101-731: New South Wales Blues ( State of Origin ; 1999–present) Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs ( NRL ; 1999–present) South Sydney Rabbitohs ( NRL ; 2006–present) St George Illawarra Dragons ( NRL ; 2008, 2014–2017) Wests Tigers ( NRL ; 2005–2008, 2014–2018) Parramatta Eels ( NRL ; 2017–2019) Australia national rugby union team (selected matches) Western Sydney Wanderers ( A-League ; 2016–2019) Australia men's national soccer team (selected matches) Australia women's national soccer team (selected matches) Sydney FC (selected matches) New South Wales cricket team Sydney Thunder ( BBL ; 2012–2015) Stadium Australia , currently known as Accor Stadium for sponsorship reasons,
202-720: A National Football League ( American football ) exhibition game called the American Bowl was played between the Denver Broncos and the San Diego Chargers , bringing home former Australian Football League player Darren Bennett , the Chargers' punter . The Broncos won the game 20–17 in front of 73,811 spectators. This was Australia's first, and currently only, American Bowl game. The 1999 National Rugby League grand final , played on 26 September between
303-518: A Newcastle-based not for profit club, after being administered by the NRL since the departure of Nathan Tinkler . The following season marked a resurgence for the club, with the arrivals of high-profile halfback Mitchell Pearce , sought after rookie fullback Kalyn Ponga , as well as Queensland Origin representative Aidan Guerra and several other players. The team started the season strongly, winning five of their opening eight games to sit comfortably inside
404-608: A crowd of 104,098, which remains the highest-ever for an association football game in Australia. Sydney FC have played a number of one-off exhibition matches at the stadium. Sydney FC defeated the Los Angeles Galaxy of MLS 5–3 in front of a crowd of 80,295 in 2007. The game was notable for including Galaxy legend and US international Landon Donovan and former England captain David Beckham , who had joined
505-669: A crowd of 59,569 which remains the largest crowd ever for a cricket match in New South Wales . 30 September 2012 saw the largest ever NRL Grand Final crowd since reconfiguration up until 2014 when 82,976 attended the 2012 NRL Grand Final to see the Melbourne Storm defeat the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs 14–4. This number was nearly reached in the 2009 NRL Grand Final between the Storm and
606-644: A famous 21–6 victory over his former club and at the same time denying the Storm back to back premierships. On 6 October 2019, another notable NRL Grand Final was held with 82,922 people witnessing the Sydney Roosters become the first back to back premiers in the NRL since the Brisbane Broncos of 1992 and 1993 , defeating the Canberra Raiders who were in their first Grand Final since 1994 in controversial circumstances. During
707-580: A narrow 16–10 loss in Sydney before a convincing 44–12 victory over Queensland in Perth during game 2. In game 3, the blues once again needed to play a decider in Brisbane. New South Wales lead the game 12–10 at half-time but conceded two late tries in the second half and lost 22–12. Ahead of the 2024 State of Origin series , Fittler stood down as head coach and was replaced by Michael Maguire . In game one of
808-644: A new post-reconfiguration attendance record of 83,833 saw South Sydney defeat Canterbury-Bankstown 30–6 in the 2014 NRL Grand Final . It was the Rabbitohs first grand final appearance and premiership win since 1971 . On 27 December 2014, a new domestic cricket record crowd for NSW was set with 32,823 attending the Sydney Derby between the Sydney Thunder and the Sydney Sixers . The crowd was
909-455: A single match in the first half of the 2005 premiership, losing 13 consecutive matches which was the worst start to a season by any club since the 1960s. In 2006, the Knights finished the season in fourth position, a stunning reversal in form, but were eliminated from the finals after losing in the semi-final to the Brisbane Broncos , going down 50–6. Prior to the 2006 NRL season kick-off it
1010-564: A total of thirteen different coaches at State of Origin level, eight of which have previously played for the Blues. The list also includes the known coaches from the pre-Origin era and only counts games against Queensland. Games against touring teams from New Zealand , Great Britain and France are not included. Ted Glossop , Frank Stanton and Terry Fearnley are the only coaches to have coached NSW in both State of Residence and State of Origin formats. NSWRL Hall of Fame inductee Brad Fittler
1111-400: A two-year contract. In the next few days, the Knights also confirmed the signings of current Queensland Maroons star Neville Costigan on a three-year contract, and the promising young backrower Kyle O'Donnell on a two-year contract. The Knights finished 11th in 2010. While the club did not play in the finals, Adam MacDougall recorded the most tries for the club and Akuila Uate equaled
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#17327983580071212-401: A victory which granted Australia FIFA World Cup qualification for only the second time in the country's history. The event attracted a virtual capacity crowd of 82,698. The 1999 Bledisloe Cup rugby union match between Australia and New Zealand attracted a then-world record rugby union crowd of 107,042. In 2000, this was bettered when a near-capacity crowd of 109,874 (capacity at the time
1313-606: Is a multi-purpose stadium located in the suburb of Sydney Olympic Park , Sydney , New South Wales , Australia. The stadium, which is sometimes referred to as Sydney Olympic Stadium , Homebush Stadium or simply the Olympic Stadium , was completed in March 1999 at a cost of A$ 690 million to host the 2000 Summer Olympics . The Stadium was leased by a private company, the Stadium Australia Group, until
