The 1913 New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership was the sixth season of Sydney's top-level rugby league club competition, Australia's first. Eight teams from across the city contested during the season.
| 1913 NSWRFL season | |
|---|---|
| League | New South Wales Rugby Football League |
| Duration | 3 May to 16 August |
| Teams | 8 |
| Matches played | 56 |
| Points scored | 1344 |
| Premiers |  Eastern Suburbs[1] (3rd title) |
| Minor Premiers | Eastern Suburbs (2nd title) |
| Top point-scorer(s) |  Harold Horder (65) |
| Top try-scorer(s) | Harold Horder (13) |
| Second Grade | |
| Number of teams | 14 |
| Premiers | South Sydney |
| Runners-up | Grosvenor |
| Third Grade | |
| Number of teams | 21 (1 withdrew) |
| Premiers | South Sydney Federals |
| Runners-up | South Sydney Kinkora |
Season summary
editBy the start of the 1913 season, the NSWRFL had secured the use of the Sydney Cricket Ground for its games.[2]
As occurred in the 1912 season, the minor premiers were deemed the overall premiers. Eastern Suburbs, who finished top of the table for the second time in as many years, claimed their third straight premiership as a result. The team's success could be attributed to the talent in the team at the time, with ten players having played for Australia and another three for New South Wales. Of the team's two losses, one came at the hands of runners-up Newtown midway through the season and the other in the final round to Glebe after the title had already been won.
This Eastern Suburbs side is still considered to be one of the greatest club teams ever assembled, with players including Dally Messenger, Wally Messenger, Sandy Pearce, Larry O'Malley, Les Cubitt, Dan Frawley and Arthur "Pony" Halloway. This season also saw the retirement from the League of future Australian Rugby League Hall of Fame inductee, Dally Messenger.
Teams
edit
The teams remained unchanged from the previous season.
- Annandale
- 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 February 7, 1908, at the North Sydney School of Arts in Mount Street
- South Sydney, formed on 17 January 1908 at Redfern Town Hall
- Western Suburbs, formed on 4 February 1908
 4th season Ground: Wentworth Park Captain-Coach: Paddy McCue |
 6th season Ground: Birchgrove Oval Coach: Robert Graves Captain: Bill Noble |
 6th season Ground: Sydney Sports Ground Captain-Coach: Dally Messenger |
 6th season Ground: Wentworth Park Captain-Coach: Chris McKivat |
 6th season Ground: Erskineville Oval Captain-Coach: Charles "Boxer" Russell |
 6th season Ground: North Sydney Oval Coach: Captain: Sid Deane & Jim Devereux |
 6th season Ground: Sydney Sports Ground Coach: John Rosewell Captain: Arthur Butler |
 6th season Ground: Pratten Park Captain-Coach: Tedda Courtney, Jim Abercrombie |
Ladder
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| Team | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Eastern Suburbs
|
14 | 12 | 0 | 2 | 227 | 118 | +109 | 24 |
| 2 |  Newtown
|
14 | 10 | 1 | 3 | 203 | 135 | +68 | 21 |
| 3 | South Sydney
|
14 | 9 | 0 | 5 | 200 | 132 | +68 | 18 |
| 4 |  Glebe
|
14 | 8 | 0 | 6 | 198 | 161 | +37 | 16 |
| 5 |  North Sydney
|
14 | 5 | 2 | 7 | 199 | 193 | +6 | 12 |
| 6 |  Balmain
|
14 | 4 | 1 | 9 | 83 | 135 | -52 | 9 |
| 7 |  Annandale
|
14 | 3 | 0 | 11 | 119 | 219 | -100 | 6 |
| 8 |  Western Suburbs
|
14 | 3 | 0 | 11 | 115 | 251 | -136 | 6 |
Records set in 1913
editOn 19 July, South Sydney's reserve grade team scored 102 points against Mosman, which remains the greatest number of points scored in any grade of NSWRFL/NSWRL/ARL/NRL rugby league. The Rabbitohs scored 49 points in the first half and 59 in the second, conceding only a solitary penalty goal.[3][4]
References
edit- ^ Premiership Roll of Honour Archived 14 May 2011 at the Wayback Machine at rl1908.com
- ^ Cunneen, Chris (2001). The best ever Australian Sports Writing. Australia: Black Inc. p. 316. ISBN 1-86395-266-7. Retrieved 19 February 2011.
- ^ 'Rugby League: Second Grade'; The Sunday Times, 20 July 1913, p. 13
- ^ 'Records Made: St. George and Griffen'; Sydney Morning Herald, 13 May 1935, p. 17