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Griffith Waratah Tigers

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The Griffith Waratah Tigers are a rugby league football club based in the town of Griffith , in the Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia. Since 1964 the club has competed in Group 20 in South Western NSW, which is governed by the NSW Rugby League (formerly Country Rugby League ) The Waratah Tigers are the most successful team in the history of Group 20, winning 13 First Grade premierships.

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77-802: The Griffith Waratah Tigers were formed in November of 1963 at the top of the Area Hotel in Banna Avenue in Griffith. An article in The Area News from that time recounted the events as follows: “A public meeting at the Area Hotel last Friday night unanimously elected to form a second rugby league football club in Griffith. The meeting, which was attended by 83 people including Group executives, Griffith Leagues Club and Griffith rugby league club executives, and many first-grade players, discussed

154-617: A breakaway faction of England's Rugby Football Union (RFU). Both organisations played the game under the same rules at first, although the Northern Union began to modify rules almost immediately, thus creating a new simpler game that was intended to be a faster-paced form of rugby football. Similar breakaway factions split from RFU-affiliated unions in Australia and New Zealand in 1907 and 1908, renaming themselves "rugby football league s" and introducing Northern Union rules. In 1922,

231-580: A decree by the RFU banning the playing of rugby at grounds where entrance fees were charged led to twenty-two clubs (including Stockport, who negotiated by telephone) meeting at the George Hotel, Huddersfield , on 29 August 1895 and forming the "Northern Rugby Football Union". Within fifteen years of that first meeting in Huddersfield, more than 200 RFU clubs had left to join the rugby league. In 1897,

308-405: A four-yearly cycle in the 2010s; as of 2023 , the holders are Australia . A short-sided version of the sport, rugby league nines , using modified rugby league rules also exists, and is comparable to rugby sevens . Wheelchair rugby league is a mixed-gender sport using heavily modified rugby league rules for disabled and able-bodied players. Unlike wheelchair rugby which adopted its name after

385-576: A high-scoring affair. The two sides played off again the following year, with Yenda getting the spoils on that occasion 24-20. However, in 2010, the clubs faced off for the third straight year, and the Waratahs had the last laugh, winning 30-16, with former Gold Coast Titans and Wests Tigers star Ben Jeffery winning the Barry Hails Medal as best on ground. After a couple of years of West Wyalong and Tullibigeal-Lake Cargelligo dominance,

462-437: A mix of the two sports' rules. Much more so than rugby union, rugby league shares significant similarities with North American gridiron codes. Although described as evolving from both rugby and association football , the basic structures of American and Canadian football are remarkably similar to rugby league through a process of parallel evolution: a try-and-goal based scoring system, a set number of plays before handover of

539-555: A number of Group 9 clubs including Gundagai, Junee and Tumut) broke away from their competitions to form the rebel Murrumbidgee Rugby League broke away from the Country Rugby League , leading to four years of reshuffled boundaries from 1967 to 1970. The Murrumbidgee Rugby League was renamed to Riverina Zone 3 in 1969-70. Given that a large number of the Group 9 clubs (including Cootamundra, Gundagai, Junee, Tumut) joined

616-633: A professional level. 45 national teams are ranked by the RLIF and a further 32 are officially recognized and unranked. The strongest rugby league nations are Australia , England , New Zealand , Samoa and Tonga . The Rugby League World Cup is the highest form of representative rugby league. Countries that have contested are Australia , Cook Islands , England , Fiji , France , Ireland , Italy , Jamaica , Lebanon , New Zealand , Papua New Guinea , Russia , Samoa , Scotland , South Africa , Tonga , US and Wales . The 2021 Rugby League World Cup, which

693-453: A result play stops much less frequently in rugby league, with the ball typically in play for 50 out of the 80 minutes compared to around 35 minutes for professional rugby union. Other differences include that there are fewer players in rugby league (13 compared to 15) and different rules for tackling . Rugby union has more detailed rules than rugby league and has changed less since the 1895 schism. Since rugby union turned professional in

