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NRLTV - Watch full match replay’s of every Grand Final from 1966 to 2018!

insert.pause

First Grade
Messages
6,446
From Immortals Bob Fulton, Artie Beetson and Graeme Langlands to modern masters Darren Lockyer, Johnathan Thurston and Brad Fittler, you can relive the exploits of the game's greats on the game's biggest stage thanks to NRL TV.

The team at NRL TV have dusted off the archives and now you can take a trip down memory lane with match replays of every grand final from 1966-2018.

From the all-conquering St George making it 11 in a row in 1966 right through to Cooper Cronk's bravery in the Roosters' 2018 triumph, they're all here.

https://www.nrl.com/tv/grand-final/
 

mongoose

Coach
Messages
11,215
couldn't sleep so watched some of the 2004 grand final... not sure why i picked that one but anyway

the most obvious notable thing was NO f**kING WRESTLING!!

every play the ball, the player got to their feet and played it properly, no facing diagonal, no rolling it backwards while they are still getting to their feet

the defence was brutal and the aim of the defence was to drive the ball runner backwards, not drag them to the ground while twisting different parts of their body to make it hard for them to get up quickly

kicking game of both teams was very high quality, though it is a grand final

the majority of the crowd was Bulldogs fans, poor roosters lol

Sticky looks so young

the game was so much faster than it is today ....sigh
 

Perth Red

Post Whore
Messages
65,411
Great stuff, look forward to delving into some of the games from the past. What year was the Ellery Hanley final, might start with that one.
 

Big Pete

Referee
Messages
28,939
I had a feeling after they uploaded all the Origin games they'd turn their attention to the Grand Finals. Hopefully it won't be long before we see entire seasons picked up.

I decided to check out a Grand Final I hadn't seen in 14 odd years, the 2005 Grand Final. I have such fond memories of that season and I have the impression that it's generally considered one of the best seasons of the modern era. Partially because every fanbase, even the Knights, had something to be happy about moving forward and it seemed like the salary cap was giving the fans what they wanted - an unpredictable competition where anyone could win it.

The Cowboys were valiant but just made too many errors on the night. The Bowman to Bowen gaffe was the most memorable but just about everytime they made their way inside Wests' territory they'd make an unforced error early. Down by 12 mid-way through the second half it looked like the game was going to get away from them only for JT to work a nice play with Norton. There was a small window of opportunity to level the scores and make a game of it, but Firman came up with two awful end of sets and the Tigers were barely fazed. The forwards worked their backsides off and Bowen/JT tried hard but they just didn't have enough support. Under all the pressure JT wilted and spent more time giving Cecchin a gobful than playing the game.

Wests were a more realised side. Everybody in that team knew their role and while they didn't have the quality of other premiership winning sides, they knew which players to prop up. I loved how Sheensy used Benji. Marshall wasn't just a five-eighth, he'd actually find himself on the wing for kick returns which helped energize the Tigers start of sets. It paid off beautifully with that Pat Richards try. That was a beautiful example of turning defence into attack and credit to Sheens understanding how vital it was to get Benji involved in those early plays.

Prince handled the kicking game brilliantly. Gave his chasers plenty of opportunities to compete for the ball to put the Cowboys under pressure early. And when the game was there to be won, kept pinning the Cowboys down inside their own half. I thought he struggled with his general play, but he did set up the match-winner getting around Firman to set up the 2-1 down the right.

Where I think they really had it made was around the ruck. It wasn't as pronounced, but that 1-2 combination of Farah and Halatau kept the Cowboys on the back-foot and was vital in their win against the Dragons a week earlier. Their work around the ruck and ability to keep the ball alive played to the strengths of the better players and made them such a tough team to handle.
 

muzby

Village Idiot
Staff member
Messages
45,708
I see they’re showing 2007 and 2009..

I’m looking forward to watching them - the records don’t show who won those..
 

mongoose

Coach
Messages
11,215
watched the 1990 GF. Panthers kick off, Laurie Daley gets the ball and kicks it straight back to Penrith, you don't see that anymore. Meninga kicked for touch whenever the Raiders got a penalty, huh?

Panthers were so strong in the opening exchanges and dominated field position. Raiders basically scored 2 tries against the run of play. Rex Mossop commenting that the Raiders at the time were the best counter attacking team he had ever seen. Stuarts long kicking game was incredible. Raiders were such a technical team under Sheens, they almost played like a Union team.
Panthers fought back well in the 2nd half, their 3rd try wasn't even shown on the broadcast because they had cut to a replay when it was scored lmao, terrible technology.
I didn't know the score finished 3 tries each and that Mal's accurate toe poking was the difference.
 

Monday Roast

Juniors
Messages
27
Every GF except the '97 SL Broncos vs Sharks.

I ask this every year when Fox League show classic games over summer and there are ZERO 1997 Super League games shown: why not?

I've been told the 97 SL games are in Fox's archives, why aren't any ever shown? NRL.com, why is 97 SL grand final not available?
 

LineBall

Juniors
Messages
1,719
Gee they didn’t muck about getting set for scrums back in the 1970’s. They were over and done with quicker than some of today’s play-the-balls.
 
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