1414-491: Is on public display at the stadium. On 1 October 2006, the stadium hosted the 2006 NRL Grand Final between the Brisbane Broncos and Melbourne Storm. It was the first time since the competition began in 1908 that two teams from outside of Sydney had contested the grand final. 79,609 fans saw the Broncos defeat the Storm 15–8. As of the 2018 NRL Grand Final , this is one of three times that no Sydney based team has contested
1515-713: Is the incumbent coach for the NSW Blues. In his first match in charge, he chose 11 players to debut. Table last updated: 14 June 2024. First awarded in 2005, the Brad Fittler medal is the award for the New South Wales Player of the Series. Newcastle Knights The Newcastle Knights are an Australian professional rugby league team based in Newcastle, New South Wales that competes in
1616-565: The 1907–08 New Zealand rugby tour of Australia and Great Britain under existing rugby union rules. That inaugural "All Blues" side, the first football team assembled by the newly formed NSWRFL was: Backs: Charles Hedley · Johnno Stuntz · Ed Fry · Dally Messenger · Frank Cheadle · Albert Rosenfeld · Lou D'Alpuget Forwards: Harry Hamill · Arthur Hennessy · Bob Mable · Peter Moir · Sid Pearce · Billy Cann · Robert Graves · Herb Brackenreg Two further matches were played against New Zealand before their tour took them to
1717-615: The 1975 Grand Final played at the Sydney Cricket Ground . 2008 was the centenary year of the competition. It was also the first time a team had been held scoreless in a grand final since Manly had defeated Cronulla-Sutherland 16–0 in the 1978 Grand Final Replay at the SCG (the original Grand Final that year had been drawn 11-11). In February 2009, the stadium replaced its existing two television screens with new Panasonic HD LED video screens that measure 23x10m – 70% larger than
1818-527: The 2000 Summer Olympics . The New South Wales team retained the 2019 Holden State of Origin Shield after beating Queensland 2–1 after being down 1–0, becoming the first NSW team to win a decider since 2005 , and were victorious again in the 2021 series . The New South Wales rugby league team pre-dates the Australian national team , playing their inaugural match against a rebel New Zealand rugby team on
1919-697: The 2008 State of Origin series , to celebrate the game's centenary that year, New South Wales named their team of the century : Clive Churchill – FB Ken Irvine – WG Reg Gasnier – CE Graeme Langlands – CE Dally Messenger – WG Bob Fulton – FE Andrew Johns – HB Frank Burge – PR Sandy Pearce – HK Glenn Lazarus – PR Ron Coote – SR Norm Provan – SR Johnny Raper – LK Wally Prigg – positions Dave Brown – positions Steve Rogers – positions Roy Bull – positions Ahead of
2020-465: The 2013 State of Origin series . Queensland defeated NSW 12–10 to win their 8th straight Origin series. With 80,380 attending Game 1 at the stadium, the attendances also broke the Origin attendance records for the first and third game of a series. With the second game of the series attracting 51,690 to Brisbane's Suncorp Stadium , 2013 also broke the Origin series attendance record with 215,883 attending
2121-461: The 2015 AFC Asian Cup Final , which marked the Socceroos' first Asian Cup victory, also came at the stadium. Stadium Australia was also the venue for Australia's 3–1 victory against Honduras in the 2018 FIFA World Cup CONCACAF-AFC intercontinental play-off . The venue hosted the 2000 Olympics football gold medal match , with Cameroon defeating Spain 5–3 on penalties. The match attracted
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#17327983580072222-1260: The 2017 State of Origin series , NSW named the inaugural inductees to the NSWRL Hall of Fame, joining automatic inductees Dally Messenger and the seven Immortals who represented NSW. As part of the 25-year celebrations in 2005, New South Wales named 25 legends for each year before that. Tim Brasher – FB Noel Cleal – SR Bradley Clyde – LK Laurie Daley – FE Benny Elias – HK Andrew Ettingshausen – CE Brad Fittler – FE Eric Grothe Sr. – WG Paul Harragon – PR Garry Jack – FB Andrew Johns – HB Brett Kenny – FE Glenn Lazarus – PR Paul McGregor – CE Steve Mortimer – HB Michael O'Connor – WG Wayne Pearce – LK Ray Price – LK Steve Roach – PR Ian Roberts – PR Paul Sironen – SR Peter Sterling – HB Ricky Stuart – HB Geoff Toovey – HB Rod Wishart – WG Table last updated: 14 June 2024. New South Wales have had
2323-543: The Brisbane Broncos , but finished second on points differential (sum of points scored less points scored against). In 1999, the Knights lost their final two games of the regular season to finish 7th, before being knocked out a week later by the Parramatta Eels . The Knights came third in 2000, followed by a National Rugby League Premiership victory over the Parramatta Eels in 2001, with Andrew Johns winning
2424-701: The Clive Churchill Medal . Andrew Johns won the Dally M Medal for best player in the National Rugby League twice in a row in 1998 and 1999, and won an unprecedented third Dally M Medal in 2002. In addition, Johns also won the Provan-Summons Medal (the people's choice award for player of the year) four years in a row from 1998 to 2001, the best performance by any player in the history of the award. The club failed to win
2525-480: The Melbourne Cricket Ground which held more than 120,000 before its re-design in the early 2000s. In 2003, reconfiguration work was completed to shorten the north and south wings, and install movable seating . These changes reduced the capacity to 80,000, with the capacity to add seating depending on the venue configuration. Awnings were also added over the north and south stands, allowing most of
