New South Wales Rugby Football League season 1954

Infobox rugby league season
year = 1954
competition = New South Wales Rugby Football League


imagesize = 125px
caption =
teams = 10
premiers =
count = 15th
minor premiers =
mpcount = 5th
matches = 94
points = 3613
attendance =
top points scorer = (221)
top try scorer = (34)
1954's New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership was the forty-seventh season of the rugby league competition based in Sydney. Ten teams from across Sydney competed for the J. J. Giltinan Shield during the season, which culminated in a Grand Final between South Sydney and Newtown.

eason summary

1954 marked the first season when a Grand Final was scheduled to determine the premiership winner. Prior to that the season victors were either the minor premiers or decided by a final that followed two semi-finals. A Grand Final was only played if the minor-premier was knocked out in a semi-final or final and exercised their right to challenge via a Grand Final. Since 1954 a Grand Final has been played every year to determine the premiership winner.

This season, in a New South Wales versus England match at the Sydney Cricket Ground, referee Aub Oxford watched in disbelief the players fighting around him like street-brawlers before turning his back and walking from the field. Oxford neverrefereed again and the match remains the only top-level game ever abandoned in rugby league history.

In 1954 South Sydney's Les Brennan set the standing record for the highest number of tries in a debut season with 29. Kevin Considine's 34 tries that year stands in second place behind Dave Brown's 38 in 1935 in the tally of tries scored in a season.

Teams

Grand Final

In spite of Newtown finishing as minor premiers they hadn't beaten South Sydney in either regular season encounter. Souths had also won their semi-final meeting 24-14. In this the first Grand Final scheduled to determine the premiership winner, Souths were the victors. Legendary fullback Clive Churchill was outstanding setting up three of his side's five tries. The Bluebags stayed in the contest through the kicking boot of their Test fullback Gordon "Punchy" Clifford.

South Sydney 23 ( Tries: Cowie 2, Moir, Hawick, Dougherty. Goals: Purcell 4.)

Newtown 15 ( Tries: Narvo. Goals: Clifford 6.)

References

* [http://www.stats.rleague.com/rl/seas/1954.html Rugby League Tables - Season 1954] "The World of Rugby League"
* Whiticker, Alan & Collis, Ian (2006) "The History of Rugby League Clubs", New Holland, Sydney
* [http://www.rabbitohs.com.au/The-Club/Tradition/Results---1951-1960.html Results: 1951-60 at rabbitohs.com.au]
* [http://www.rleague.com//db/year/1954/j_j_giltinan_shield/index.php 1954 J J Giltinan Shield at rleague.com]
* [http://rugbyleagueproject.com/competitions/NSWRL_1954.html NSWRFL season 1954 at rugbyleagueproject.com]