Newcastle & Hunter Rugby League
Newcastle & Hunter Community Rugby League is the governing body of second tier rugby league in the Newcastle and Hunter region. Formed in 2006 after a merger between the Maitland & Coalfields Rugby League and Lower Hunter Rugby League Competitions. It is now the largest senior Rugby League competition in the world. Newcastle & Hunter Community Rugby League or NHCRL consists of five senior men's divisions, A Grade, B Grade, C Grade, Northern Conference & Southern Conference. In 2016 Ladies League Tag was introduced and in 2018 Ladies Tackles was introduced. Currently there are 18 Ladies League Tag teams and 8 Ladies Tackle teams.
| Sport | Rugby league |
|---|---|
| Formerly known as | Lower Hunter |
| Instituted | 2006 |
| Inaugural season | 2007 |
| Number of teams | 55 |
| Country | |
| Premiers | Dora Creek (2021) |
| Most titles | |
| Website | |
| Broadcast partner |
|
History
The inaugural season of Newcastle & Hunter Rugby League was 2007 after the amalgamation of the Lower Hunter Rugby League and the Hunter Valley Rugby League. 23 clubs (24 teams) entered 3 grades in the first season.
WIN Network A Grade Premiers
| Season | Grand Finals | Minor Premiers | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Premiers | Score | Runners-up | Venue | ||
| 1990 | 23-10 | ||||
| 1991 | |||||
| 1992 | 31-8 | ||||
| 1993 | 20-18 | Hexham | |||
| 1994 | 18-16 | ||||
| 1995 | 24-20 | ||||
| 1996 | 30-20 | Harker Oval | |||
| 1997 | 19-16 | ||||
| 1998 | 21-16 | Passmore Oval | |||
| 1999 | 20-16 | ||||
| 2000 | 13-4 | ||||
| 2001 | 22-0 | ||||
| 2002 | 36-14 | ||||
| 2003 | |||||
| 2004 | |||||
| 2005 | 32-2 | ||||
| 2006 | 31-24 | ||||
| A Grade - Newcastle & Hunter Rugby League | |||||
| 2007 | |||||
| 2008 | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
| 2009 | 42-22 | ||||
| 2010 | 38-18 | Harker Oval | |||
| 2011 | 20-16 | Lakeside Ground | |||
| 2012 | 44-16 | Cahill Oval | |||
| 2013 | 35-16 | Harker Oval | |||
| 2014 | 16 - 14 | Kurri Kurri Sportsground | |||
| 2015 | 34-10 | Lakeside Ground | |||
| 2016 | 18 - 10 | Harker Oval | |||
| 2017 | 31-26 | No1 Sportsground | |||
| 2018 | 36-4 | No1 Sportsground | |||
| 2019 | 44-4 | Waratah Oval | |||
| 2020 | 22-18 | St John Oval | |||
2021 Dora Creek Swampies
Women's Tackle Premiers
| Season | Grand Finals | Minor Premiers | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Premiers | Score | Runners-up | Venue | ||
| 2019 | 32-4 | Waratah Oval | |||
| 2020 | 24-14 | Lakeside Sporting Complex | |||
Ladies League Tag Division One
| Season | Grand Finals | League Premiers | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Premiers | Score | Runners-up | ||
| 2016 | 20-0 | |||
| 2017 | 18-0 | |||
| 2018 | 18-4 | |||
| 2019 | 20-0 | |||
| 2020 | 14-2 | |||
B Grade Premiers
| Season | Grand Finals | League Premiers | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Premiers | Score | Runners-up | ||
| 2007 | 20-16 | |||
| 2008 | ||||
| 2009 | 26-24 | Central Wyong | ||
| 2010 | 16-12 | |||
| 2011 | 30-28 | |||
| 2012 | 44-18 | |||
| 2013 | 22-14 | |||
| 2014 [1] | 34-26 | |||
| 2015 [2] | 16-6 | |||
| 2016 [3] | 28-24 | |||
| 2017 | 14-10 | |||
| 2018 | 46-10 | |||
| 2019 | 18-16 | |||
| 2020 | 8-4 | |||
C Grade Premiers
| Season | Grand Finals | League Premiers | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Premiers | Score | Runners-up | ||
| 2009 | 32-16 | |||
| 2010 | 28-20 | |||
| 2011 | 24-18 | |||
| 2012 | 17-16 | |||
| 2013 | 28-24 | |||
| 2014 [4] | 18-12 | |||
| 2015 [5] | 24-4 | |||
| 2016[6] | 24-18 | |||
| 2017 | 42-28 | |||
| 2018 | 24-16 | |||
| 2019 | 30-12 | |||
| 2020 | 22-12 | |||
D Grade Premiers
The competition was split into Northern & Southern Conferences in 2018 and 2019.