2626-623: The Melbourne Storm and the St George Illawarra Dragons , broke the rugby league world-record crowd previously set earlier in the season when 107,999 came to watch the Storm defeat the Dragons 20–18 to win their first NRL premiership. During the 2000 Olympics , the evening athletics sessions on day 11 attracted 112,524 spectators on the night that Australia's Cathy Freeman won the Olympic Gold Medal for
2727-618: The National Rugby League (NRL) premiership. Playing in red and blue, the Knights joined the top-tier competition in 1988 , 79 years after the previous Newcastle based team, the Newcastle Rebels had departed the Sydney competition with the formation of a separate league competition based in the Newcastle region . The club has won the premiership twice (1997 and 2001) and is one of only two clubs (the other being
2828-689: The New Zealand Warriors which ended their season. In the 2024 NRL season , Newcastle would finish in 8th place on the table and qualify for the finals. They would be eliminated in week one of the finals series by North Queensland. In 1988, the Newcastle Knights were re-established to represent rugby league in the Hunter region once more. Newcastle adopted 'The Knights' moniker as a reference to its 'steel city' industrial heritage. The jersey colours of red and blue were adopted from
2929-754: The North Queensland Cowboys 30–16. 16 November 2005 saw 82,698 attend the second leg of the Oceania-South America Qualification Playoff game for qualification to the 2006 FIFA World Cup . Australia defeated Uruguay 1–0, which led to a penalty shootout as Uruguay had won the first leg of the playoff 1–0. Australia won the shootout 4–2 and secured a spot in the World Cup for the first time since 1974 . The penalty spot where John Aloisi 's spot kick secured victory has been permanently preserved and
3030-566: The Parramatta Eels defeat the Bulldogs RLFC 22–12 in the preliminary final of the 2009 NRL season . This beat the previous finals record of 57,973 set at the Sydney Cricket Ground for the preliminary final of the 1963 NSWRFL season which St George defeat Parramatta 12–7. It hosted its first International Cricket match when Australia took on India in a Twenty20 night game on 1 February 2012. The match attracted
3131-535: The Wests Tigers ) that has never lost a grand final in which it has participated. Notable players include: Paul Harragon , Robbie O'Davis , Danny Buderus and rugby league Immortal Andrew Johns . The team's home ground is McDonald Jones Stadium . A Newcastle rugby league team had been assembled from players in the Newcastle Rugby League to compete in various competitions for most of
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3232-726: The Women's 400 metres . As of 2014, this remains the world record attendance for any athletics event. Also during the Olympics, the soccer final attracted 104,098 to witness Cameroon defeat Spain for its first-ever Olympic gold medal. This was an Olympic Games football attendance record, breaking the record of 101,799 set at the Rose Bowl during the Gold medal game of the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles . The opening ceremony for
3333-556: The naming rights , resulting in the stadium being known as Telstra Stadium . On 12 December 2007 it was announced by the Stadium Australia Group (SAG) that the stadium's name was to be changed to ANZ Stadium after concluding a deal with ANZ Bank worth around A$ 31.5 million over seven years. This change took effect on 1 January 2008. In 2014, ANZ renewed the deal through to the end of 2017 and again until its closure for rebuilding in October 2019. In December 2020, ANZ's naming rights to
3434-541: The 2000 Summer Olympics at the stadium completely sold out all 110,000 seats, while the highest attendance for any event in modern Olympic Games history was recorded with 114,714 at the stadium for the closing ceremony of the same Games. Musical acts for the closing ceremony were a "who's who" of Australian music including Kylie Minogue , John Williamson , John Paul Young , Jimmy Barnes , Midnight Oil , INXS (with Jon Stevens ), Men at Work , and Slim Dusty who sang Waltzing Matilda . Also in attendance on stage during
3535-644: The 2014 NRL Season, Newcastle played against the Melbourne Storm at AAMI Park . Shortly before half time, Newcastle forward Alex McKinnon was involved in a three-man tackle that involved Jordan McLean and the Bromwich brothers ( Jesse and Kenny ). McKinnon suffered fractures to his C4 and C5 vertebrae. Later in Round 19, the NRL held the 'Rise for Alex Round', where for every ticket sold, $ 1 would be donated to McKinnon to assist with his continuous medical bills and rehabilitation funds. On 7 July 2015 coach Rick Stone
3636-407: The 2020 season, Newcastle would reach the finals for the first time since 2013 after finishing 7th on the table. Newcastle were eliminated in the first week of the finals by South Sydney losing 46–20. In 2021, Newcastle would reach the finals once again finishing 7th on the table. For the second straight year, they would go out in the first week of the finals losing to Parramatta 28–20. In 2022,
3737-513: The 2024 series, New South Wales lost 38–10 in Sydney. The game was marred by the sending off of Joseph Sua'ali'i in the seventh minute. In game two, New South Wales would win 38–18 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground to set up a decider in Brisbane. In game three, New South Wales would win 14–4 to claim the series and their first win in a decider at Brisbane since 2005. On 1 October 2024, Michael Maguire stepped down as coach of
