1985 NSWRL season


The 1985 New South Wales Rugby League premiership was the seventy-eighth season of professional rugby league football in Australia. Thirteen teams competed for the J J Giltinan Shield and Winfield Cup during the season, which culminated in a grand final between the Canterbury-Bankstown and St. George clubs. This season NSWRL teams also competed for the 1985 National Panasonic Cup.

Season summary

Twenty-six regular season rounds were played from March till September, resulting in a top five of St. George, Balmain, Canterbury, Parramatta and Penrith battling it out in the finals
The 1985 season's Rothmans Medallist was Balmain's lock, Wayne Pearce. The Dally M Award was given to Penrith's halfback, Greg Alexander, while Rugby League Week gave its player of the year award to Parramatta's lock, Ray Price.

Teams

The lineup of clubs remained unchanged from the previous year, with thirteen contesting the 1985 premiership, including five Sydney-based foundation teams, another six from Sydney, one from greater New South Wales and one from the Australian Capital Territory
Balmain Tigers
78th season
Ground: Leichhardt Oval
Coach: Frank Stanton
Captain: Wayne Pearce		Canberra Raiders
4th season
Ground: Seiffert Oval
Coach: Don Furner
Captain: Dean Lance		Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs
51st season
Ground: Belmore Oval
Coach: Warren Ryan
Captain: Steve Mortimer		Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks
19th season
Ground: Ronson Field
Coach: Terry Fearnley
Captain: David Hatch		Eastern Suburbs Roosters
78th season
Ground: Sydney Sports Ground
Coach: Arthur Beetson
Captain: Ron Gibbs→John Tobin
Illawarra Steelers
4th season
Ground: Wollongong Showground
Coach: Brian Smith
Captain: Brian Hetherington		Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles

39th season
Ground: Brookvale Oval
Coach: Bob Fulton
Captain: Glen Ryan→Paul Vautin		North Sydney Bears
78th season
Ground: North Sydney Oval
Coach: Greg Hawick→Brian Norton
Captain: W. Honeywood→Fred Teasdell→Mark Graham		Parramatta Eels
39th season
Ground: Belmore Oval
Coach: John Monie
Captain: Ray Price		Penrith Panthers
19th season
Ground: Penrith Park
Coach: Tim Sheens
Captain: Royce Simmons
South Sydney Rabbitohs
78th season
Ground: Redfern Oval
Coach: Ron Willey
Captain: David Boyle		St. George Dragons
65th season
Ground: Kogarah Oval
Coach: Roy Masters
Captain: Craig Young		Western Suburbs Magpies
78th season
Ground: Lidcombe Oval
Coach: Ken Gentle
Captain: Lee Crooks

Ladder

Finals

Grand Final

The 1985 Grand Final was played at the Sydney Cricket Ground before a crowd of 44,569. Canterbury continually put St George fullback Burgess under the test of the high-ball in his in-goal area, which, under the rules of the time, resulted in a line drop-out with the Bulldogs regaining possession. After felling St George's Graeme Wynn as a scrum broke up, Canterbury's prop Peter Kelly was surprising awarded a penalty and shortly thereafter Kelly used the blindside to send winger Peter Mortimer over out wide for a 6-0 half time lead.
Bulldogs half and skipper Steve Mortimer seized control of the match and centre Andrew Farrar clinched it with a field goal in the 72nd minute to take the score to 7-0. A last light of hope appeared for the Dragons when Steve Morris scored and Michael O'Connor converted with five minutes left on the clock. In the end a practised and clinical approach from Canterbury shut out the Dragons who had been the minor premiers.
Canterbury-Bankstown 7
Tries: P Mortimer. Goal: Farrar. Field Goal: Farrar.
St. George 6
Tries: Morris. Goal: O'Connor.
Man-of-the-match: Steve Mortimer