770-415: A team's creative unit or 'playmakers'. During the interactions between a team's 'key' players (five-eighth, half-back, fullback, lock forward, and hooker), the five-eighth and half-back will usually be involved in most passing moves. These two positions are commonly called the "halves". The forwards' two responsibilities can be broken into "normal play" and "scrum play". For information on a forward's role in

847-401: A value of 2 points when kicked from beyond the 40 metre line. Field position is crucial in rugby league, achieved by running with or kicking the ball. Passing in rugby league may only be in a backward or sideways direction. Teammates, therefore, have to remain on-side by not moving ahead of the player with the ball. The ball may be kicked ahead, but if teammates are in front of the kicker when

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924-557: Is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 m (74 yd) wide and 112–122 m (122–133 yd) long with H-shaped posts at both ends. It is one of the two major codes of rugby football , the other being rugby union . It originated in 1895 in Huddersfield , Yorkshire , England, as the result of a split from the Rugby Football Union (RFU) over

1001-484: Is a rugby league competition in the region of Griffith , New South Wales, Australia. The competition is played in six grades, with these being Under 16s, Under 18s, Women's League-Tag, Women's Tackle, Reserve Grade and First Grade. Currently, a home and away season consisting of eighteen rounds is played. The best five teams then play-off according to the McIntyre system , culminating in the Group 20 Grand Final, which

1078-474: Is conducted under the direction of the Federation of International Touch (FIT). Though it shares similarities and history with rugby league , it is recognised as a sport in its own right due to its differences which have been developed over the sport's lifetime. Touch is a variation of rugby league with the tackling of opposing players replaced by a touch. As touches must be made with minimal force, touch

1155-432: Is the dominant winter sport in the eastern Australian states of New South Wales and Queensland . The game is also among the predominant sports of Tonga and is played in other Pacific nations such as Samoa and Fiji . Researchers have found that rugby league has been able to help with improving development in the islands. In Australia, and indeed the rest of the region, the annual State of Origin series ranks among

1232-555: Is therefore considered a limited-contact sport. The original basic rules of touch were established in the 1960s by members of the South Sydney Junior Rugby League Club in Sydney, Australia . OzTag is a non-contact form of rugby league, and can be seen as a variation of British tag rugby. Cronulla Sharks and St George Dragons halfback Perry Haddock introduced the sport in Australia while coaching

1309-607: Is traditionally held at E.W. Moore Oval in Griffith , currently known as Solar Mad Stadium for sponsorship purposes. The defending premiers are the Leeton Greenies, who won their eighth title in 2023 after finishing the regular season in second place. Group 20 was established in 1954, as the Wagga Wagga district competition, after many of those clubs left Group 9 and Group 13 . Griffith teams, and others based in

1386-413: Is worth. One of the main differences is the rules of possession. When the ball goes into touch , possession in rugby union is contested through a line-out , while in rugby league a scrum restarts play. The lesser focus on contesting possession means that play focuses more on powerful running, hard tackling, forward progression and the contest for field position (commonly compared to an "arm wrestle"); as

1463-602: The 1953–54 Challenge Cup Final replay at Odsal Stadium , Bradford , England, setting a new record for attendance at a rugby football match of either code. Also in 1954, the Rugby League World Cup, the first for either code of rugby, was formed at the instigation of the French. In 1966, the International Board introduced a rule that a team in possession was allowed three play-the-balls and on

1540-454: The ARL and NZRL . Since rugby league was introduced to Australia in 1908, it has become the largest television sport and 3rd most attended sport in Australia. Neighbouring Papua New Guinea is one of two countries to have rugby league as its national sport (with Cook Islands ). Australia's elite club competition also features a team from Auckland , New Zealand's biggest city. Rugby league