3838-537: The 20th century. The Newcastle Knights entered the New South Wales Rugby League (NSWRL) competition in 1988 with Allan McMahon as coach. Newcastle had previously been invited to field a team in the NSWRL competition for the 1982 season but declined, worried it would weaken the area's local league competition. The Canberra Raiders were admitted to the 1982 competition in their place. The team
3939-516: The 2nd half with 10 minutes to go with scores locked at 8 all, referee Ben Cummins initially gave Canberra a new set of six tackles after he thought a Roosters player touched the ball, but then retracted the call as Canberra's Jack Wighton was tackled with the ball and ordered a handover to the Roosters with James Tedesco scoring the winning try for the Roosters shortly after the handover to win 14–8. In October 2001, major reconfiguration work on
4040-772: The ANZ Stadium in Brisbane (now known as the Queensland Sport and Athletics Centre ) on 27 August 1993 when St George defeated Brisbane 16–10 in Round 22 of the 1993 NSWRL season in front of 58,593 fans. On 18 June 2014, 83,421 fans saw NSW defeat Qld 6–4 in Game 2 of the 2014 State of Origin series . After having won Game 1 at the Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane, the home side's win saw Queensland's eight year domination of Origin come to an end as New South Wales won their first series since 2005 . On 5 October 2014,
4141-573: The Blues continued their losing streak during Stuart's tenure, he is credited with restoring passion and pride to the NSW jersey and closing the gap between the two states. He was replaced by former Canberra, NSW and Australia teammate Laurie Daley . Daley's appointment as NSW State of Origin coach was announced in August 2012 and effective from season 2013. Daley got job over candidates including Trent Barrett , Brad Fittler and Daniel Anderson . Daley coached
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4242-608: The Blues in Game 1 forcing Fittler to make seven changes to the Blues starting line-up. Though he was roundly criticised for the move, the Blues went on to win the series 2–1, easily defeating Queensland 38–6 in Game 2 in Optus Stadium in Perth Western Australia , the greatest winning margin of a Blues squad since Game 3, 2000. Finally, in a thrilling Game 3 at ANZ Stadium in Sydney, winger Blake Ferguson and fullback James Tedesco combined to score
4343-409: The Blues to a series win in 2014, their first since 2005 and over his coaching rival and long time Canberra & Australian teammate Mal Meninga . Daley ended Meninga's and Queensland's run of eight series wins with victories in Game I and Game II of the 2014 series . In 2015, New South Wales suffered its biggest origin loss losing 52–6 against Queensland in the decider. In 2016, New South Wales lost
4444-585: The Closing ceremony were other famous Australian's including golfer Greg Norman and comedian-actor Paul Hogan .The venue also hosted the same events during the 2000 Summer Paralympics . The Sydney Swans v Collingwood Australian Football League (AFL) match at the Stadium on Saturday, 23 August 2003 set an attendance record for the largest crowd to watch an Australian rules football match outside Victoria with 72,393 spectators (87.7% capacity) attending and
4545-596: The Galaxy in 2007 and scored from a direct free kick during the game. New South Wales rugby league team The New South Wales rugby league team has represented the Australian state of New South Wales in rugby league football since the sport's beginnings there in 1907. Also known as the Blues due to their sky blue jerseys, the team competes in the annual State of Origin series against Queensland . For 2024,
4646-474: The Knights' 1997 victory. The three were suspended, despite O'Davis' claims the club was not notified his drug was banned until after his positive test, and MacDougall's medical reason for taking the steroids (his usage continued after he completed his suspension, now approved by the NRL). In addition, the Knights terminated Wayne Richards' contract. In 1998, the Newcastle club finished equal on competition points with
4747-708: The New South Wales Government revealed that Stadium Australia would be knocked down and completely re-built, with a new 75,000 seat rectangular stadium built in its place. The announcement was made in conjunction with the unveiling of rebuilding plans for the Sydney Football Stadium in Moore Park . The original plan for Stadium Australia was for the demolition to start in 2019 and the new stadium to be completed by 2021. On 29 March 2018 NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian backflipped on
4848-490: The Newcastle side finished 14th on the table winning six games for the entire year. In round 18 of the 2023 NRL season , Newcastle recorded their biggest ever victory as a club when they defeated Canterbury 66–0. Newcastle would end up finishing the 2023 NRL season in 5th place after winning nine straight matches, coming from 14th on the table after round 17. In week one of the finals, Newcastle defeated Canberra in extra-time 30–28. In week two, Newcastle would lose 40–10 against
4949-661: The Northern Hemisphere, with Jim Devereaux also featuring for the Blues. The visiting All Golds won all three games. However, on the return leg of their tour, almost a year later, with the New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership established, the Blues won the first two matches they ever played under 13-a-side rules against New Zealand. Later in 1908 the Queensland team , whose first taste of rugby league football
5050-653: The Parramatta Eels, with 82,538 in attendance. On 13 and 14 December 2010, a U2 concert, one of the biggest in history, was held at the ANZ Stadium. On 6 July 2013 a new rectangle configuration record attendance of 83,702 watched the British & Irish Lions defeat Australia 41–16 to win the Tom Richards Cup series by 2–1. The record set by the Wallabies test was broken just 10 days later on 17 July when 83,813 (only 187 short of capacity) attended Game 3 of
