Northern Eagles
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| Club information | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Northern Eagles Rugby League Football Club |
| Founded | 2000 |
| Exited | 2002 |
| Former details | |
| Competition | National Rugby League |
| 2002 | 9th of 15 |
Team colours
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The Northern Eagles were a rugby league team, that competed in the National Rugby League (NRL) between 2000 and 2002. The club was formed during the rationalisation process of the NRL by the merger of the North Sydney Bears and the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles in 2000. The team shared home games between Brookvale Oval and Central Coast Stadium, Gosford, New South Wales.
Little success was had during three seasons (2000-2002), finishing 12th, 10th, and 9th, winning 30 of 76 games. Also, the new club's decision to play games in Gosford instead of the Bears home ground at North Sydney Oval alienated several North Sydney fans, despite North Sydney's planned move to the new Central Coast Stadium, which had been rebuilt for the Bears on the site of the old Grahame Park ground. In spite of this, the club provided more players for the 2001 State of Origin series' New South Wales team than any other club. The partnership foundered in 2002, with Manly emerging as the stand-alone entity. The 2002 season was played under the Northern Eagles name, although effectively the club was the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles by another name. Halfway through the season, the Eagles even abandoned playing games at Gosford, due to a sharp decline in attendances. The people of Gosford preferred to wait until a home grown team was based there. The Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles name and colours returned to the NRL in 2003.
North Sydney now field a team in the New South Wales Cup, the competition immediately below NRL level, as a feeder to the South Sydney Rabbitohs. There are plans to again be part of the NRL again in coming years as the Central Coast Bears.
The Northern Eagles shared their home games between Brookvale Oval in Sydney and Grahame Park in Gosford. The record attendance for the club was 20,059 for the club's opening game against the Newcastle Knights at Grahame Park on 6 February 2000. The record attendance for the club at Brookvale Oval was 14,521 against Cronulla on 21 July 2002.
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