Sydney University
Club information
Full nameSydney University Rugby League Football Club
Founded1920 (1920)
Exited1937 (1937)
Former details
CompetitionNew South Wales Rugby Football League
February 19209th of 9
Home jersey
Team colours
Records
PremiershipsNil
Runners-up1 – 1926
Minor premiershipsNil
Wooden spoons12 – 1921, 1923, 1924, 1927, 1929, 1930, 1931, 1932, 1934, 1935, 1936, 1937,

The Sydney University Rugby League Football Club is a rugby league team currently playing in the Saturday Metro League competition. The University of Sydney was represented in the New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership from 1920 to 1937 as University, and also in the NSWRL Second Division and Metropolitan League competitions from 1963 to 1976.

History

The movement at the University of Sydney to be involved in the new game of rugby league began in 1919 with a number of players (including seven University Blues from the 1918 season) viewing a game of the new code and deciding to switch codes. As put by Herbert Vere Evatt (a final year law student and later a politician, jurist and president of the UN General Assembly) at the time the reasons were:

"Owing to the general dissatisfaction with the management of the Rugby Union during the 1919 football season, and the fact that University footballers were starting to realise that rugby league was a faster and cleaner game, several leading members of the football club, including seven 'blues' of the past season, took steps to introduce the league game into the University for the 1920 season. A special meeting of league supporters was held and decided to enter three teams, all members to play as strict amateurs."

Anti-rugby league prejudice

From the very beginning, the Students (or 'Varsity' as they were also known) struggled to gain acceptance by the University Sports Association who displayed great prejudice toward those who had left the rugby union side to play rugby league.

Indeed, players who participated in rugby league matches were threatened with disqualification from ever playing rugby union at Oxford University or University of Cambridge and the Sports Association forbid the club from training on the University Oval (forcing Varsity to train with Eastern Suburbs at the Sydney Sports Ground). While public pressure forced the Association to relent, the club never once played a game at the University Oval during its involvement in the New South Wales Rugby League premiership.

1926 Grand Final

The highlight of the Students' 18 seasons in the NSWRL Premiership was their one and only finals appearance (having finished fourth in the regular season). To get to the Grand Final at the Sydney Agricultural Ground University had to defeat Glebe which they did comfortably 29 - 3.[1] In the Grand Final, however, they were defeated 5–11 by Souths in front of 20,000 people.[2]

YearPremiersRunners-upScore
1926 South Sydney University11–5

Withdrawal from the Premiership

Generally, the amateur students struggled to perform against the professional players of the other sides and University enjoyed very little success only winning 44 of its 226 games during its time in the Premiership (and only won 2 games after 1933). The club did not win a single match in 1935, continuing a losing streak that started in round 2, 1934 and which would run till round 14, 1936 and which marked the most consecutive losses in NSWRL/NRL premiership history at 42. This run of form, in addition to having spent 12 of its 18 seasons in last place prompted their decision to withdraw from the Premiership at the close of the 1937 season.

Life After the Premiership

Rugby league did not perish at the University of Sydney and sides representing the university continued to play in various competitions. Most notably, Varsity played in the NSWRL Inter-District Competition, Second Division and Metropolitan League (predecessors to the Jim Beam Cup) between 1964 and 1976, finishing as Second Division runners-up in 1969 and 1971, both times to the leading side of the day Wentworthville.

YearPremiersRunners-upScore
1969 Wentworthville Magpies University20–2
1971 Wentworthville Magpies University21–15
YearCompetitionLadderFinals PositionAll Match Record
PosByesPtsPWLDForAgstDiff
1964Second Division[3]7012186120248277-29
1965Second Division[4]907173141177386-209
1966Second Division[5]70414212032313-281
1967Second Division[6]4016Semi-Finalist15870146159-13
1968Second Division[7]3222Semi-Finalist[8]171160263163100
1969Second Division[9]3024Grand Finalist19145021320211
1970Second Division[10]4228Semi-Finalist[11]21147032224874
1971Second Division[12]2235Grand Finalist[13]221831578255323
1972Second Division[14]5225Play-Off211010143534986
1973Second Division[15]9212204160202565-363
1974Metropolitan Cup518218112274324-50
1975Metropolitan Cup3223Finalist181251498285213
1976Metropolitan Cup501216592256343-87

Wills Cup

As runners-up in the 1969 Second Division, University (along with Wentworthville) were invited to compete in the NSWRL pre-season competition (the Wills Cup) in 1970.