5151-482: The Stadium was sold back to the NSW Government on 1 June 2016 after NSW Premier Michael Baird announced the Stadium was to be redeveloped as a world-class rectangular stadium. The Stadium is owned by Venues NSW on behalf of the NSW Government. The stadium was originally built to hold circa 115,000 spectators, making it the largest Olympic Stadium ever built and the second largest stadium in Australia after
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#17327983580075252-456: The all-time great grand finals when the game went into golden point time courtesy of a Kyle Feldt try in the dying moments to level the scores at 16 all. But the game would be remembered for Ben Hunt 's dropped ball from the kick-off to extra time which led to Johnathan Thurston 's field goal that gave North Queensland their first premiership in the NRL since being admitted into the competition in 1995. Apart from games involving national teams,
5353-503: The annual interstate series. In 1912 the New South Wales team first toured New Zealand . They also visited New Zealand in 1913. During the 1913 New Zealand rugby league tour of Australia New South Wales played four matches against the Kiwis, winning three of them. The New South Wales team lost its first game against Queensland in 1922. In 2019 the Blues also toured New Zealand. During the 1951 French rugby league tour of Australia and New Zealand New South Wales played one match against
5454-412: The area. From 1997 to 2003, the Knights achieved a finals berth for seven consecutive years. The Knights won the 1997 Australian Rugby League premiership , defeating the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles 22–16 in the Grand Final. The match is best remembered for its classic finish – with Darren Albert breaking a 16-all deadlock with a try just seven seconds from full-time. This win was a huge morale boost to
5555-405: The club both on and off the field. After making a promising start to the season with victories over contenders such as the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs – the club and rugby league world was rocked by the shock retirement of Andrew Johns . The departure of their captain and most influential player had an obvious effect on the team, and although they managed to stay in touch with the top eight until
5656-408: The club refusing to play him in the fifteen games required to trigger his fourth contract. Before the final round of 2007, Tab Sportsbet's Glenn Munsie was reported in the Daily Telegraph saying that the Newcastle side were certainties for the 'wooden spoon' (coming last in the season) and "it was pointless taking money on the wooden spoon gong given Newcastle would be firmly planted at the bottom of
5757-403: The crowd is the largest ever in NSW not to involve a team based in the state. On 30 September 2018, the Grand Final between the Sydney Roosters and the Melbourne Storm featured one of the most courageous performances in Australian sporting history when Cooper Cronk , despite carrying a severe shoulder injury from the week before, played for nearly the entire match, inspiring his Roosters to
5858-463: The district following the closure of the area's biggest employer, the BHP Newcastle Steelworks , being announced earlier the same year. Seventy per cent of the winning squad were Newcastle juniors. In this year Robbie O'Davis won the Clive Churchill Medal . The following season, Knights players Robbie O'Davis , Wayne Richards and Adam MacDougall tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs; however, all three maintained they started use after
5959-422: The end of the season coach Brian Smith announced he was leaving Newcastle to join the troubled Sydney Roosters in 2010. Over the next weeks assistant coach Rick Stone was announced as the new coach of the Newcastle club. Toward the end of the season the Knights lost three games in a row which put them in doubt for the finals. They then had an outstanding comeback to beat eventual grand finalists, Parramatta up
6060-435: The first week of the finals. After the 2011 season, the Knights cleaned out 15 players, but nine other renowned players were signed including club legends Danny Buderus and Timana Tahu , Kangaroos winger Darius Boyd and Kangaroos forward Kade Snowden . The Newcastle club celebrated 25 years in the NRL competition in 2012. Captain Kurt Gidley succumbed to a shoulder injury early in the season which resulted in him missing
6161-506: The ground. ANZ Stadium hosts the following: As the largest capacity stadium in Australia that can be configured for rectangular field sports, high-profile Australia national soccer team (Socceroos) fixtures are often staged at the stadium. The stadium hosted Australia's 2005 shootout victory over Uruguay in the OFC-CONMEBOL intercontinental play-off , which qualified the Socceroos for the 2006 FIFA World Cup , their first appearance since 1974. Australia's extra time victory over South Korea in
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#17327983580076262-491: The highest domestic cricket crowd in NSW history, only to be knocked off a few weeks later at the Sydney Cricket Ground involving the same two teams. History was repeated on 4 October 2015 when for only the second time in the NRL's history, no NSW team was in the grand final and for the first time ever, it was a Queensland derby in the final between Brisbane and North Queensland . 82,758 people, many of whom had travelled down from various parts of Queensland, witnessed one of
