QUEENSLAND CUP
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(Redirected from Queensland Cup (rugby league competition))
The 'Queensland Wizard Cup' is the premier rugby league competition in Queensland, and is regarded by most as the equal second best rugby league competition in Australia, after the National Rugby League, and alongside the NSWRL Premier League.
The competition began in 1996 as a replacement for the Winfield State League, and as an accompaniment for the Brisbane Rugby League competition, but replaced it in 1998 as the state's number one competition.
For sponsorship reasons, the competition is referred to as the Queensland Wizard Cup, but is widely called the Queensland Cup, so as not to draw confusion with the Australian Football League’s pre-season competition which was formerly known as the Wizard Home Loans Cup. The fact the competition is televised on the government-funded Australian Broadcasting Commission, which has strict policies banning advertising and the mention of sponsor's names, is another reason the "Wizard" part of the competition's title is rarely used. The competition has previously been named the Channel Nine Cup and Bundy Gold Cup.
The match of the round is televised live on ABC Queensland at 2 pm (AEST) Saturdays, with the game being replayed nationally on ABC2 on Thursday nights at 11 pm (AEST).
★ The Mackay Sea Eagles applied to join the competition in 2006, and again in 2007, however the QRL rejected both these applications.
★ In December 2006 the Toowoomba Clydesdales pulled out of the competition due to financial difficulties, stemming from that fact that they were no longer financially supported by the Brisbane Broncos. In their place the Aspley Broncos were admitted into the competition.
★ It is widely expected that in the 2008 season teams from Mackay[1] and Cairns[2] will join with the backing of the NRL team North Queensland Cowboys.
From the early 1920s to the 1970s, the Brisbane Rugby League premiership was the premier competition in the state, and was a thriving success boasting big crowds and large, loyal supporter bases with the repective clubs. Like its NSW counterpart, the clubs were constant, with new teams rarely entering the competition. Traditionally, the clubs were Valleys, Brothers, Norths, Souths, Wests, Easts, Redcliffe and Wynnum-Manly. However, when poker machines were introduced in New South Wales, but not in the Bjelke-Peterson Queensland, the NSWRL's clubs were able to entice Queensland players south of the Tweed with the lure of more money.
This, combined with the admission of non-Sydney teams like the Penrith Panthers, Canberra Raiders and Illawarra Steelers, saw the NSWRL competition during the 1980s begin to supersede the Brisbane competition in popularity and media coverage. Also, other sports like AFL and basketball were establishing national competitions, and by 1986 the admission of a Brisbane team into the NSWRL had become inevitable. Finally in 1988 both the Brisbane Broncos and Gold Coast Giants gained entry.
Although the Broncos' signings of many great BRL players like Wally Lewis and Gene Miles got many Brisbanites behind the new team, there were severe ramifications on the local club scene. In the space of one season, the amount of coverage given to the competition in the three media forms dropped significantly, as did attendances at matches.
This had a severe flow on effect to the finances of many clubs, especially those in the inner-city whose demographics had changed significantly since the heyday of the BRL. Between 1988 and 1995 Valleys moved home 3 times, from Albion to the Tweed, back to Albion and finally to Caboolture, before eventually folding at the end of 1995. Other teams that suffered financial trouble and no longer play in the Queensland Cup include Valleys and Wests, while Souths and Logan merged in 2002 to form Souths-Logan
In 1996 the Queensland Cup began, replacing the Winfield State League, as new Federal Government Laws banned Cigarette companies from sponsoring sport. The Cup was initially branded the Channel Nine Cup, and to date, season 1996 was the most statewide competition in the Cup's history, with teams based in Cairns, Mackay, Bundaberg and the Sunshine Coast. In 1998 Channel Nine did not continue their sponsorship, and the competition became known as the Queensland Cup. In 2000, Bundaberg Rum began a 2-year sponsorship of the competition and it was known as the Bundy Gold Cup.