Despite the inclusion of mature players from other metropolitan University clubs and professional coaches, the sides were too inexperienced and light to compete with the senior club sides. University finished 13th (above last-placed Penrith) in the competition with 1 win from 4 games (their lone win, a close 19–17 victory, came against Wentworthville), with a points differential of -29.

University Shield Competition

In 1922 the University of Sydney Club presented the league with a shield for use as a trophy in a statewide High School Rugby League knockout competition. The competition became known as the 'University Shield' and is widely regarded as one of the most prestigious competitions in schoolboy rugby league.

The University Shield has undergone various changes in format since its inception in 1922, the most notable of these having been the exclusion of specialised 'Sports High Schools' which dominated the competition between 1996 and 2006 in a spirit deemed 'untrue' to the traditional concept of the competition.

Sydney Shield

In December 2018, it was revealed that University would be competing in the Sydney Shield competition.[16]At the end of the 2019 Sydney Shield season, University finished 10th on the table. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, University were initially meant to compete in the 2021 Sydney Shield but pulled out for financial reasons.[17]

YearCompetitionLadderFinals PositionAll Match Record
PosByesPtsPWLDForAgstDiff
2019Sydney Shield[18]10111204151397744-347
2020Sydney ShieldN/A00Competition Cancelled[19]10102024-4
2020Sydney Shield[20]7178251176218-42

University Shield Honour Board (1922–2007)

YearPremiers
1922Goulburn
1923Goulburn
1924Goulburn
1925Sydney Technical
1926Tamworth
1927Tamworth
1928Tamworth
1929Tamworth
1930Randwick
1931Tamworth
1932Newcastle
1933Cessnock
1934Combined
1935Newcastle
1936Newcastle
1937Cessnock
1938Cessnock
1939Newcastle
1940Newcastle
1941Newcastle
1942Newcastle
1943Newcastle
1944Sydney Technical
1945Sydney Technical
1946Newcastle
1947Maitland
1948Taree
1949Gosford
1950Gosford
1951Gosford
1952Gosford
1953Muswellbrook
1954Newcastle
1955Gosford
1956Newcastle
1957Tamworth
1958Newcastle
1959Newcastle
1960Newcastle
1961Tamworth
1962Newcastle
1963Newcastle Tech
1964Tamworth
1965Tamworth
1966Griffith
1967Orange
1968Orange/Tamworth
1969Tamworth
1970Yanco Ag.
1971Tamworth
1972Yanco Ag.
1973Moree
1974Gosford
1975Tamworth
1976Ashcroft
1977Ashcroft
1978Tamworth
1978Blacktown
1980Chatham
1981Chatham
1982James Cook
1983James Cook
1984Ashcroft
1985Ashcroft
1986Toormina
1987Yanco Ag.
1988Melville
1989James Cook
1990Yanco Ag.
1991Dubbo South
1992Yanco Ag.
1993Kingsgrove
1994Kingsgrove
1995Sarah Redfern
1996Yanco Ag.
1997Camden
1998Westfield Sports
1999Westfield Sports
2000Westfield Sports
2001Westfield Sports
2002Endeavour Sports
2003Farrer Ag.
2004Endeavour Sports
2005Westfield Sports
2006Hunter Sports
2007Junee High School

Players of Note

Australian Representative

New South Wales

Records

Club Records

Biggest Win

Biggest Loss

Most Consecutive Wins

  • 5 matches, 8 May – 19 June 1926

Most Consecutive Loses

  • 42 matches^, 28 April 1934 – 29 August 1936

Record point scorer

Record appearance holder

^ denotes premiership record

Club Honours

Premierships: (0)

Runners-Up: (1) 1926

Minor Premierships: (0)