6363-464: The ladder by the end of the weekend". Despite these pressures, the Knights managed to avoid a second wooden spoon in three years – offloading the dreaded piece of 'silverware' to the Penrith Panthers with a last round victory over the Wests Tigers . 2008 was a resurgence year for the Novocastrians narrowly missing out on the finals. Newcastle started the 2009 NRL season convincingly equaling their best home winning streak of nine wins in 1995. Towards
6464-447: The ladder. They finished the year 7th out of 16 after losing to the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs in week one of the finals. On 16 December 2009 it was announced player Danny Wicks was caught-up in a drug issue involving amphetamines, cocaine and ecstasy. He was stood down from the club. Wicks' contract was terminated. For the 2010 NRL season Newcastle signed McDonald's and Coca-Cola as major sponsors. In March 2010 Chris Houston
6565-453: The last third of the season, their season was irreparably damaged by his absence. In addition to this, the Knights endured the worst injury toll in the 2007 season fielding thirty seven players in first grade by season's end. The club also struggled off-field, with Brian Smith's decision to release players such as Clint Newton , Kirk Reynoldson , and Josh Perry . Newton's took a contract at Melbourne and Reynoldson threatened legal action over
6666-423: The match day change rooms and media facilities were completed at a cost of $ 81.4 million ahead of the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup and were first used for a NRL game between South Sydney and Manly Warringah on 25 March 2023. In September 2015, the New South Wales Government announced it intended to upgrade the stadium within the next decade, and install a retractable roof over the stadium. On 23 November 2017,
6767-419: The most tries in a season. In December 2010, former Newcastle player Chris Houston was cleared of all drug charges and re-signed with the club for two years. In March 2011, Newcastle were officially taken over by mining magnate Nathan Tinkler after a member's vote in which Tinkler won by 97%. In April 2011, Newcastle confirmed the signing of Wayne Bennett . The Knights finished 8th in 2011, being eliminated in
6868-414: The old record of 102,569 set at the Odsal Stadium in Bradford , England for the Challenge Cup Final replay between Warrington and Halifax held on 5 May 1954. The first musical act held at the newly built stadium was the Bee Gees , consisting of Barry , Robin and Maurice Gibb , on 27 March 1999. The band had embarked on what would be their final world tour as a group before the death of Maurice,
6969-435: The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic . The decision meant the stadium remained capable of hosting oval-shaped sports such as cricket and Australian rules football , and retain its capacity to 83,500. Various sporting codes have used this ground on a regular basis. The National Rugby League is the most regular tenant of the ground, while rugby union internationals, soccer internationals and Australian rules football are all played at
7070-402: The original screens, and 50% larger than the screens in the Beijing National Stadium , whilst consuming less power than the old screens. Additionally, an LED perimeter screen showcasing ANZ advertising has been installed on the second level from the 30m line to the 30m line. 25 September 2009 saw the largest ever NRL finals attendance (non-grand final) in competition history when 74,549 fans saw
7171-410: The premiership decider and also the only time an NRL grand final at the Olympic Stadium has failed to attract at least 80,000 fans. On 5 October 2008, the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles defeated the Melbourne Storm 40–0 in the 2008 NRL Grand Final in front of 80,388 fans. This is the record winning margin for a grand final, breaking the previous record of 38-0 when Eastern Suburbs defeated St George in
7272-473: The rebel Super League which competed in the one-off Super League Tri-series . Ricky Stuart , who had previously coached New South Wales in 2005, was announced as the first full-time Blues coach in November 2010. Following the 2012 series, the Blues' seventh consecutive loss, Stuart resigned the role. Stuart took a role as the Parramatta Eels head coach in 2013, citing family reasons for his move. Although
7373-399: The rebuilding plan, and revealed the government would instead refurbish Stadium Australia and reconfigure the pitch dimensions to a permanently rectangular shape. This would come at a cost of $ 800 million, compared to the knock-down and rebuild cost of $ 1.3 billion. On 31 May 2020, the renovation plans were cancelled by the government, who pointed to a shift in budget priorities as a result of
7474-482: The rectangular field and 82,500 for the oval field at a total cost of $ 80 million. The construction work was carried out by Multiplex . The reconfiguration work was completed in October 2003 in time for the 2003 Rugby World Cup where the then Telstra Stadium hosted the opening game, two other groups games, both semi-finals, the third-place play-off and final matches of the competition. In the first semi-final on 15 November 2003, Australia beat New Zealand 22–10 and then in
7575-500: The remainder of the year. The team failed to click and won only 10 of their 24 games to finish 12th. During the year, the club signed Willie Mason and Dane Gagai . Newcastle finished 7th on the ladder and making the third week of the finals by beating the Melbourne Storm in Melbourne in the second week of the finals. Newcastle were defeated the following week by the Sydney Roosters in the preliminary final 40–14. In round 3 of