1617-634: The International Rugby League . Rugby league is the national sport of Papua New Guinea and the Cook Islands and is a popular sport in countries such as England , Australia , New Zealand , France , Tonga , Fiji , Samoa , Lebanon , Jamaica , and Malta . The first Rugby League World Cup was held in France in 1954, the first World Cup of either rugby code, and has been held sporadically ever since, settling into

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1694-504: The Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area , previously played in both Group 17 and Group 9, prior to various rezonings and redistributions as the code's popularity grew throughout the first half of the 20th century. The competition initially featured the Griffith, Wagga Kangaroos, Wagga Magpies, Leeton, Narrandera, Yanco, Wamoon, Yenda, Batlow, Tumbarumba, Barellan and Turvey Park clubs. In 1966, four Group 20 clubs (and

1771-704: The New South Wales Rugby Football League was founded at Bateman's Hotel in George Street. Unlike in England, where both codes maintained their own geographic areas of dominance, in Australia rugby league went on to displace rugby union entirely as the primary football code in New South Wales and Queensland , while Australian rules football dominated the rest of Australia. On 5 May 1954, 102,569 spectators watched

1848-749: The Ottawa Aces were scheduled to join the English league pyramid, becoming the only Canadian team in the system after the Wolfpack were denied re-entry. The club subsequently relocated to Penryn, Cornwall , and are now known as Cornwall R.L.F.C. In 2021, the North American Rugby League announced an attempt to be North America's professional championship, with Canadian club Toronto Wolfpack joining several USA Rugby League clubs, New York Freedom and Cleveland Rugby League to form

1925-598: The Rugby League European Federation and Asia-Pacific Rugby League Confederation expanding the game to new areas such as Chile , Canada , Ghana , Philippines , Czech Republic , Germany , The Netherlands , Sweden , Norway , Spain , Sri Lanka , Hungary , Turkey , Thailand and Brazil to name a few. The two most prominent full-time professional leagues are the Australian National Rugby League and

2002-556: The line-out was abolished and in 1898 professionalism introduced. In 1906, the Northern Union changed its rules, reducing teams from 15 to 13 a side and replacing the ruck formed after tackles with the play-the-ball . By this point, rule changes meant the game organised by the RFL was distinct as a sport from its union cousin. A similar schism to that which occurred in England took place in Sydney , Australia. There, on 8 August 1907

2079-526: The 1990s, when News Corporation paid for worldwide broadcasting rights. The media giant's "Super League" movement created changes for the traditional administrators of the game. In Europe, it resulted in a move from Rugby League being a winter sport to a summer one, as the new Super League competition tried to expand its market. In Australasia, the Super League war resulted in long and costly legal battles and changing loyalties, causing significant damage to

2156-518: The 1992 St George Jersey Flegg side. Together with Chris Parkes, the two took the sport to fields across Australia. Today, it is played by over 200,000 players in organised leagues across the country. League Tag replaces tackling with the removal of one of two tags carried on an opponent's hips, attached directly to specific League Tag shorts with Velcro patches, but otherwise retains almost all other rules of traditional rugby league (such as kicking). A number of additional rules are also added relating to

2233-478: The 1997 Grand Final, falling painstakingly short against Leeton 25-18, before experiencing the same heartbreak in 1999, losing 20-18 against Narrandera. In 2008, the Waratah Tigers qualified for their first Grand Final since 1999, where they would face Yenda, who were playing in their seventh Grand Final in eight seasons. Led by a young Andrew Fifita , the Waratahs beat the 2008 Clayton Cup winners 40-36 in

2310-515: The 2017 Kingstone Press League 1 in their inaugural season and earned promotion to the 2018 Rugby League Championship. In 2019 The Wolfpack won promotion to the Super League, lasting only a few months before having to withdraw due to the ongoing worldwide COVID-19 pandemic . New ownership is currently trying to revive the club with matches against amateur clubs in the US and Canada. Beginning in 2022,

