The 1990 New South Wales Rugby League season was the eighty-third season of professional rugby league football in Australia. Sixteen clubs competed for the J J Giltinan Shield and Winfield Cup during the premiership season, which culminated in a grand final between the previous season's premiers, the Canberra Raiders and the Penrith Panthers, who were making their grand final debut.
Season summary For the 1990 season, the salary cap was introduced in the New South Wales Rugby League premiership. Twenty-two regular season rounds were played from March till August, resulting in a top six of Canberra, Brisbane, Penrith, Manly, Balmain and Newcastle.
Parramatta's halfback Peter Sterling won the official player of the year award, the Rothmans Medal. The Dally M Medal was awarded to Manly's five-eighth Cliff Lyons. Rugby League Week gave their player of the year award to Canberra Raiders centre and captain, Mal Meninga.
The grand finals;
Canberra Raiders vs Penrith Panthers (Senior Grade) Canberra Raiders vs Brisbane Broncos (Reserve Grade) Canberra Raiders vs St George Dragons (Under-21s Grade)
The winners in all grades were:
Canberra Raiders (Senior Grade) Brisbane Broncos (Reserve Grade) Canberra Raiders (Under-21s Grade)
Teams The number of teams competing remained unchanged for the second consecutive year, with sixteen clubs contesting the premiership, including five Sydney-based foundation teams, another six from Sydney, two from greater New South Wales, two from Queensland, and one from the Australian Capital Territory Balmain 83rd seasonGround: Leichhardt Oval Coach: Warren RyanCaptain: Wayne PearceBrisbane 3rd seasonGround: Lang Park Coach: Wayne BennettCaptain: Gene MilesCanberra 9th seasonGround: Bruce Stadium Coach: Tim SheensCaptain: Mal MeningaCanterbury 56th seasonGround: Belmore Sports Ground Coach: Chris AndersonCaptain: Terry LambCronulla 24th seasonGround: Endeavour Field Coach: Allan FitzgibbonCaptain: David HatchEastern Suburbs 83rd seasonGround: Sydney Football Stadium Coach: Russell Fairfax→Hugh McGahanCaptain: Hugh McGahanGold Coast 3rd seasonGround: Seagulls Stadium Coach: Bob McCarthyCaptain: Billy JohnstoneIllawarra 9th seasonGround: Wollongong Showground Coach: Ron HilditchCaptain: Chris WalshManly 44th seasonGround: Brookvale Oval Coach: Graham LoweCaptain: Michael O'ConnorNewcastle 3rd seasonGround: Marathon Stadium Coach: Allan McMahonCaptain: Sam StewartNorth Sydney 83rd seasonGround: North Sydney Oval Coach: Steve MartinCaptain: Tony ReaParrmatta 44th seasonGround: Parramatta Stadium Coach: Mick CroninCaptain: Peter SterlingPenrith 24th seasonGround: Penrith Stadium Coach: Phil GouldCaptain: Royce SimmonsSouth Sydney 83rd seasonGround: Sydney Football Stadium Coach: George Piggins → Frank CurryCaptain: Mario FenechSt. George 70th seasonGround: Kogarah Oval Coach: Craig YoungCaptain: Trevor BaileyWestern Suburbs 83rd seasonGround: Orana Park Coach: John BaileyCaptain: Ivan Henjak
Advertising 1990 saw the NSWRL's advertising shift to a new level of sophistication, marking the first use of Tina Turner's 1989 hit "The Best". The league and its Sydney advertising agency Hertz Walpole struck gold in forging a link between the game and the song, which would become the soundtrack to a marketing success story that skyrocketed right up to a point of self-implosion in the Super League war of 1996–1997.
Tina Turner's manager Roger Davies contacted agency chief Jim Walpole in 1989 to advise that Turner's upcoming album Foreign Affair was to contain a rendition of a Mike Chapman and Holly Knight song which might possibly be of interest to Walpole's NSWRL client. The track, which had been previously released by Bonnie Tyler with modest results, would prove to be one of Turner's most successful singles. After hearing demo tracks, Walpole and the NSWRL General Manager John Quayle and his marketing staff sensed the linkage could be perfect.
Turner was brought to Australia amid much public interest for a massive film shoot where enough footage was secured for advertisements for both the 1990 and 1991 seasons.
The finished 1990 advertisement, in its full two-minute version, tells the story of Turner's touchdown at Sydney Airport and a scurry through paparazzi; she then finds herself in a warehouse training scene that's more glamour than grit where players from a number of clubs are working out on weights and climbing vertical chains. She plays touch footy on a beach, attends a lunch where she cheekily surprises Gavin Miller, whom she had met at the 1989 UK shoot, and later arrives by helicopter to a black-tie dinner with Andrew Ettingshausen and Gene Miles. Throughout are the de rigueur big hits and action shots, with Turner cheering in a replica grand final crowd, and finally congratulating the 1989 premiership captain, Mal Meninga.