7676-604: The reserve grade premiership the same year. The club stayed loyal to the ARL when Rupert Murdoch started Super League in an attempt to win pay television rights to rugby league. This decision was very popular in the Newcastle and Hunter Region areas. News Limited formed the Hunter Mariners to compete with the Knights in the one and only season of Super League in Australia, but the Mariners failed to win much support in
7777-497: The seating to be under cover. The stadium was engineered along sustainable lines, e.g., utilising less steel in the roof structure than the Olympic stadiums of Athens and Beijing . The stadium lacked a naming rights sponsor in its formative years, bearing the name Sydney Olympic Stadium between its opening in 1999 and 2001, it is then knows as Stadium Australia in 2001 and 2002. In 2002, telecommunications company Telstra acquired
7878-468: The second semi-final the following day England beat France 24–7. In the final, on 22 November, England beat Australia 20–17 in extra time. In 2022, a new scoreboard was installed at the southern end of the stadium, measuring 120 metres wide. Also in 2022, the stadium lighting was replaced with new LED sports lights and were first used in Game One of the 2022 State of Origin series . In 2023, upgrades of
7979-417: The series 2–1 but managed to win the third and final dead rubber game. In 2017, New South Wales were widely tipped to win the series as Queensland had a number of key players injured. In Game 1, New South Wales beat Queensland in convincing fashion 28–4 and in Game 2 were leading the maroons 16–6 at halftime before Queensland won the game in the final two minutes to win 18–16. In Game 3, New South Wales lost
8080-547: The series losing 22–6 in Brisbane. In August 2017, Daley was terminated as coach of New South Wales. In 2018, Brad Fittler was appointed as the new coach and left out established players such as Aaron Woods , Josh Jackson , Blake Ferguson and Josh Dugan . The Blues went on to win the series 2–1. In 2019, the Blues were widely tipped to win the series owing to the retirement from representative football of Queensland Origin greats Cooper Cronk , Billy Slater and Cameron Smith . However, Queensland had an upset win 18–14 over
8181-843: The sponsor was the naming-rights partner of the State of Origin series at the time, but the logo was displayed independently of the State of Origin logo. The official New South Wales rugby league team supporter group is known as "Blatchy's Blues". State of Origin (17): 1985 , 1986 , 1990 , 1992 , 1993 , 1994 , 1996 , 1997 , 2000 , 2003 , 2004 , 2005 , 2014 , 2018 , 2019 , 2021 , 2024 Interstate Series (54): 1908, 1910, 1911, 1912, 1913, 1915, 1919, 1920, 1921, 1927, 1929, 1930, 1933, 1934, 1935, 1936, 1937, 1938, 1939, 1941, 1945, 1946, 1947, 1948, 1949, 1950, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972, 197, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981 Before Game I of
8282-518: The stadium expired and it reverted to being Stadium Australia . In November 2021, multinational hospitality company Accor acquired the rights, with the venue to be known as Accor Stadium . The first sporting event held at the stadium was on 6 March 1999 when a then-record rugby league football crowd of 104,583 watched the NRL first round double-header, featuring Newcastle v Manly and Parramatta v St George Illawarra Dragons . The attendance broke
8383-407: The stadium hosted its first State of Origin series game between New South Wales and Queensland . The match, Game 2 of the three-game series , saw the record Origin attendance in Sydney when 88,336 saw the Blues christen their new home with a 12–8 win. The attendance broke the Origin attendance record of 87,161 set at the Melbourne Cricket Ground for Game 2 of the 1994 series . On 7 August 1999,
8484-415: The stadium was commenced to allow for sports that require an oval field, such as cricket and Australian rules football , to be played at the ground. The two wing stands and the athletics track were removed; they were replaced with a movable seating section. New roofs were built over the two ends and seats that had a poor view of the field were removed. The reconfiguration reduced the capacity to 84,000 for
8585-405: The successful France national rugby league team , a 14-all draw. The New South Wales team hosted 2 matches of the 1953 American All Stars tour of Australia and New Zealand at the Sydney Cricket Ground , winning 62–41 and 27–18. In a 1954 tour match between Great Britain and New South Wales the referee left the field in disgust at the players' persistent fighting after 56 minutes so the match
8686-553: The team was coached by Michael Maguire and captained by Jake Trbojevic . Prior to 1980 when the "state of origin" selection criteria was introduced, the New South Wales team, in addition to playing annually against Queensland, played matches against foreign touring sides and occasionally toured overseas themselves. Their home stadium is Accor Stadium in Sydney , the largest stadium in the state, having been constructed for
8787-418: The team with a search underway for a new coach. The primary colour of New South Wales Blues is sky blue , which represents the state colour of New South Wales . The secondary colour is navy blue , with additional contrasting colour of white . – Denotes no applicable sponsor for the listed period. ~ Major sponsor logo was featured on the jersey sleeve rather than the front from 1991–2003. ^ Indicates
8888-407: The three games. On 6 September 2013, the largest ever NRL minor round attendance for a single game at the stadium was set when 59,708 saw eventual 2013 Premiers the Sydney Roosters defeat South Sydney 24–12 in the final round of the 2013 NRL season . This was also the largest single game minor round crowd in the history of the premiership dating back to 1908, breaking the previous record set at