2387-605: The Bidgee Hurricanes from 2012 to 2014, although the merger collapsed in 2015 and Yanco-Wamoon emerged as a standalone club. Narrandera then re-formed again and moved to the Western Riverina Community Cup in 2018. The Hay Magpies joined from Group 17 in 2006 after that competition collapsed. Yenda became the first Group 20 side to win the prestigious Clayton Cup as the best team in the state in 2009, when they won their sixth premiership of

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2464-674: The British Super League (with teams from New Zealand and France respectively). Other professional and semi professional leagues include Australia's Queensland Cup (which includes a team from Papua New Guinea ) and NSW Cup , the British RFL Championship and RFL League 1 , the French Super XIII and Elite 2 . The Papua New Guinea National Rugby League operates as a semi-professional competition and enjoys nationwide media coverage, being

2541-534: The National Rugby League, this was reduced to ten prior to the 2008 season and further reduced to eight prior to the 2016 season. If a team has to interchange a player due to the blood bin rule or due to injury, and this was the result of misconduct from the opposing team, the compromised team does not have to use one of its allocated interchanges to take the player in question off the field. The backs are generally smaller, faster and more agile than

2618-630: The Northern Union also changed its name to the Rugby Football League and thus over time the sport itself became known as "rugby league" football. In 1895, a schism in Rugby football resulted in the formation of the Northern Rugby Football Union (NRFU). The success of working class northern teams led to some compensating players who otherwise would be on their job and earning income on Saturdays. This led to

2695-411: The RFU reacting to enforce the amateur principle of the sport, preventing "broken time payments" to players who had taken time off work to play rugby. Northern teams typically had more working class players (coal miners, mill workers etc.) who could not afford to play without this compensation, in contrast to affluent southern teams who had other sources of income to sustain the amateur principle. In 1895,

2772-514: The Tigers returned to the Grand Final in 2014, knocking off the previously undefeated West Wyalong side 22-18 in a tense Grand Final at EW Moore Oval to win the club's 11th premiership. The Waratahs then went back-to-back for the first time since their late 1970s hat-trick, defeating Darlington Point-Coleambally 50-22 in the decider the following year. In 2017, the club made another Grand Final,

2849-675: The Yanco-Wamoon club, who won five consecutive premierships from 1992-1996, including three consecutive victories over the Griffith Waratahs club. After being a founding member of the league and winning three premierships in 1986, 1991, and 1999, the Narrandera Lizards club were in recess in the 2000, 2002 seasons, spent 2001 in Group 17, rejoined Group 20 in 2003 and 2004 and again went into recess from 2005 till 2011. Narrandera and Yanco-Wamoon briefly merged to form

2926-447: The ball comes into contact with the ground. An attacking team gets a maximum of six tackles to progress up the field before possession is changed over. Once the tackle is completed, the ball-carrier must be allowed to get to his feet to ' play-the-ball '. Ball control is also important in rugby league, as a fumble of the ball on the ground forces a handover, unless the ball is fumbled backwards. The ball can also be turned over by going over

3003-421: The ball is kicked, they are deemed off-side. Tackling is a key component of rugby league play. Only the player holding the ball may be tackled. A tackle is complete, for example, when the player is held by one or more opposing players in such a manner that he can make no further progress and cannot part with the ball, or when the player is held by one or more opposing players and the ball or the hand or arm holding

3080-519: The captain-coaching of Bob Priest, the Waratah Tigers won three straight Premierships in 1976, 1977 and 1978. The club won the 1985 premiership over Darlington Point-Coleambally, under the coaching of Warren Jowett, before beginning a 23-year premiership drought. In the 1990s, the Waratah Tigers made five Grand Finals in seven years, with the first three occurring in a row from 1992 to 1994, all resulting in losses to Yanco-Wamoon, who went on to win five straight First Grade titles. The club then qualified for