| Season | Grand Finals | League Premiers | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Premiers | Score | Runners-up | ||
| 2009 | 19-18 | |||
| 2010 | 32-18 | |||
| 2011 | 38-24 | |||
| 2012 | 34-26 | |||
| 2013 | 22-18 | |||
| 2014 | 25-18 | |||
| 2015 | 30-20 | |||
| 2016[7] | 24-20 | |||
| 2017 | 44-30 | |||
| 2018 | 42-16 | |||
| 2019 | 22-16 | |||
| 2020 | 18-12 | |||
Southern Conference
| Season | Grand Finals | League Premiers | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Premiers | Score | Runners-up | ||
| 2018 | 18-6 | |||
| 2019 | 26-14 | |||
| 2021 | ||||
Ladies League Tag Division Two
| Season | Grand Finals | League Premiers | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Premiers | Score | Runners-up | ||
| 2017 | 8-6 | No title | ||
| 2018 | 8-0 | |||
| 2019 | 32-0 | |||
| 2020 | 10-6 | |||
Ladies League Tag C Grade
| Season | Grand Finals | League Premiers | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Premiers | Score | Runners-up | ||
| 2019 | 12-4 | |||
Current Clubs
| Club | Year Entered | City/Region | Ground | Teams |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Maitland | McKeachies Paddock | 3 | |
| 1910 | Cessnock | Kurri Kurri Sportsground | 1 | |
| 2018 | Lake Macquarie | Walters Park | 2 | |
| 2011 | Lake Macquarie | Leneghan Oval | 1 | |
| 2019 | Central Coast | Hallakulani Oval | 1 | |
| 1934 | Lake Macquarie | Cardiff Oval | 3 | |
| 1975 | Dungog | Clarence Town Park | 2 | |
| Lake Macquarie | Neville Thompson Oval | 2 | ||
| 1981 | Lake Macquarie | Dudley Park | 1 | |
| 1930 | Dungog | Bennett Park | 2 | |
| Maitland | King Edward Park | 1 | ||
| Port Stephens | Fingal Bay Oval | 2 | ||
| 1967 | Lake Macquarie | Bower Oval | 1 | |
| Mid-North Coast | Bert Gallagher Oval | 1 | ||
| 2019 | Newcastle | Learmont Park | 1 | |
| Maitland | Stuart Park | 1 | ||
| Port Stephens | Lionel Morten Oval | 2 | ||
| 2017 | Cessnock | Jeffrey Park | 1 | |
| Newcastle | Hudson Park | 1 | ||
| 2017 | Maitland | Coronation Park | 2 | |
| Port Stephens | Vince Woodman Field | 2 | ||
| Lake Macquarie | Gibson Oval | 1 | ||
| Maitland | Ray Lawler Reserve | 1 | ||
| Maitland | Paterson Showground | 1 | ||
| Port Stephens | Lakeside Complex | 2 | ||
| Newcastle | Tuxford Park | 2 | ||
| Mid North Coast | Stroud Showground | 2 | ||
| 1967 | Lake Macquarie | Parbury Park | 2 | |
| 2019 | Central Coast | Bill Sohier Oval | 1 | |
| Lake Macquarie | Bernie Curran Oval | 2 | ||
| Newcastle | The Grange | 1 | ||
| Lake Macquarie | Wangi Oval | 2 | ||
| Newcastle | Waratah Oval | 2 | ||
| Lake Macquarie | Les Wakeman Oval | 2 | ||
| 1962 | Lake Macquarie | Mick Bird Oval | 1 | |
| Maitland | Fred Harvey Oval | 1 | ||
Former clubs
| Club | First Season | Last Season | Home Ground | Region |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Belmont | Lake Macquarie | |||
| Belmont North Sharks | Lenaghan Oval | Lake Macquarie | ||
| Bolton Point | 1997 | ? | ? | Lake Macquarie |
| ? | 1996 | Tulkaba Park | Lake Macquarie | |
| Bulahdelah Woodchoppers | ? | Mid North Coast | ||
| Newcastle | ||||
| 2014 | Cessnock | |||
| Elermore Vale Miners | 1995 | 1998 | Newcastle | |
| Gateshead Zebras | 1972 | 2013 | Alan Davis Oval | Lake Macquarie |
| Hamilton | ||||
| Lakeside | Port Stephens | |||
| 1998 | 2016 | Ford Oval | Newcastle | |
| Lake Macquarie | ||||
| 1998 | 1998 | Empire Park | Newcastle | |
| 1989 | 2018 | Passmore Oval | Newcastle | |
| 2010 | 2020 | Maitland | ||
| Warners Bay-Mt Hutton | 1997 | 1997 | Mt Hutton Oval | Lake Macquarie |
| Hexham Oval | Port Stephens | |||
| Coronation Oval | Maitland | |||
| Westlakes Wolves | 1998 | 2002 | Tulkaba Park | Lake Macquarie |
| Other | ||||
References
- "Cessnock Cutters v Tea Gardens Hawks grand final: Photos". 16 September 2014.
- "Panthers grand final success | Pictures". 22 September 2015.
- http://www.theherald.com.au/story/4158355/bomboras-claim-premiership-video-photos/
- "Raymond Terrace Magpies claim premiership with 18-12 victory: PHOTOS". 14 September 2014.
- "44-year drought broken with Paterson River winning league grand final". 21 September 2015.
- "Dungog Warriors fall at last hurdle | PHOTOS". 12 September 2016.
- http://www.theherald.com.au/story/4158001/karuah-roos-claim-first-title-since-1975/