8989-437: The top 8. However, with a long-term injury to Mitchell Pearce, the side won only four of their remaining 12 matches to finish 11th. 2019 saw the arrival of forwards David Klemmer and Tim Glasby , boosting the team's forward pack. After winning their opening match, Newcastle lost five consecutive games before reversing their fortunes with five consecutive victories to reach 4th place. The Knights would finish in 11th place. In
9090-547: The tour ending in the newly built Olympic Stadium. The show was sold out with an attendance of 66,285. The stadium was not officially opened until 12 June 1999 when the Australian National Soccer team played the FIFA All Stars . Australia won the match 3–2 in front of a crowd of 88,101. Stadium Australia also played host to the national side's historic playoff win over Uruguay in November 2005,
9191-451: The winning try with just 32 seconds to go in the game to secure the series, off the back of play started from recalled halfback Mitchell Pearce . In the 2020 State of Origin series , New South Wales narrowly lost game 1 against Queensland 18–14 before bouncing back in game 2 winning 34–10. In game 3, New South Wales travelled to Brisbane for the decider, the blues would lose the match at Suncorp Stadium 20–14. The 2021 State of Origin series
9292-468: The wooden spoon for a second consecutive season, and third overall. 2017 was the Knights' 30th year in the NRL where they finished last again, claiming their third Wooden Spoon in a row. In December 2017, the Newcastle Knights expressed their interest in applying for a licence to participate in the inaugural NRL Women's season. In November 2017, the club was sold to The Wests Group ,
9393-507: Was 110,000) witnessed the "greatest ever rugby match" when a Jonah Lomu try sealed an All Blacks win over the Wallabies 39–35. The All Blacks had led 24-0 after 11 minutes only to see Australia draw level at 24–24 by halftime. An exhibition soccer match between the Australia national team and English club Manchester United was played on 18 July 1999. Manchester United defeated Australia 1–0 in front of 78,000 spectators. On 9 June 1999,
9494-635: Was a success from the start, becoming one of the most popular clubs in its first season. By 1990, the team was strong enough to enter a play-off for fifth spot. The club won their first competition, the Nissan Sevens, in 1991 and made the playoffs in 1992, where they were beaten by the St George Dragons . The Knights made the semi-finals again in 1995 when the competition became the Australian Rugby League (ARL), and won
9595-492: Was abandoned. New South Wales' dominance over Queensland came to an end with the introduction of 'state of origin' selection rules in the early 1980s. During the Super League war , in 1997 New South Wales was represented by two teams: one made up of players from clubs that remained loyal to the Australian Rugby League , which competed in the 1997 State of Origin series ; another made up of players from clubs that joined
9696-415: Was also against the visiting Kiwis, traveled to Sydney for the first series of games between the two states . New South Wales won all three matches, setting a precedent for interstate dominance that would continue throughout most of the 20th century. In 1910 New South Wales defeated the touring England team in two of their three games. After that they became the first Blues side to travel to Queensland for
9797-406: Was announced that the club's longest serving coach, Michael Hagan would depart the club following the 2006 season to begin a three-year contract with the Parramatta Eels . Ironically, during the week of the 2006 season-opening game against Parramatta, the Newcastle outfit confirmed Parramatta coach Brian Smith would take over coaching duties in 2007. The 2007 NRL season was a year of turmoil for
9898-577: Was one which had been interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic with all three matches being played in Queensland. New South Wales would win convincingly in game 1 defeating Queensland 50–6 in Townsville before defeating Queensland 26–0 in Brisbane to claim the series. Queensland managed to avoid a series clean sweep by winning game 3 20–18. New South Wales started the 2022 State of Origin series with
9999-713: Was sacked after a string of disappointing results, and Danny Buderus would coach for the remainder of the 2015 season. In round 26 against Penrith, Newcastle went down 30–12 to claim their second wooden spoon. In September 2015, Newcastle signed Nathan Brown to a three-year contract to coach starting from 2016. During the 2016 season, the club debuted 11 players in the NRL, while losing co-captain Tariq Sims midway through to year to go to St. George Illawarra. Against Cronulla in round 10, Newcastle were defeated 62–0, their biggest defeat at home and second biggest defeat in history. Newcastle would only win one game all year, to claim
10100-567: Was served with notice to attend court on charges of supplying ecstasy and cocaine . He was stood down indefinitely. June 2010 signalled a good period for the Knights after they confirmed the signings of 2009 Toyota Cup Player of the Year Beau Henry on a three-year contract, 2009 Toyota Cup Centre of the Year Siuatonga Likiliki on a two-year contract and former Australian international prop Antonio Kaufusi on
10201-621: Was the largest home-and-away AFL crowd at any Australian stadium for 2003. The attendance broke the record of 66,897 set at Football Park in Adelaide , South Australia on 28 September 1976 for the South Australian National Football League (SANFL) grand final between the Sturt and Port Adelaide Football Clubs . 2 October 2005 saw 82,453 attend the NRL grand final in which the Wests Tigers defeated
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