3157-1850: The club set to fold, President Robert Nascimben and a committee of passionate volunteers, including Mark Jaffrey, Trevor Rice and others, refused to let the club die. In late 2023, the club hired Willie Lolohea as coach for the following year and announced their plans to return to the competition. The club made a return to Group 20 in 2024, fielding three of six grades; First Grade, Reserve Grade and Ladies League Tag. Reserve Grade: 1966, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1982, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1999, 2010, 2016, 2018 Ladies League Tag: None Under 18s: 1967, 1969, 1970, 1973, 1975, 1978, 1979, 1998, 2002, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2014 Under 16s: 1968, 1969, 1972, 1973, 1977, 1984, 1988, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2007, 2008, 2009 Selections cover all eras. 1 Fred Griffiths; 2 Dennis Mootz, 3 Tony Saxvik, 4 Ross Warburton, 5 Brian Rossetto; 6 Bob Priest, 7 Reg McCulla; 13 Reg Cooper, 12 Gary Saunders, 11 Dennis Calabria, 10 Brian Milthorpe, 9 Ray Brown, 8 Len Bertoldo. Reserves: Peter Thompson, Frank Carnelutti, Bob Lanigan, Lindsay Meyn. Selections since 1980. 1 Anthony Rickey; 2 Rod Charles , 3 Phil Hurst, 4 Lindsay Meyn, 5 Brian Rossetto; 6 Chris Ross, 7 Mark Townsend; 13 Richard Northey , 12 Michael Scarfone, 11 Errol Hillier , 10 Rex Williams , 9 Tony Moers , 8 Warren Jowett (c). Reserves: Mark Harrigan, Robbie McRae, Mark Jones BEST-EVER WOGATAHS TEAM: Peter Moraschi; Pat Catanzariti, Barry Calabria, Brian Rossetto, Kevin Rossetto; Kevin Calabria, Mick Agostini; Will Pilosio, Micheal Scarfone, Dennis Calabria, Len Bertoldo © , Tony Sergi, Larry Salvestro. Reserves Joe Pangello, John Trimboli, Frank Carnelutti. -Selectors: The Mario Brothers Group 20 Rugby League Group 20

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3234-469: The code in an extremely competitive sporting market. In 1997 two competitions were run alongside each other in Australia, after which a peace deal in the form of the National Rugby League was formed. The NRL has since become recognised as the sport's flagship competition and since that time has set record TV ratings and crowd figures. The objective in rugby league is to score more points through tries , goals and field goals (also known as drop goals) than

3311-448: The competition returned the following year, it was again cancelled before he finals. In 2022, the competition completed its first season since 2019, with Waratahs qualifying for the finals before making an early exit. Then in 2023, the club was forced to withdraw from the Group 20 competition due to a player number crisis, meaning it was the first season that the Waratahs did not enter Group 20 since their foundation in 1964. However, with

3388-1771: The decade. As of 2023, there are eight clubs in the First Grade competition, three of which are located in the City of Griffith where the competition is based (the Griffith Waratah Tigers, who withdrew from all senior competitions in 2023, still compete in the junior competitions). The size of the towns competing varies in size, from Griffith and Leeton at 25,000 and 11,000 respectively, to Yenda and Yanco at 1,000 and 250 people respectively. [REDACTED] Darlington Point-Coleambally [REDACTED] Leeton [REDACTED] Griffith Mick Curren [REDACTED] Leeton Paul Colenso [REDACTED] Leeton Billy Arnold Chris Tindale [REDACTED] Leeton [REDACTED] Narrandera Glen Dawson [REDACTED] Griffith Tony Moers [REDACTED] Griffith Waratahs David Blomfield [REDACTED] Griffith Steve Richards [REDACTED] Yenda Franky Fiumara Jason Fuller [REDACTED] Leeton [REDACTED] Griffith Jaden Kelly [REDACTED] Tullibigeal-Lake Cargelligo Braiden Jones [REDACTED] West Wyalong Barry Smith [REDACTED] Narrandera Glen Schmetzer [REDACTED] Yanco-Wamoon Ben Arandt [REDACTED] Hay Griffith Rugby league Rugby league football , commonly known as rugby league in English-speaking countries and rugby XIII in non- Anglophone Europe and South America, and referred to colloquially as football , footy , rugby , or league in its heartlands,