Wooden Spoons: (12) 1921, 1923, 1924, 1927, 1929, 1930, 1931, 1932, 1934, 1935, 1936, 1937

References

  1. ↑ Corbett, Claude (5 September 1926). "University Now in League Premiership Final". The Sun (Sydney). Sydney: National Library of Australia. p. 8. Retrieved 20 September 2020.
  2. ↑ Corbett, Claude (19 September 1926). "South Sydney League Premiers For Sixth Time". The Sun (Sydney). Sydney: National Library of Australia. p. 8. Retrieved 20 September 2020.
  3. ↑ New South Wales Rugby Football League. "The Rugby League news" (Vol. 45 No. 30 (September 5, 1964)). Sydney: N.S.W. Rugby Football League. Retrieved 20 September 2020 – via Trove. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  4. ↑ New South Wales Rugby Football League. "The Rugby League news" (Vol. 46 No. 27 (August 21, 1965)). Sydney: N.S.W. Rugby Football League. Retrieved 20 September 2020 – via Trove. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  5. ↑ New South Wales Rugby Football League. "The Rugby League news" (Vol. 47 No. 29 (July 30, 1966)). Sydney: N.S.W. Rugby Football League. Retrieved 20 September 2020 – via Trove. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  6. ↑ New South Wales Rugby Football League. "The Rugby League news" (Vol. 48 No. 33 (August 19, 1967)). Sydney: N.S.W. Rugby Football League. Retrieved 18 September 2020 – via Trove. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  7. ↑ New South Wales Rugby Football League. "The Rugby League news" (Vol. 49 No. 34 (August 17, 1968)). Sydney: N.S.W. Rugby Football League. Retrieved 18 September 2020 – via Trove. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  8. ↑ New South Wales Rugby Football League. "The Rugby League news" (Vol. 49 No. 35 (August 24, 1968)). Sydney: N.S.W. Rugby Football League. Retrieved 20 September 2020 – via Trove. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  9. ↑ New South Wales Rugby Football League. "The Rugby League news" (Vol. 50 No. 33 (August 23, 1969)). Sydney: N.S.W. Rugby Football League. Retrieved 18 September 2020 – via Trove. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  10. ↑ New South Wales Rugby Football League. "The Rugby League news" (Vol. 51 No. 40 (September 5, 1970)). Sydney: N.S.W. Rugby Football League. Retrieved 18 September 2020 – via Trove. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  11. ↑ New South Wales Rugby Football League. "The Rugby League news" (Vol. 51 No. 42 (September 12, 1970)). Sydney: N.S.W. Rugby Football League. Retrieved 20 September 2020 – via Trove. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  12. ↑ New South Wales Rugby Football League. "The Rugby League news" (Vol. 52 No. 37 (September 26, 1971)). Sydney: N.S.W. Rugby Football League. Retrieved 18 September 2020 – via Trove. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  13. ↑ New South Wales Rugby Football League. "The Rugby League news" (Vol. 52 No. 38 (October 1, 1971)). Sydney: N.S.W. Rugby Football League. Retrieved 20 September 2020 – via Trove. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  14. ↑ New South Wales Rugby Football League. "The Rugby League news" (Vol. 53 No. 36 (September 16, 1972)). Sydney: N.S.W. Rugby Football League. Retrieved 18 September 2020 – via Trove. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  15. ↑ New South Wales Rugby Football League. "The Rugby League news" (Vol. GF No. Sup (September 16, 1973)). Sydney: N.S.W. Rugby Football League. Retrieved 18 September 2020 – via Trove. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  16. ↑ "Sydney University Draw". www.nswrl.com.au.
  17. ↑ "Ron Massey Cup 2019 Ladder". NSWRL.
  18. ↑ "Sydney Shield 2019 - Ladder". League Unlimited. 1 September 2019. Retrieved 20 September 2020.
  19. ↑ "NSWRL cancels nine competitions for 2020 season". NSWRL. 27 March 2020. Retrieved 24 August 2020.
  20. ↑ "Sydney Shield 2020 - Ladder". League Unlimited. 13 September 2020. Retrieved 20 September 2020.
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