1937 NSWRFL season

1937 New South Wales Rugby Football League
Teams	9
Premiers	Eastern Suburbs (7th title)
Minor premiers	Eastern Suburbs (8th title)
Matches played	36
Points scored	1088
Top points scorer(s)	Jack Beaton (56)
Top try-scorer(s)	Fred Tottey (10)
← 1936 1938 →

The 1937 New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership was the 30th season of the Sydney, New South Wales-based top-grade rugby league club competition, Australia's first. Nine teams from across the city contested the premiership during the season, which lasted from April until June, with Eastern Suburbs being crowned champions.^[1]

Season summary

The 1937 season only lasted eight rounds due to the Kangaroo tour, and used a “first past the post” system to determine the premiers. There were no Finals. The second half of what would normally have been the NSWRFL season was taken up with a City Cup competition.

Eastern Suburbs won their seventh Premiership going through the season undefeated – a feat achieved by teams in only five other seasons before or since. Having won only two matches in four seasons and only fifteen (plus two draws) in the nine seasons since 1929, the University club withdrew voluntarily from the premiership at the end of the season.

Teams

1937 proved University’s final NSWRFL season.^[2] After being allowed one more season to prove themselves, the Students did not win a match in any grade, scoring only 41 points in first grade, 39 in reserves, and 21 in third grade – in which University veterans were allowed to play the second half of the last match as a farewell.^[3]

• Balmain, formed on January 23, 1908, at Balmain Town Hall
• Canterbury-Bankstown
• Eastern Suburbs, formed on January 24, 1908, at Paddington Town Hall
• Newtown, formed on January 14, 1908
• North Sydney, formed on February 7, 1908
• South Sydney, formed on January 17, 1908, at Redfern Town Hall
• St. George, formed on November 8, 1920, at Kogarah School of Arts
• University, formed in 1919 at Sydney University
• Western Suburbs, formed on February 4, 1908

Balmain 30th season Ground: Leichhardt Oval Coach: Harold Matthews Captain(s): Jim Duckworth, Jack Redman	Canterbury-Bankstown 3rd season Ground: Belmore Oval Coach: George Mason Captain: Alan Brady	Eastern Suburbs 30th season Ground: Sydney Cricket Ground Coach: Arthur Halloway Captain: Viv Thicknesse	Newtown 30th season Ground:Henson Park Coach: Bill Kelly Captain: Herb Narvo	North Sydney 30th season Ground: North Sydney Oval Captain-Coach: Laurie Ward
South Sydney 30th season Ground: Sydney Sports Ground Coach: Charlie Lynch Captain: Eric Lewis	St. George 17th season Ground: Earl Park Coach: Peter Burge / Norm Pope Captain: Norm Pope & Percy Fairall	University 18th season Coach: Bob "Botsy" Williams Captain: Tom Carey	Western Suburbs 30th season Ground: Pratten Park Coach: Jerry Brien Captain: Cliff Pearce

Ladder

	Team	Pld	W	D	L	B	PF	PA	PD	Pts
1	Eastern Suburbs	8	6	2	0	1	187	56	+131	16
2	South Sydney	8	5	1	2	1	264	58	+106	13
3	St. George	8	5	1	2	1	151	92	+59	13
4	Newtown	8	4	0	4	1	144	126	+18	10
5	Canterbury-Bankstown	8	4	0	4	1	98	91	+7	10
6	Balmain	8	4	0	4	1	115	136	-21	10
7	North Sydney	8	3	0	5	1	84	94	-10	8
8	Western Suburbs	8	3	0	5	1	104	126	-22	8
9	Sydney University	8	0	0	8	1	44	309	-265	2

References

External links

• Rugby League Tables - Notes AFL Tables
• Rugby League Tables - Season 1937 AFL Tables
• Premiership History and Statistics RL1908
• Results: 1931-40 at rabbitohs.com.au