2005 saw the welcome announcement of Wizard Home Loans becoming naming right sponsor for the competition, and it is now officially known as the Queensland Wizard Cup.
Although the Queensland Rugby League had anticipated that the same teams from 2006 would participate in the 2007 Wizard Cup, it was announced on December 5, 2006 that the Toowoomba Clydesdales would be withdrawing from the competition for financial reasons. Brisbane Broncos chairman Bruno Cullen said that "It didn't make sense to have this club up there running at what was looking like a $250,000 loss for the year."[3] The following day it was announced that the Aspley Broncos would be replacing the Clydesdales, and acting as the Brisbane Broncos feeder club.[4]
There is ongoing speculation as to how the Wizard Cup will fare with the introduction of the National Rugby League's Under-20s competition in 2008.[5]
John O'Brien, owner of the Cairns Taipans NBL basketball team, along with Denis Keeffe, Nigel Tillet and John Moore met with the North Queensland Cowboys on 7 December 2006 to discuss entering a Cairns-based team out of Barlow Park 2008.[6] The team is to be known as the Northern Pride [7]
In 2006 Mackay unsuccessfully applied to be the 12th team in the 2007 season, they lost out to the Aspley Broncos. Mackay are putting together another bid to join the competition for the 2008 season as the Mackay Cutters.
The WA Reds are expected to apply for the 2009 season as part of their 5-year plan to return to the NRL.
The 11 teams play each other twice in a rotating roster running typically from the middle of March to the middle of August. This is known as the regular season. Unlike the National Rugby League, the Queensland Cup regular season is a true home-and-away format, in that each team plays every other team twice, once at home and once away.
Normally, there is a round each weekend, which involves 5 games. However, there are two split rounds in the season, where the round takes place over two weekends. This allows for representative games such as the City vs. Country fixture, as well as allowing more games to be shown on free-to-air television, on ABC-TV. Games kick off at 2 pm Saturdays for the TV game, and at 3 pm Saturdays and Sundays for the remainder. North and Central Queensland both often play their home games at the 7.30 timeslot to avoid playing in the heat of the day.
The winner of each game per round is awarded two points on the League Ladder, however the team with the bye is awarded no points for that round. If a game is drawn between the two teams, each team is awarded one point each.
At the end of the regular season, the fiveteams with the highest point totals on the ladder qualify for the finals. In the event of two or more teams sharing the same competition points, the finishing order is decided by points differential i.e. points scored during games minus points conceded.
The Queensland Cup uses a final-five series, which has been used for decades not only in Queensland but also in the NSWRL's Winfield Cup. This consists of a number of knockout, qualifying and sudden death games, which see the two remaining teams play in the Grand Final, which is traditionally played at Suncorp Stadium (Lang Park). It has only been played elsewhere three times, at Dolphin Oval in 2001-03, due to the redevelopment of Suncorp Stadium and the 2003 Rugby World Cup.
The level of club Rugby League in Queensland is of such a high standard that all clubs in the Queensland Wizard Cup have affiliation with a team in the Australian national competition the National Rugby League. This gives many young Queensland players the opportunity to be signed into the NRL. The following teams are affiliated with the listed NRL teams.
★ Brisbane Broncos - Redcliffe Dolphins, Wynnum-Manly Seagulls, Aspley Broncos
★ North Queensland Cowboys - North Queensland Young Guns, Central Comets
★ Gold Coast Titans - Burleigh Bears, Tweed Heads Seagulls, Ipswich Jets
★ Melbourne Storm - Northern Suburbs Devils (ending at conclusion of 2007 season)
★ Canberra Raiders - Souths-Logan Magpies
★ South Sydney Rabbitohs - Eastern Suburbs Tigers
★ 2007 Queensland Wizard Cup Draw
★ 2007 Queensland Cup Results
[1]
In its life as the Brisbane Rugby League, it received large media and community support, however since the introduction of the Brisbane Broncos to the NSWRL and NRL, this has dropped significantly. Currently it receives small columns in the Brisbane daily newspaper, the Courier-Mail, a double page report in the weekly edition of Australian magazine 'Rugby League Week' and the 'match of the week' being broadcast on ABC-TV.