Regular season
Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 F1 F2 F3 F4 GF BalmainMAN−2PEN−14BRI+2NOR+12WES+8PAR+17NEW+20CAN−14STG+2CBY+20CRO−8EAS+20GCS+44SOU+34ILA+24MAN−14PEN+5BRI−14NOR+8WES+4PAR−4NEW−2NEW+8MAN−16 BrisbaneWES0PAR+20BAL−2MAN+2PEN−8NEW+24NOR−2EAS+24CRO+12GCS+16SOU+28ILA+30STG+4CAN+2CBY+18WES+20PAR+2BAL+14MAN−14PEN−16NEW+20NOR+6XPEN−10MAN+8CAN−28 CanberraSTG+16ILA+14CBY−4CRO−1EAS+62GCS+8SOU+34BAL+14MAN+17NEW+6PAR−9WES+4NOR+23BRI−2PEN−21STG+16ILA0CBY+8CRO+14EAS+16GCS+24SOU+48XXPEN−18BRI+28PEN+4 CanterburySOU+4STG−2CAN+4ILA+18CRO+8EAS0GCS+22MAN+10PEN+22BAL−20NEW−2PAR−20WES−8NOR−6BRI−18SOU+16STG−1CAN−8ILA+4CRO+26EAS+8GCS+6 CronullaGCS+30SOU+26STG+13CAN+1CBY−8ILA−12EAS+28PEN+16BRI−12MAN−16BAL+8NEW−2PAR+6WES+6NOR−16GCS+28SOU+16STG−22CAN−14CBY−26ILA−34EAS−5 EastsILA−1GCS+14SOU−14STG+4CAN−62CBY0CRO−28BRI−24NOR−30PEN−2MAN−34BAL−20NEW−18PAR−30WES+12ILA−16GCS−16SOU+8STG+12CAN−16CBY−8CRO+5 Gold CoastCRO−30EAS−14ILA−35SOU+13STG−20CAN−8CBY−22NOR−23WES−15BRI−16PEN−22MAN−34BAL−44NEW−8PAR−40CRO−28EAS+16ILA−8SOU+26STG+8CAN−24CBY−6 IllawarraEAS+1CAN−14GCS+35CBY−18SOU+2CRO+12STG−7PAR−4NEW−6WES+12NOR−8BRI−30PEN+8MAN−18BAL−24EAS+16CAN0GCS+8CBY−4SOU+6CRO+34STG+4 ManlyBAL+2NEW+16PEN−14BRI−2NOR−8WES+14PAR+14CBY−10CAN−17CRO+16EAS+34GCS+34SOU+6ILA+18STG+4BAL+14NEW−6PEN−18BRI+14NOR+7WES+6PAR+16XBAL+16BRI−8 NewcastleNOR+5MAN−16WES+34PEN0PAR−23BRI−24BAL−20STG+22ILA+6CAN−6CBY+2CRO+2EAS+18GCS+8SOU+5NOR+20MAN+6WES+32PEN−14PAR0BRI−20BAL+2BAL−8 NorthsNEW−5WES+2PAR−1BAL−12MAN+8PEN−4BRI+2GCS+23EAS+30SOU+17ILA+8STG−6CAN−23CBY+6CRO+16NEW−20WES+10PAR−2BAL−8MAN−7PEN−4BRI−6 ParramattaPEN+9BRI−20NOR+1WES−16NEW+23BAL−17MAN−14ILA+4SOU−16STG+10CAN+9CBY+20CRO−6EAS+30GCS+40PEN−12BRI−2NOR+2WES+7NEW0BAL+4MAN−16 PenrithPAR−9BAL+14MAN+14NEW0BRI+8NOR+4WES+2CRO−16CBY−22EAS+2GCS+22SOU+38ILA−8STG+10CAN+21PAR+12BAL−5MAN+18NEW+14BRI+16NOR+4WES−10XBRI+10CAN+18XCAN−4 SouthsCBY−4CRO−26EAS+14GCS−13ILA−2STG−23CAN−34WES−8PAR+16NOR−17BRI−28PEN−38MAN−6BAL−34NEW−5CBY−16CRO−16EAS−8GCS−26ILA−6STG−22CAN−48 St. GeorgeCAN−16CBY+2CRO−13EAS−4GCS+20SOU+23ILA+7NEW−22BAL−2PAR−10WES−6NOR+6BRI−4PEN−10MAN−4CAN−16CBY+1CRO+22EAS−12GCS−8SOU+22ILA−4 WestsBRI0NOR−2NEW−34PAR+16BAL−8MAN−14PEN−2SOU+8GCS+15ILA−12STG+6CAN−4CBY+8CRO−6EAS−12BRI−20NOR−10NEW−32PAR−7BAL−4MAN−6PEN+10 Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 F1 F2 F3 F4 GF
Bold – Home game X – Bye Opponent for round listed above margin
Ladder South Sydney went from minor premiers in 1989 to wooden spooners in 1990, becoming the third club to suffer this ignominy after Canterbury from 1942 to 1943 and Western Suburbs from 1952 to 1953 – however, the Rabbitohs’ decline of sixteen and a half wins is easily the most severe in league history. It would mark the beginning of a 22-year barren wilderness for the Rabbitohs spanning 1990-2011 (which included two seasons excluded from the competition in 2000–01), during which they would only record a solitary finals appearance in 2007. Canberra won their first minor premiership, which they wouldn't win again until 2025. TeamPldWDLPFPAPDPts1 Canberra (P)221615532245+287332 Brisbane221615478278+200333 Penrith221516415286+129314 Manly221507395255+140305 Balmain221408432284+148286 Newcastle221327344305+39287 Canterbury221219354291+63258 Parramatta221219387347+40259 Illawarra2211110366361+52310 Cronulla2211011370359+112211 North Sydney2210012322298+242012 St. George228014371399-281613 Western Suburbs226115323433-1101314 Eastern Suburbs226115283547-2641315 Gold Coast224018233567-334816 South Sydney222020302652-3504