3465-553: The first cross-town derby Grand Final against the Griffith Black & Whites since 1977, with their arch-rival taking home the crown 28-10. The Tigers bounced back the following year to defeat Yenda 30-20 and win their 13th, and to date, their last premiership, before going down to Darlington Point-Coleambally 30-18 in the 2019 decider. In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic hit, causing the Group 20 season to be cancelled. Although

3542-409: The five clubs who broke away from Group 20 to form the new competition (Batlow, Tumbarumba, Turvey Park, Wagga Magpies and Wagga Kangaroos), Group 9 was severely weakened. Therefore, the remaining Group 9 clubs were divided up and put into neighbouring competitions. Barmedman, Temora and West Wyalong joined from Group 9 during this period, leading to the 9/20 name, with all remaining Group 20 clubs from

3619-681: The five years prior to the Second World War , the sport's popularity increased as Frenchmen became disenchanted with the state of French rugby union in the 1930s. However, after the Allied Forces were defeated by Germany in June 1940, the Vichy regime in the south seized assets belonging to rugby league authorities and clubs and banned the sport for its association with the left-wing Popular Front government that had governed France before

3696-547: The football, each play restarting from a set piece position and ended by a tackle. Although the Canadian Football League in particular maintained the word 'rugby' in its name for many years, alluding to that shared past, the introduction of the forward pass and unlimited substitution in North American games created a fundamentally different species of game from either original rugby code. Although

3773-407: The forwards. They are often the most creative and evasive players on the field, relying on running, kicking and handling skills, as well as tactics and set plays, to break the defensive line, instead of brute force. Generally forwards play a more collision oriented game, making ground by pure strength, and tackling near the play-the-ball. Usually, the stand-off/five-eighth and scrum-half/half-back are

3850-406: The fourth tackle a scrum was to be formed. This was increased to six tackles in 1972 and in 1983 the scrum was replaced by a handover. 1967 saw the first professional Sunday matches of rugby league played. The first sponsors, Joshua Tetley and John Player , entered the game for the 1971–72 Northern Rugby Football League season . Television had an enormous impact on the sport of rugby league in

3927-585: The ground, with the ball usually set in a kicking tee , and the opposing team not allowed to directly challenge the kicker. The Super League in Europe and the National Rugby League (NRL) in Australasia are the world's premier club competitions. Globally, rugby league is played internationally , predominantly by European , Australasian , and Pacific Island countries, and is governed by

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4004-411: The historic link between the codes continues to be acknowledged, neither Canadian or American football is commonly considered a rugby code today except in the broadest sense, and are more commonly referred to collectively as gridiron codes, or simply as 'football' within their respective countries. Players on the pitch are divided into forwards and backs , although the game's rules apply to all players

4081-440: The invention of the sport previously called murderball and is not directly linked to rugby union, wheelchair rugby league has grown out of the parent sport, and retains key aspects of that sport such as an egg shaped ball, the forward-pass rule and conversions. While not a Paralympic sport, the sport has its own Wheelchair Rugby League World Cup . A further variation for ambulatory disabled players, physical disability rugby league ,

4158-412: The issue of payments to players. The rules of the game governed by the new Northern Rugby Football Union progressively changed from those of the RFU with the specific aim of producing a faster and more entertaining game to appeal to spectators, on whose income the new organisation and its members depended. In rugby league, points are scored by carrying an oval ball and touching it to the ground beyond

4235-511: The league's inaugural season. Several brand new clubs from Western USA were scheduled to join in 2022 but never played. The new competition is sanctioned by Canada Rugby League , but not yet by the United States governing body. Unfortunately, while some exhibition matches were played in 2021 and 2022, NARL was defunct by 2023 The early 21st century has seen other countries take up the game and compete in international rugby league with