In 2006, community broadcaster Bay FM began broadcasting Wynnum-Manly home games, and Wynnum won radio station Nova 106.9's club that Brisbane really really loves.
As the Queensland Cup initially began as a representative competition that took over the old Winfield State League before becoming a proper club competition, many of the following clubs are "representative" sides that either withdrew (in the case of the Central Queensland Capras, Mackay, Bundaberg, Gold Coast Vikings, etc) or folded (Cairns Cyclones, Port Moresby Vipers, etc).
Despite finishing on the top of the ladder and also reaching the 2006 Grand Final the Toowoomba Clydesdales pulled out of the Queensland Cup for 2007 claiming they were $100,000AUD short to be able to field a team in the competition. It is unknown if they will rejoin in 2008.
★ Queensland Rugby League
★ Queensland Rugby League Queensland Cup Page
★ Rleague.com's Queensland page
★ League Unlimited's Queensland Page
★ Rleague's Queensland Forum
★ League Unlimited's Queensland Forum
★ FOGS Cup and FOGS Colts Challenge
★ Brisbane Rugby League
★ Winfield State League
★ Queensland Rugby League
 | |
| 'General Information' | |
|---|---|
| 'First Season' | 1996 |
| 'Website' | Queensland Cup |
| '2006 Season' | |
| 'Premiers' | 'Redcliffe Dolphins' |
| 'Runners-Up' | 'Toowoomba Clydesdales' |
| 'Minor Premiers' | 'Toowoomba Clydesdales' |
| 'Wooden spoon' | 'Ipswich Jets' |
| '2007 Season' | |
| 'Premiers' | ''unknown'' |
| 'Runners-Up' | ''unknown'' |
| 'Minor Premiers' | ''unknown'' |
| 'Wooden spoon' | ''unknown'' |
The 'Queensland Wizard Cup' is the premier rugby league competition in Queensland, and is regarded by most as the equal second best rugby league competition in Australia, after the National Rugby League, and alongside the NSWRL Premier League.
The competition began in 1996 as a replacement for the Winfield State League, and as an accompaniment for the Brisbane Rugby League competition, but replaced it in 1998 as the state's number one competition.
For sponsorship reasons, the competition is referred to as the Queensland Wizard Cup, but is widely called the Queensland Cup, so as not to draw confusion with the Australian Football League’s pre-season competition which was formerly known as the Wizard Home Loans Cup. The fact the competition is televised on the government-funded Australian Broadcasting Commission, which has strict policies banning advertising and the mention of sponsor's names, is another reason the "Wizard" part of the competition's title is rarely used. The competition has previously been named the Channel Nine Cup and Bundy Gold Cup.
The match of the round is televised live on ABC Queensland at 2 pm (AEST) Saturdays, with the game being replayed nationally on ABC2 on Thursday nights at 11 pm (AEST).
Club Information
| Team | Established | Home Ground | Address |
|---|---|---|---|
| 'Aspley Broncos' | 1967 | Bishop Park | Franklin Street, Nundah, Brisbane |
| 'Burleigh Bears' | 1934 | Pizzey Park | Pacific Avenue, Miami, Gold Coast |
| 'Central Comets' | 1998 | Browne Park | Corner Cambridge & Murray Streets, Rockhampton |
| 'Easts Tigers' | 1933 | Langlands Park | Main Avenue, Coorparoo, Brisbane |
| 'Ipswich Jets' | 1986 | North Ipswich Reserve | The Terrace, North Ipswich |
| 'Norths Devils' | 1927 | Bishop Park | Franklin Street, Nundah, Brisbane |
| 'North Queensland Young Guns' | 2002 | Dairy Farmers Stadium | Golf Links Drive, Kirwin, Townsville |
| 'Redcliffe Dolphins' | 1947 | Dolphin Oval | Corner Klinger and Ashmole Roads, Redcliffe |
| 'Souths-Logan Magpies' | 2003 | Brandon Park Davies Park | Acacia Ridge, Brisbane Jane Street, West End, Brisbane |
| 'Tweed Heads Seagulls' | 1909 | Piggabeen Sports Complex | Carramar Drive, Tweed Heads West |
| 'Wynnum-Manly Seagulls' | 1951 | Kougari Oval | Wondall Road, Manly West |
★ The Mackay Sea Eagles applied to join the competition in 2006, and again in 2007, however the QRL rejected both these applications.
