1953 New South Wales Rugby Football League
Teams10
Premiers South Sydney (14th title)
Minor premiers South Sydney (13th title)
Matches played93
Points scored3241
Top points scorer(s) Ron Rowles (152)
Top try-scorer(s) Ian Moir (23)

The 1953 New South Wales Rugby Football League season was the forty-sixth season of the rugby league competition based in Sydney. Ten teams from across the city competed for the J. J. Giltinan Shield during the season, which culminated in a final between South Sydney and St. George.

Teams

Balmain

46th season
Ground: Leichhardt Oval
Coach: Arthur Patton
Captain: Bob Lulham

Canterbury-Bankstown

19th season
Ground: Belmore Oval
Coach: Jack Hampstead
Captain: Cec Cooper

Eastern Suburbs

46th season
Ground: Sydney Sports Ground
Captain-Coach: Col Donohoe

Manly-Warringah

7th season
Ground: Brookvale Oval
Captain-Coach: Roy Bull

Newtown

46th season
Ground: Erskineville Oval
Captain-Coach: Frank Johnson

North Sydney

46th season
Ground: North Sydney Oval
Coach: Ross McKinnon
Captain: Lloyd Hudson

Parramatta

7th season
Ground: Cumberland Oval
Coach: Vic Hey
Captain: Ian Johnston

South Sydney

46th season
Ground: Redfern Oval
Captain-coach: Jack Rayner

St. George

33rd season
Ground: Jubilee Oval
Coach: Norm Tipping
Captain: Ken Kearney

Western Suburbs

46th season
Ground: Pratten Park
Captain-Coach: Peter McLean

Ladder

Team Pld W D L PF PA PD Pts
1 South Sydney 181116384278+10623
2 St. George 181107313289+2422
3 North Sydney 181017421283+13821
4 Eastern Suburbs 181017330310+2021
5 Newtown 18927292268+2420
6 Canterbury-Bankstown 18927252291-3920
7 Parramatta 18819271291-2017
8 Balmain 187011313377-6414
9 Manly-Warringah 186012294393-9912
10 Western Suburbs 185013287377-9010

Finals

Home Score Away Match Information
Date and Time Venue Referee Crowd
Semifinals
South Sydney 5–4 North Sydney 29 August 1953 Sydney Cricket Ground Jack O'Brien 30,392
St. George 25–7 Eastern Suburbs 5 September 1953 Sydney Cricket Ground Darcy Lawler 37,753
Final
South Sydney 31–12 St. George 12 September 1953 Sydney Cricket Ground Darcy Lawler 44,581

Chart

Semi-finalsFinalGrand final
1 Souths5
MP SouthsX
3 Norths4
Souths31 SouthsX
St George12
2 St George25
4 Easts7

Final

South Sydney Position St. George
13. Clive ChurchillFB3. Noel Pidding
12. Ian MoirWG15. Kevin Hole
18. Martin GallagherCE5. Tommy Ryan
14. Kevin WoolfeCE44. Merv Lees
11. Frank ThrelfoWG2. Ross Kite
21. John DoughertyFE4. Allan Staunton
22. Greg HawickHB20. Peter Bracken
  1. Denis Donoghue
PR39. Kevin Brown
2. Ernie HammertonHK12. Ken Kearney (c)
5. Jim RichardsPR11. Bob Bower
41. Bob MoonSR10. Barry Passfield
4. Jack Rayner (Ca./Co.)SR9. Norm Provan
6. Les CowieLK8. Billy Wilson
CoachNorm Tipping

To win the 1953 premiership St George would need to beat minor premiers Souths in both a final and a Grand final, emulating the feats of the Dragons of 1949 from which team only Noel Pidding was still playing. A crowd of 44,581 were at the Sydney Cricket Ground to see the first phase of this attempt.

Souths opened the scoring with a penalty goal in the ninth minute kicked by Clive Churchill from 40 yards. The Dragons threatened Souths' line continuously in the next stanza but bombed three tries and then lost some momentum in the 14 minutes before half-time during the absence of centre Merv Lees while he was off the field having stitches to his lip after driving a tooth through it. Souths scored 13 points in this period. Ian Moir capitalised on a spillage of the ball by Pidding behind his own line after a heavy tackle, Churchill then featured when he firstly sent Threlfo in and then set up Moir for his second try. The score at half time was 15–0.

Early in the second half Pidding kicked a penalty and a few minutes later Wilson and Gallagher were sent off for fighting. With Wilson gone Rabbitoh hard-men Rayner and Donoghue then took control and four Souths tries flowed to Woolfe, Dougherty, Hammerton and Moir’s third. Two late Dragons’ tries to Brown and Lees made no difference and South Sydney powered to their fourteenth premiership.

South Sydney Rabbitohs 31
Tries: Moir (3), Woolfe, Threlfo, Dougherty, Hammerton
Goals: Dougherty (4), Churchill (1)

St George Dragons 12
Tries: Lees, Brown
Goals: Pidding (3)

Player statistics

The following statistics are as of the conclusion of Round 18.

References

    • "Rugby League Tables – Season 1953". rleague.com. Archived from the original on 8 October 2014. The World of Rugby League
    • Haddan, Steve [2007] The finals – 100 Years of National Rugby League Finals, Steve Haddan Publishing, Brisbane
    • "Results: 1951-60". rabbitohs.com.au. Archived from the original on 19 March 2012.
    • "J J Giltinan Shield". rleague.com. Archived from the original on 3 June 2012.
    • "NSWRFL season 1953". rugbyleagueproject.org. Archived from the original on 23 October 2008.
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