1940 New South Wales Rugby Football League | |
---|---|
Teams | 8 |
Premiers | Eastern Suburbs (8th title) |
Minor premiers | Eastern Suburbs (9th title) |
Matches played | 59 |
Points scored | 1738 |
Top points scorer(s) | Tom Kirk (99) |
Top try-scorer(s) | Jack Lindwall (19) |
The 1940 New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership was the thirty-third season of Sydney’s top-level rugby league club competition, Australia’s first. Eight teams from across the city contested the premiership during the season, which lasted from April until August, culminating in Eastern Suburbs’ victory over Canterbury-Bankstown in the final.
For this season St. George returned to Hurstville Oval as their home ground.
In the two semi finals, minor premiers Eastern Suburbs defeated St. George whilst fourth-placed Canterbury-Bankstown beat second-placed Newtown. Eastern Suburbs then beat Canterbury-Bankstown in the Final to collect their eighth premiership.
Led by their standard-setting captain-coach Dave Brown, the Tricolours continued their strong season performance with a semi-final victory over St George to gain a Final berth.
Although Brown was ruled out on the morning of the decider with a leg injury, replacement Bill Brew slotted into the side and scored a try after backing up second rower Sid “Joe” Pearce who also scored the next try. The young Easts team, who averaged twenty years of age, overcame Canterbury by six tries to two.
Eastern Suburbs 24 (Tries: Pierce 2, O'Loan, Brew, Pearce, Clarke. Goals: Dunn 2 )
defeated
Canterbury-Bankstown 14 (Tries: Bonnyman, Denton. Goals: Johnson 4)