★ In December 2006 the Toowoomba Clydesdales pulled out of the competition due to financial difficulties, stemming from that fact that they were no longer financially supported by the Brisbane Broncos. In their place the Aspley Broncos were admitted into the competition.
★ It is widely expected that in the 2008 season teams from Mackay[1] and Cairns[2] will join with the backing of the NRL team North Queensland Cowboys.
History of the Queensland Cup
The logo for the Channel Nine Cup
The logo for the Bundy Gold Cup
The Brisbane Rugby League
From the early 1920s to the 1970s, the Brisbane Rugby League premiership was the premier competition in the state, and was a thriving success boasting big crowds and large, loyal supporter bases with the repective clubs. Like its NSW counterpart, the clubs were constant, with new teams rarely entering the competition. Traditionally, the clubs were Valleys, Brothers, Norths, Souths, Wests, Easts, Redcliffe and Wynnum-Manly. However, when poker machines were introduced in New South Wales, but not in the Bjelke-Peterson Queensland, the NSWRL's clubs were able to entice Queensland players south of the Tweed with the lure of more money.
This, combined with the admission of non-Sydney teams like the Penrith Panthers, Canberra Raiders and Illawarra Steelers, saw the NSWRL competition during the 1980s begin to supersede the Brisbane competition in popularity and media coverage. Also, other sports like AFL and basketball were establishing national competitions, and by 1986 the admission of a Brisbane team into the NSWRL had become inevitable. Finally in 1988 both the Brisbane Broncos and Gold Coast Giants gained entry.
The Brisbane Broncos
Although the Broncos' signings of many great BRL players like Wally Lewis and Gene Miles got many Brisbanites behind the new team, there were severe ramifications on the local club scene. In the space of one season, the amount of coverage given to the competition in the three media forms dropped significantly, as did attendances at matches.
This had a severe flow on effect to the finances of many clubs, especially those in the inner-city whose demographics had changed significantly since the heyday of the BRL. Between 1988 and 1995 Valleys moved home 3 times, from Albion to the Tweed, back to Albion and finally to Caboolture, before eventually folding at the end of 1995. Other teams that suffered financial trouble and no longer play in the Queensland Cup include Valleys and Wests, while Souths and Logan merged in 2002 to form Souths-Logan
The Beginning of the Queensland Cup
In 1996 the Queensland Cup began, replacing the Winfield State League, as new Federal Government Laws banned Cigarette companies from sponsoring sport. The Cup was initially branded the Channel Nine Cup, and to date, season 1996 was the most statewide competition in the Cup's history, with teams based in Cairns, Mackay, Bundaberg and the Sunshine Coast. In 1998 Channel Nine did not continue their sponsorship, and the competition became known as the Queensland Cup. In 2000, Bundaberg Rum began a 2-year sponsorship of the competition and it was known as the Bundy Gold Cup.
2005 saw the welcome announcement of Wizard Home Loans becoming naming right sponsor for the competition, and it is now officially known as the Queensland Wizard Cup.
