Top 10 Worst Teams In Australian Rugby League History
November 1st 2009 03:45
Top 10 Worst Teams In Australian Rugby League History
In the history of the NRL Premiership there have always been a number of great sides, dominant dynasties and unprecedented golden eras. But with every champion team, there always needs to be a side that languishes at the bottom of the table. With the wooden spoon being the most dreaded prize a team could claim in a season, there have been an equal amount of teams and eras that mirror the efforts of the champion sides.
Whether it is the collection of multiple wooden spoons, or consecutive loss records, there will always be a group of teams that will be remembered not for their success, but for their failures. Thus, the Top 10 worst teams in history are listed below.
10. Canterbury Bankstown 1935
It may be a little harsh to suggest that the Canterbury-Bankstown team of 1935 was one of the worst of all time in their inaugural season, but their dismal record cannot be ignored. Training out of an old cow pasture, the Berries suffered the two heaviest losses in history in the mere space of two weeks, when they went down to St. George 91-6 and then Eastern Suburbs 87-7 in May of that year.
By the end of the season, the Berries had amassed a total of 660 points conceded from 16 matches played, and only scored 150. Despite this however, they still amazingly avoided finishing last, with that dishonour going to persistent wooden spooner’s Sydney University. More amazingly still, the Berries quickly turned their form around when they went on to win the 1938 Premiership in only their fourth season.
9. Penrith Panthers 1967-1985
Penrith made an abysmal start to their existence as they scattered themselves around the bottom of the ladder for their first two decades in first grade rugby league. Despite only claiming two wooden spoons during that period, the Panthers barely finished any higher than eighth in the twelve team competition as they were aptly given the nickname, ‘The Chocolate Soldiers’.
Finally in 1985 the Panthers made their first finals appearance when they took on Manly-Warringah and won 10-7. Despite slipping down the ladder again in 1986 and ’87 Penrith finally crawled back towards the top and eventually won their first Premiership in 1991.
8. South Sydney Mid 1940s
Between the South Sydney golden eras of 1925-1932 and 1950-1955, the Rabbitohs struggled through the 1940s without much success. In a rare occurrence for the clubs supporters at the time, the club dropped to the bottom of the ladder and claimed their first wooden spoons in 1945 and 1946.
To add salt into the wounds of the clubs supporters who had grown so used to the Rabbitohs’ winning ways, the club amassed 22 consecutive losses between June 1945 and April 1946. In 1945 the Rabbitohs’ were winless for the first time in their history, while in 1946 they only won one match.
Before long though, Souths were back and in 1949 they finished runners up to St. George before the golden era of the 1950s took rise.
7. Eastern Suburbs 1963-1966
In the mid 1960s, the great Eastern Suburbs club slumped to one of their darkest periods. From July 1965 to April 1967, Easts were unable to win a single game in a 25 match losing streak. Their effort is the second highest record of consecutive losses in Premiership history and is in vast contrast to their record winning streaks only three decades before.
The result saw the club take the 1965 and 1966 wooden spoons, to place with their wooden spoon from 1963, while in 1964 they finished second last. In 1966 the club failed to win a single game for the first and only time in their history.
It was not long before Easts were back to their winning ways though as they made the semi-finals in 1967. In somewhat of a renaissance, the club appointed Jake Gibson as coach and introduced the now familiar ‘Rooster’ emblem to their jerseys, with the words ‘Easts to Win’ displayed underneath. The change worked as the Roosters marched into the 1970s and began a new golden era for the club.
6. Gold Coast Seagulls 1988-1998
Whether it be the Gold Coast Tweed Giants, the Seagulls, or finally the Chargers; the first incarnations of the Gold Coast were characterised by failure.
In their inaugural season of 1988, the Giants only won four games, despite a most famous victory over the Brisbane Broncos 25-22. In 1989, the club improved to 10 wins.
1990 saw the club become the Seagulls and acquired the services of the great Wally Lewis, but little success followed. After finishing second last in 1990, the Seagulls took three consecutive wooden spoons from 1991-1993. In the latter of those seasons, the club only managed to win one game.
Finally in 1995, Seagulls Leagues pulled their support from the club and it was bought by millionaire Jeff Muller. The club briefly became known as the Gladiators, but Muller’s involvement in the day-to-day operations of the side quickly began to cause tensions. It was actually reported at the time that Muller’s wife had ordered the selection of players based purely on the attractiveness of their ‘butts’. Before 1996 had even begun however, the ARL forced Muller out of the club and took control of it themselves.
Moving out of Seagulls Stadium in Tweed, the renamed ‘Chargers’ moved closer to the Gold Coast itself and began playing out of Carrara Stadium. Despite finishing third last in 1996, the Chargers actually made the club’s first finals appearance in 1997, but it did not take long before they were on the slide again and finished equal last in 1998.
By the end of 1998 the Chargers had resisted mergers with the South Queensland Crushers and Hunter Mariners, and despite being one of the few clubs to make a profit from the Super League War, they were axed from the NRL Premiership.
5. Western Suburbs 1908-1916
When rugby league kicked off in Sydney in 1908 there were of course some champion clubs that quickly emerged, and that would go on to dominate in the many decades to come. In saying that, there were also clubs that languished, and in the case of Western Suburbs, their form in those early years set the tone for the struggles that lay ahead for the club.