4312-546: The matter for some time, before the chairman of the meeting, Bill Jafftey put the decision to a vote." The new club entered the Group 20 Rugby League competition in 1964, and by 1967, had won its first premiership (technically in a competition called Riverina Zone 3 due to the Murrumbidgee Rugby League schism of the 1960s). Further premierships followed in 1969, 1971 and 1972. Then in the late 1970s, under

4389-453: The mid-1990s, it has increasingly borrowed techniques, tactics and even laws from rugby league, while high-profile players and coaches from the league game have increasingly gone on to success in the union code in those countries where both codes are popular (e.g. Andy Farrell , Jason Robinson and Henry Paul ). The inherent similarities between rugby league and rugby union have at times led to experimental hybrid games being played that use

4466-537: The most popular sporting events. The Rugby League European Federation are responsible for developing rugby league in Europe . In England, rugby league has traditionally been associated with the historic northern counties of Yorkshire , Lancashire , and Cumberland , where the game originated, especially in towns and cities along the M62 corridor . Its popularity has also increased elsewhere. As of 2024 , only two of

4543-413: The national sport of the country. Five main variant sports of rugby league exist worldwide; Touch , OzTag , League tag , Nines , and Sevens . Touch, OzTag, and League Tag are all non-contact versions of the sport, where as Nines and Sevens are both reduced form (shorter match times and smaller teams) of the sport. Touch (also known as touch football or touch rugby) is a variant of rugby league that

4620-561: The new Super League, although the club was dissolved in 1997. In 2006, the Super League admitted the Catalans Dragons, a team from Perpignan in the southern Languedoc-Roussillon region. They have subsequently reached the 2007 Challenge Cup Final and made the playoffs of the 2008 Super League XIII season. The success of the Dragons in Super League has initiated a renaissance in French rugby league, with new-found enthusiasm for

4697-460: The north of England there have been complaints about its lack of profile in the British media. On the eve of the 2017 Rugby League World Cup final where England would face Australia, English amateur rugby league coach Ben Dawson stated, "we're in the final of a World Cup. First time in more than 30 years and there's no coverage anywhere". France first played rugby league as late as 1934, where in

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4774-404: The opposing team's goal line; this is called a try , and is the primary method of scoring, worth four points. The opposing team attempts to stop the attacking side scoring points by tackling the player carrying the ball and denying forward progress. On occasion, where a clear try scoring opportunity has been thwarted by foul play, a penalty try may be awarded without the ball being grounded over

4851-475: The opposition within the 80 minutes of play. If after two-halves of play, each consisting of forty minutes, the two teams are drawing , a draw may be declared, or the game may enter extra time under the golden point rule, depending on the relevant competition's format. The try is the most common form of scoring, and a team will usually attempt to score one by running and kicking the ball further upfield or passing from player-to-player in order to manoeuvre around

4928-400: The opposition's defence. A try involves touching the ball to the ground on or beyond the defending team's goal-line and is worth four points. A goal is worth two points and may be gained from a conversion or a penalty . A field goal, or drop goal, is only worth one point and is gained by dropping and then kicking the ball on the half volley between the uprights in open play. A field goal has

5005-494: The original split remaining in that competition. Group 20 history recognises the Group 9/20 Premiership as its official history. The dispute was settled in 1971, with Barmedman and West Wyalong deciding to stay in Group 20, whilst Temora returned to Group 9. Barmedman moved to the Group 9 Second Division after the 1972 season. The Darlington Point-Coleambally club won four premierships in the 1980s, with these titles coming in 1980, 1983, 1987 and 1988. The 1990s were dominated by

5082-542: The position they play, similarly to association football . Substitutes (generally referred to as "the bench") are allowed in the sport, and are typically used when a player gets tired or injured , although they can also be used tactically. Each team is currently allowed four substitutes, and in Australia and New Zealand, these players occupy shirt numbers 14 to 22. There are no limitations on which players must occupy these interchangeable slots. Generally, twelve interchanges are allowed in any game from each team, although in