The Future
Although the Queensland Rugby League had anticipated that the same teams from 2006 would participate in the 2007 Wizard Cup, it was announced on December 5, 2006 that the Toowoomba Clydesdales would be withdrawing from the competition for financial reasons. Brisbane Broncos chairman Bruno Cullen said that "It didn't make sense to have this club up there running at what was looking like a $250,000 loss for the year."[3] The following day it was announced that the Aspley Broncos would be replacing the Clydesdales, and acting as the Brisbane Broncos feeder club.[4]
There is ongoing speculation as to how the Wizard Cup will fare with the introduction of the National Rugby League's Under-20s competition in 2008.[5]
Expansion
John O'Brien, owner of the Cairns Taipans NBL basketball team, along with Denis Keeffe, Nigel Tillet and John Moore met with the North Queensland Cowboys on 7 December 2006 to discuss entering a Cairns-based team out of Barlow Park 2008.[6] The team is to be known as the Northern Pride [7]
In 2006 Mackay unsuccessfully applied to be the 12th team in the 2007 season, they lost out to the Aspley Broncos. Mackay are putting together another bid to join the competition for the 2008 season as the Mackay Cutters.
The WA Reds are expected to apply for the 2009 season as part of their 5-year plan to return to the NRL.
The Competition
The Draw
The 11 teams play each other twice in a rotating roster running typically from the middle of March to the middle of August. This is known as the regular season. Unlike the National Rugby League, the Queensland Cup regular season is a true home-and-away format, in that each team plays every other team twice, once at home and once away.
The Rounds
Normally, there is a round each weekend, which involves 5 games. However, there are two split rounds in the season, where the round takes place over two weekends. This allows for representative games such as the City vs. Country fixture, as well as allowing more games to be shown on free-to-air television, on ABC-TV. Games kick off at 2 pm Saturdays for the TV game, and at 3 pm Saturdays and Sundays for the remainder. North and Central Queensland both often play their home games at the 7.30 timeslot to avoid playing in the heat of the day.
Points and Ladder
The winner of each game per round is awarded two points on the League Ladder, however the team with the bye is awarded no points for that round. If a game is drawn between the two teams, each team is awarded one point each.
At the end of the regular season, the fiveteams with the highest point totals on the ladder qualify for the finals. In the event of two or more teams sharing the same competition points, the finishing order is decided by points differential i.e. points scored during games minus points conceded.
Finals Series
The Queensland Cup uses a final-five series, which has been used for decades not only in Queensland but also in the NSWRL's Winfield Cup. This consists of a number of knockout, qualifying and sudden death games, which see the two remaining teams play in the Grand Final, which is traditionally played at Suncorp Stadium (Lang Park). It has only been played elsewhere three times, at Dolphin Oval in 2001-03, due to the redevelopment of Suncorp Stadium and the 2003 Rugby World Cup.
NRL Affiliation
The level of club Rugby League in Queensland is of such a high standard that all clubs in the Queensland Wizard Cup have affiliation with a team in the Australian national competition the National Rugby League. This gives many young Queensland players the opportunity to be signed into the NRL. The following teams are affiliated with the listed NRL teams.