In 1908, Wests narrowly missed the wooden spoon, which was eventually awarded to Cumberland. That was nothing to crow about however, considering that Cumberland had entered the competition one round late, and had to borrow some officials from their last round opponents, North Sydney, as they were unable to field a full squad.
At the end of the season, Cumberland amalgamated with Wests, but it made no difference. The Fruit-pickers, as they were known at the time, spent each season up until 1916 at the bottom of the ladder, with their best effort coming in 1911 when they finished third last. In that time, the club claimed five wooden spoons, which would contribute to the total of 17 that the Magpies would collect in their history until their merger with Balmain in 2000.
In the mid 1980s, Wests would again face a period void of success as they went on a 22 game losing streak between April 1984 and April 1985. Beyond that, Wests never really ventured higher than the bottom of the table until they finally merged.
4. South Queensland Crushers 1995-1997
Among three other teams that entered the new ‘National’ rugby league competition in 1995, the South Queensland Crushers failed to impress, despite some positive signings.
Fighting for a foothold in the Broncos crazed Brisbane area, the Crushers only won six games in their inaugural season, out of 22 matches. To add salt to the wound, the club’s captain, Mario Fenech, feuded with coach Bob Lindner and was finally released from his contract.
In the midst of the Super League War, the Crushers continued for another two seasons, but were completely dismal, finishing with the wooden spoon in both 1996 and ’97. With little success and declining support, the Crushers quickly ended up in financial strife and sort to merge with the Gold Coast Chargers. This did not eventuate however, and the Crushers were axed from the inaugural NRL season of 1998.
In the end, the record of the South Queensland Crushers is one of the worst of all clubs to ever participate in the Premiership. From 65 games played, they only won 13, drew one and lost 51. Amazingly however, the Crushers biggest win came in their last ever Premiership game when they defeated Western Suburbs 39-18 at Lang Park.
3. Annandale 1910-1920
In 11 seasons from 1910 to 1920, the Annandale club achieved little to no success, and only ever finished a season as high as fifth, that came in their second season in 1911. After that ‘The Dales’, as they were known, never rose higher than third last.
Taking three wooden spoons in 1914, 1918 and 1920, Annandale struggled throughout their entire existence. Of the 33 teams that have contested in the NRL from 1908, Annandale has the second lowest winning percentage of all. From 153 games played, the Dales only won 25 and drew six, leaving a winning percentage of 18.3%. The most consecutive wins the club achieved stands at three in the 1916 season, despite the fact they still finished second last. Their most consecutive losses, in contrast, totals at 16, which occurred between July 1917 and May 1919.
Finally in 1920, the NSWRL General Committee decided to axe Annandale from the Premiership, citing the roughness and unattractive nature of their play. Coupled with this was the encroachment of industrialisation upon their area, which vastly reduced the size of the Annandale district and populous. They were replaced by St. George for the 1921 season, and as a club, the Saints proved to be far more successful.
2. Parramatta Eels 1952-1960
In 1956, the St. George Dragons embarked upon an amazing journey, which saw them claim 11 consecutive Premierships. Amazingly however, at the other end of the spectrum, the Parramatta Eels were mirroring the Dragons efforts by taking consecutive wooden spoons between 1956 and 1961.
To add to the wooden spoons that they collected in 1952 and 1954, the Eels went through the six seasons from 1956 with a dismal record. From the 108 games they played, they only won 16 and drew one, leaving a total of 91 games lost. Obviously the Eels for-and-against record was nothing to boast about either, scoring only 1183 points, while conceding a total of 2501.
Luckily for Parramatta, 1962 saw them climb the Premiership ladder and the club competed in its first finals series of its history. In the years that followed, Parramatta achieved more success and only briefly returned to the bottom of the table at various stages. Thankfully for Parramatta fans however, the club has yet to return to the dark days of the 1950s.
1. Sydney University 1920-1937
Of the 33 clubs that have contested in the NRL Premiership since 1908, the team from Sydney University is by far the worst. They are also the only amateur side to ever compete, with their ranks consisting of actual students from the University. This ultimately led to a high turn-over of players and the only consistency that the club ever experienced was failure.
Despite their lack of success however, the NSWRL persisted with the Students, and held the esteem of having an amateur University team in the Premiership in high regard. This led to University competing in the NSWRL between 1920 and 1937, and in which time, the Students outlasted teams such as Annandale and Glebe, who were axed from the Premiership despite more impressive records in comparison. Ultimately, despite the NSWRL’s reluctance to axe them, the perpetual failure of the Students led the University to finally pull itself from the Premiership in 1937.
Amazingly however, University did achieve success in 1926 when they reached the final against South Sydney, shocking the league in the process. Unfortunately for the Students they lost 11-5 and they quickly slid down the ladder again the next season, winning only three games. Their only other success was in 1924 when they were runners up in the City Cup.
For University however, their existence is defined by the wooden spoon and inconceivable losing streaks. In the 18 seasons that they played in the NSWRL, they took the wooden spoon on ten occasions and finished second last on three.
Of 242 games played, the Students only won 47, while drawing 5 for an overall winning percentage of 20.45%. The only teams with lower winning percentages were Annandale and Cumberland, but University competed in far more seasons. Most astonishingly however, from 1934 to the end of 1937 the Students only won 2 games. This was characterised by an unprecedented losing streak that spanned 42 games from April 1934 to August 1936.
Despite the unfavourable records of University however, it is still said that they contributed their own unique element to the Premiership and one that was highly valued by the NSWRL at the time.
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