay and Townsville.
47th Battalion Shield
Like the Northern Division's "Foley Shield" or the South-East Division's "Bulimba Cup" the "47th Battalion Shield" is run as the Central Region's regional Carnival and none of the teams are club teams, with the only exception being some of the Women's teams. Its traditionally held over one weekend and normally at one venue with multiple grounds to play on.
Local Competitions
There are over 250 clubs in Queensland, across over 20 competitions:
- Cairns District Rugby League
- Mackay & District Rugby League
- Mid West Rugby League
- Mount Isa Rugby League
- Remote Areas Rugby League
- Townsville District Rugby League
- Central Highlands Rugby League
- Central West Rugby League
- Gladstone District Rugby League
- Rockhampton District Rugby League
- Border Rivers Rugby League
- Roma District Rugby League
- Toowoomba Rugby League
- Bundaberg Rugby League
- Central Burnett Rugby League
- Northern Districts Rugby League
- South Burnett Rugby League
- Sunshine Coast Gympie Rugby League
- Brisbane A-Grade Rugby League
- Brisbane Second Division Rugby League (Women)
- Ipswich Rugby League
- Gold Coast Rugby League
Regions
The game in the state is administered by five regions, these being:[8]
- Central Queensland Capras
- North Queensland Marlins
- South East Poinsettias
- South West Queensland Mustangs
- Wide Bay Bulls
Past competitions
- The Brisbane Rugby League(BRL) premiership was the premier competition in Queensland from 1909 until 1997. It was superseded by the Queensland Cup.
- The Bulimba Cup was a representative competition contested between Brisbane, Ipswich and Toowoomba. It was contested between 1925 and 1972.
- The Winfield State League was a Queensland-wide competition that was held in a variety of formats between 1982 and 1995. This competition was superseded by the Queensland Cup.
State of Origin
The Queensland State of Origin side is by far Queensland's most loved football team.[
The Queensland and New South Wales teams are heavily competitive. During the 1980s Queensland had the upper hand (8 out of 10 to Qld); during the 1990s, factoring in Super League which took out most of the Queensland team (through the Brisbane Broncos), the results were reasonably similar (6 out of 10 to NSW); and during the first decade of the 2000s, New South Wales has had the upper hand, but are by no means dominant (4 out of 7 to NSW, with the most recent to Qld).
See also
References
- ^ "Rugby League Report". SportAus.
- ^ https://touchfootball.com.au/media/13721/tfa_annual-report-2021-2022.pdf [bare URL PDF]
- S2CID 225567283.
- ^ Lanigan, Louise (21 February 2013). "Brisbane Broncos Annual Financial Report for 2012" (PDF). Brisbane Broncos Limited. Brisbane: Ernest and Young. p. 61. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 May 2013. Retrieved 5 May 2013.
- ^ Heming, Wayne (30 October 2009). "Brisbane Broncos voted Australia's most popular football team". foxsports.com.au. Australian Associated Press. Retrieved 31 October 2009.
- ^ Legends name greatest Queensland team of all time by Troy Whittaker for NRL.com 18 November 2020
- ^ "Abdo says NRL close to expansion call". 13 April 2021.
- ^ "The Clubhouse". Queensland Rugby League. Retrieved 10 November 2022.