5159-501: The same way. Each position has a designated number to identify himself from other players. These numbers help to identify which position a person is playing. The system of numbering players is different depending on which country the match is played in. In Australia and New Zealand, each player is usually given a number corresponding to their playing position on the field. However, since 1996 European teams have been able to grant players specific squad numbers, which they keep without regard to

5236-496: The scrum see rugby league scrummage . Forward positions are traditionally named after the player's position in the scrum yet are equal with respect to "normal play" with the exception of the hooker. Forward positions are traditionally assigned as follows: Rugby league is played in over 70 nations throughout the world. Papua New Guinea is the only country to have rugby league as its national sport . Four countries – Australia, England, France, and New Zealand – have teams that play at

5313-524: The sideline. Rugby league and rugby union are distinct sports with many similarities and a shared origin. Both have the same fundamental rules, are played for 80 minutes and feature an oval-shaped ball and H-shaped goalposts. Both have rules that the ball cannot be passed forward, and dropping it forwards leads to a scrum. Both use tries as the central scoring method and conversion kicks , penalty goals and drop goals as additional scoring methods. However, there are differences in how many points each method

5390-526: The specific issues associated with a tag based game. Rugby League played with nine players per team with nine minutes per half, in addition to slight rule modifications to aid the game. Rugby League played with seven players per team with seven minutes per half, in addition to slight rule modifications to aid the game. The top five attendances for rugby league test matches (International) are: The top five attendances for domestic based rugby league matches are: * NRL double header played to open Round 1 of

5467-663: The sport in the south of the country where most of the Super XIII teams are based. In other parts of Europe, the game is played at semi-professional and amateur level. As of 2023, there is no professional rugby league in North America. From 2017 to 2020, the Toronto Wolfpack were North America 's only active professional Rugby League team, competing in the English Rugby League system. They won

5544-482: The try line. In addition to tries, points can be scored by kicking goals. Drop goals (or field goals) can be attempted from the hand at any time for a single point. Following a successful try, the scoring team gains a free kick to try at goal with a conversion worth a further two points. Penalty kicks at goal, known simply as penalties, may also be awarded for general foul play, and are also worth two points. Unlike drop goals, penalty kicks and conversions are taken from

5621-571: The twelve Super League teams are based outside of these traditional counties: Catalans Dragons and London Broncos . One other team from outside the United Kingdom, Toulouse Olympique , competes in the British rugby league system , although not at the highest tier Super League level, but rather in the second tier Championship . Super League average attendances are in the 8,000 to 9,500 range. The average Super League match attendance in 2014

5698-580: The war. The sport was unbanned after the Liberation of Paris in August 1944 and the collapse of the Vichy regime, although it was still actively marginalised by the French authorities until the 1990s. Despite this, the national side appeared in the finals of the 1954 and 1968 World Cups, and the country hosted the 1954 event. In 1996, a French team, Paris Saint-Germain was one of eleven teams which formed

5775-472: Was 8,365. In 2018 average Super League match attendance was 8,547. Ranked the eighth most popular sport in the UK overall, rugby league is the 27th most popular participation sport in England according to figures released by Sport England ; the total number of rugby league participants in England aged 16 and over was 44,900 in 2017. This is a 39% drop from 10 years ago. While the sport is largely concentrated in

5852-552: Was created and had its first world cup in 2022 to coincide with the rescheduled 2021 Rugby League World Cup competitions. Rugby league football takes its name from the bodies that split to create a new form of rugby, distinct from that run by the Rugby Football Unions, in Britain, Australia, and New Zealand between 1895 and 1908. The first of these, the Northern Rugby Football Union , was established in 1895 as

5929-479: Was hosted by England during October and November 2022, staged the Men's , Women's and Wheelchair competitions together for the first time. The competition formerly featured 16 teams, but has been cut down to 10 for the upcoming 2026 Rugby League World Cup . The Asia-Pacific Rugby League Confederation 's purpose is to spread the sport of rugby league throughout their region along with other governing bodies such as

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