2010- Not a close contest (Easts felt like the supporting cast) but it was a fairytale for the believers that would've warmed the heart of all but the most hardened Dragons haters. When Dean Young scored that try it was something special.
2011- I haven't watched this one back since. It was an ok game. I remember that even before kickoff there was this almost tangible relief still that at least the Storm didn't make it. Pity the Warriors couldn't have knocked Manly off in the big one as well...
2012- A dull game, biggest memory for me was James Graham's Ozzy Osbourne impression on Slater's ear.
2013- Not a decider that captured the imagination in terms of the contestants, but thankfully the game far exceeded expectations. Two genuinely good teams going at it, without it turning into a grubby slog-fest and Roosters yanking back victory from the jaws of defeat.
2014- The Souffs show. Substitute the Bunnies with the Storm, Roosters, Sea Eagles or Broncos and most fans would've forgotten this one quickly. Canterbury 2014= Easts 2010. Big Sam's broken cheekbone was poetic though.
2015- The fact this is widely considered to be the best NRL Grand Final to date says a bit about the standard of NRL GF's over the last 21 years. It was a boring game with a memorable finish. The game itself had some good hits, but in terms of the highlights reel there were few memorable 'wow' moments until the last 5 minutes of the contest. The Broncos made the same mistake as the '89 Tigers and the 2017 NSW team- they tried to run out the clock with an insecure lead and it bit them in the arse. We can forever thank the Cowboys for turning that boring game into a fairytale, preventing Bennett's boring tactics winning the GF- and ensuring that a certain team's drought continues to this day...
2016- This was a great contest, felt like a GF from the mid 80's in terms of what a grind it was, and perfectly illustrated the contests between Melbourne and Cronulla of this era. A better contest than the previous year IMO, and when the Storm had the ball 20 metres out with 30 seconds to go I feared it would be another Mark Coyne Origin moment with the purple filth winning. Glad the Sharks finally got to turn the porch light off, regardless of my thoughts on Gallen or Ennis
2017- Ugh. Storm were the best team all season, sure, but the Cowboys made their final job a lot easier. You can bet Captain Slimy and co were cheering NQ on as they played wrecking ball and knocked out teams like Easts and Parra who were the best chances at causing an upset to the purple filth on GF day. Cowboys did just enough to make the decider, then proceeded to be little more than passengers. I watched at the pub but with about 10 minutes to go I'd wandered out to the beer garden with a mate. To this date I've never seen a replay or highlights of this one. It's up there with the '97 Superleague decider, 2007 and 2009 as GF's that should probably be forgotten about
2018- Hardly a fan favourite, contestant-wise. Still, watching Latrell make Chambers his bitch and seeing Slater end his career to a chorus of boos after having every string pulled for him by the NRL sure was delightful to watch. Roosters were worthy Premiers.
2019- At the 70th minute mark this looked like it could be the best GF of the decade. Then Ben Cumstain had to go and f**k it all up in a textbook example of the referee's incompetence in the modern game, and leave the NRL decade finish on an underwhelming note.
For me?
Best: 2013, 2015, 2016
Worst: 2017
What Could've Been: 2019
