National Rugby League

The National Rugby League (NRL) is Australia's top men's professional club competition for rugby league football (often called 'league'), as opposed to rugby union football. Instituted in 1998, the NRL is operated by the Australian Rugby League (ARL) and consists of sixteen teams, fifteen in Australia and one in New Zealand. Competition takes place in Australia and New Zealand between March and October, culminating in the NRL Grand Final, considered among the most popular sporting events in Australia. The reigning champion NRL club also faces off annually against the winner of the European Super League in the pre-season World Club Challenge.

Origins and History

Rugby, one of the wide variety of games known by the name 'football,' developed in the 1820s in Great Britain. By the 1870s rules were standardised under the Rugby Union, but in the 1890s a dispute arose between wealthy gentlemen players and working-class players over being paid to play the game or compensated for work time missed while playing or due to injury. Working-class clubs split off to form a new code of the game called rugby league, which eventually allowed for professionalism and made other rule changes.

In 1908 several rugby clubs in New South Wales adopted rugby league rules, introducing the code to Australia for the first time. The New South Wales Rugby League (NSWRL) quickly gained popularity, especially as many star players chose league over union. However, this popularity remained largely confined to New South Wales, Queensland and New Zealand; other Australian states preferred Australian Rules football, rugby union or football. These regional preferences in sport remained even after a series of changes and expansions within rugby league throughout the 1980s and 1990s, sparking greater interest in national competition. In 1995 control of the Australian rugby league premiership passed from the NSWRL to the Australian Rugby League (ARL), which continued the club expansion even further.

With the rise of rugby league's popularity and the advent of paid television in the mid-1990s, financial concerns shaped the future of the game. Seeking broadcasting rights, global media giant News Corporation decided to form its own Super League and poached several clubs and star players from the ARL with unprecedented salaries. In 1997 the Super League ran a wholly separate competition to the ARL, culminating the legal battle that came to be known as the Super League War as the two sides vied for fans and corporate sponsorship. While the rivalry helped spur some positive changes to the game, it brought financial difficulties for many clubs and players, alienated fans, and risked destroying both leagues. By the end of the year, in a negotiated settlement News Corp and the ARL agreed to form a joint venture, the National Rugby League (NRL).

The NRL consolidated or disbanded several clubs to improve attendance and sponsorship revenue. The strategy worked, and the league grew in popularity throughout much of the early twenty-first century. The NRL expanded for the first time in 2007 with the addition of the Gold Coast Titans, bringing the number of clubs to sixteen.

Rules and Regulations

Rugby league is played by two teams of thirteen players (as opposed to fifteen in rugby union) on a rectangular field with a grass surface. Each end of the field has an H-shaped goal post. The object of the game is to score points by carrying the ball and touching it to the ground beyond the opposing team's goal line, an action known as a 'try'. A try is worth four points. Following a successful try, the scoring team has a chance to score a conversion worth two extra points by kicking the ball between the goal posts. Points can also be scored through penalty kicks (worth two points) and drop goals or field goals (worth one point), which both involve kicking the ball through the goal post but at different stages of play.

Players engage in full contact as they seek to score or prevent the other club from scoring. The sides alternate between offense and defence over two forty-minute halves of the game. The offense attempts to move the ball toward the opposition's goal line by carrying it, kicking it or passing it player-to-player sideways or backward. The defence attempts to stop this progression by tackling the player holding the ball. The offense gets a maximum of six tackles to attempt to score before possession of the ball is swapped. Turnovers can also occur if the ball is fumbled or goes beyond the sidelines.

Players on both offense and defence are divided across the field based on their position, designated by a number, and divided between backs and forwards. Backs are generally smaller, faster players who try to break the defensive line through agility and tactics. Forwards are generally larger players and take part in normal and scrum play. Scrums are huddles meant to bring the ball back into play after it has gone out of bounds or a player has made a mistake. Substitutions are allowed when a player is injured or tired, or for other tactical reasons. Substitutes are designated with numbers 14 through 22.

Top Athletes

Rugby league in Australia and New Zealand has seen many star players over the decades. Before the formation of the NRL itself, some of the top athletes included Herbert 'Dally' Messenger (an early convert from rugby union), Mal Meninga, Clive Churchill, Wally Lewis and Bob Fulton. These and other stars made Australia a powerhouse for international competition in the sport for many years.

New generations of players have gained prominence in the NRL itself since 1998. Andrew Johns, the long-time captain of the Newcastle Knights, is widely considered among the best league players of all time. He received the Dally M Medal—awarded to the league's top player or two each year—in 1998, 1999 and 2002. Other multi-time recipients of the award include Johnathan Thurston of the North Queensland Cowboys (2005, 2007, 2014 and 2015), Jarryd Hayne of the Parramatta Eels (2009 and 2014) and Cooper Cronk of the Melbourne Storm (2013 and 2016). Other top-ranked players in the 2000s and 2010s included Cameron Smith of the Storm and Jason Taumalolo of the Cowboys, who won their first Dally M Medals in 2006 and 2016, respectively. During the 2023 season, some top-ranked players included Nathan Cleary of the Penrith Panthers, Kalyn Ponga of the Newcastle Knights, and Shaun Johnson of the New Zealand Warriors.

Bibliography

Andrews, Malcolm. Hardmen: Rugby League's Roughest, Toughest and Most Courageous Players. Allen & Unwin, 2012.

Collis, Ian, and Alan Whiticker. The History of Rugby League Clubs. 2nd ed., New Holland, 2010.

Hansen, Guy, editor. League of Legends: 100 Years of Rugby League in Australia. National Museum of Australia, 2008.

Pryde, Scott. "The Top 50 Players from the NRL Season: Part 5, 10-1." Zero Tackle, 19 Oct. 2023, www.zerotackle.com/the-top-50-players-from-the-2023-nrl-season-part-5-10-1-163827/. Accessed 24 Jan. 2025.

Solomon, David. Pillars of Power: Australia's Institutions. Federation Press, 2007.

Tasker, Norman. Gladiators: Norm Provan and Arthur Summons Tell the Story of Rugby League's Most Iconic Moment. Allen & Unwin, 2013.