Ladder progression
Numbers highlighted in green indicate that the team finished the round inside the top 5. Numbers highlighted in blue indicates the team finished first on the ladder in that round. Numbers highlighted in red indicates the team finished last place on the ladder in that round.
Team123456789101112131415161718192021221 Canberra 2 4 4 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 16 18 20 20 20 22 23 25 27 29 31 332 Brisbane 1 3 3 5 5 7 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 29 29 31 333 Penrith 0 2 4 5 7 9 11 11 11 13 15 17 17 19 21 23 23 25 27 29 31 314 Manly 2 4 4 4 4 6 8 8 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 22 22 24 26 28 305 Balmain 0 0 2 4 6 8 10 10 12 14 14 16 18 20 22 22 24 24 26 28 28 286 Newcastle 2 2 4 5 5 5 5 7 9 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 25 26 26 287 Canterbury Bulldogs 2 2 4 6 8 9 11 13 15 15 15 15 15 15 15 17 17 17 19 21 23 258 Parramatta Eels 2 2 4 4 6 6 6 8 8 10 12 14 14 16 18 18 18 20 22 23 25 259 Illawarra 2 2 4 4 6 8 8 8 8 10 10 10 12 12 12 14 15 17 17 19 21 2310 Cronulla 2 4 6 8 8 8 10 12 12 12 14 14 16 18 18 20 22 22 22 22 22 2211 North Sydney 0 2 2 2 4 4 6 8 10 12 14 14 14 16 18 18 20 20 20 20 20 2012 St. George 0 2 2 2 4 6 8 8 8 8 8 10 10 10 10 10 12 14 14 14 16 1613 Western Suburbs 1 1 1 3 3 3 3 5 7 7 9 9 11 11 11 11 11 11 11 11 11 1314 Eastern Suburbs 0 2 2 4 4 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 7 7 7 9 11 11 11 1315 Gold Coast 0 0 0 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 4 4 6 8 8 816 South Sydney 0 0 2 2 2 2 2 2 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4
Finals Balmain and Newcastle both finished on equal competition points in fifth position at the end of the regular season, so had to play off for the chance to advance through the finals. HomeScoreAwayMatch InformationDate and TimeVenueRefereeCrowd Playoff Balmain Tigers12-4 Newcastle Knights28 August 1990Parramatta StadiumBill Harrigan19,174 Qualifying Finals Manly Sea Eagles16-0 Balmain Tigers1 September 1990Sydney Football StadiumBill Harrigan30,965 Brisbane Broncos16-26 Penrith Panthers2 September 1990Sydney Football StadiumEddie Ward24,409 Semi-finals Brisbane Broncos12-4 Manly Sea Eagles8 September 1990Sydney Football StadiumBill Harrigan31,424 Canberra Raiders12-30 Penrith Panthers9 September 1990Sydney Football StadiumGreg McCallum35,263 Preliminary final Canberra Raiders32-4 Brisbane Broncos16 September 1990Sydney Football StadiumBill Harrigan31,628 Grand final Canberra Raiders18-14 Penrith Panthers23 September 1990Sydney Football StadiumBill Harrigan41,535
Chart
Grand final The 1990 season's grand final was played on the afternoon of Sunday, 23 September at the Sydney Football Stadium before a crowd of 41,535. Penrith were attempting to become the first team to win a grand final in their first attempt, but were coming up against an experienced Canberra team.