★ Brisbane Broncos - Redcliffe Dolphins, Wynnum-Manly Seagulls, Aspley Broncos
★ North Queensland Cowboys - North Queensland Young Guns, Central Comets
★ Gold Coast Titans - Burleigh Bears, Tweed Heads Seagulls, Ipswich Jets
★ Melbourne Storm - Northern Suburbs Devils (ending at conclusion of 2007 season)
★ Canberra Raiders - Souths-Logan Magpies
★ South Sydney Rabbitohs - Eastern Suburbs Tigers
2007 Season Draw and Results
★ 2007 Queensland Wizard Cup Draw
★ 2007 Queensland Cup Results
Queensland Cup premiers
| Season | Grand Final Information | Minor Premiers | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Premiers | Score | Runner-Up | Crowd | ||
| '1996' | Toowoomba Clydesdales | 8 - 6 | Redcliffe Dolphins | 6,500 | Toowoomba Clydesdales |
| '1997' | Redcliffe Dolphins | 18 - 16 | Easts Tigers | ? | Wynnum-Manly Seagulls |
| '1998' | Norths Devils | 35 - 16 | Wests Panthers | 4,283 | Norths Devils |
| '1999' | Burleigh Bears | 12 - 10 | Redcliffe Dolphins | ? | Redcliffe Dolphins |
| '2000' | Redcliffe Dolphins | 28 -26 | Toowoomba Clydesdales | 7,280 | Redcliffe Dolphins |
| '2001' | Toowoomba Clydesdales | 28 - 26 | Redcliffe Dolphins | 7,000 | Toowoomba Clydesdales |
| '2002' | Redcliffe Dolphins | 34 - 10 | Ipswich Jets | 10,000 | Redcliffe Dolphins |
| '2003' | Redcliffe Dolphins | 31 - 18 | Burleigh Bears | 8,000 | Burleigh Bears |
| '2004' | Burleigh Bears | 22 - 18 | Easts Tigers | 9,398 | Burleigh Bears |
| '2005' | North Queensland Young Guns | 36 - 6 | Burleigh Bears | 6,893 | North Queensland Young Guns |
| '2006' | Redcliffe Dolphins | 27 - 6 | Toowoomba Clydesdales | 5,538 | Toowoomba Clydesdales |
| '2007' | - | - | - | - | North Queensland Young Guns |
Sunstate/Qantas Player of the Year
[1]
| Year | Player | Club |
|---|---|---|
| 1996 | Robbie Schmidt | Cairns Cyclones |
| 1997 | Alan Wieland | Wests Panthers |
| 1998 | Shane Perry | Logan Scorpions |
| 1999 | Michael Roberts | Redcliffe Dolphins |
| 2000 | Chris Lawler | Ipswich Jets |
| 2001 | Michael Roberts | Redcliffe Dolphins |
| 2002 | Scott Thorburn | Easts Tigers |
| 2003 | Denny Lambert | Wynnum-Manly Seagulls |
| 2004 | Jace Van Dijk | Souths-Logan Magpies |
| 2005 | Ricky Bird | Ipswich Jets |
| 2006 | Brandon Costin | ]] Souths-Logan Magpies |
Queensland Wizard Cup in the Media
In its life as the Brisbane Rugby League, it received large media and community support, however since the introduction of the Brisbane Broncos to the NSWRL and NRL, this has dropped significantly. Currently it receives small columns in the Brisbane daily newspaper, the Courier-Mail, a double page report in the weekly edition of Australian magazine 'Rugby League Week' and the 'match of the week' being broadcast on ABC-TV.
In 2006, community broadcaster Bay FM began broadcasting Wynnum-Manly home games, and Wynnum won radio station Nova 106.9's club that Brisbane really really loves.
Previous teams
As the Queensland Cup initially began as a representative competition that took over the old Winfield State League before becoming a proper club competition, many of the following clubs are "representative" sides that either withdrew (in the case of the Central Queensland Capras, Mackay, Bundaberg, Gold Coast Vikings, etc) or folded (Cairns Cyclones, Port Moresby Vipers, etc).
Despite finishing on the top of the ladder and also reaching the 2006 Grand Final the Toowoomba Clydesdales pulled out of the Queensland Cup for 2007 claiming they were $100,000AUD short to be able to field a team in the competition. It is unknown if they will rejoin in 2008.
| Team | Location | Home Ground | Joined Competition | Left Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 'Brothers-Valleys' | Brisbane | O'Callaghan Park | 2002 | 2004 |
| 'Bundaberg Grizzlies' | Bundaberg | Salter Oval | 1996 | 1996,1998 |
| 'Cairns Cyclones' | Cairns | Barlow Park | 1996 | 2000 |
| 'Central Capras' | Rockhampton | Browne Park | 1996 | 1997 |
| 'Gold Coast Vikings' | Gold Coast | Owen Park and Carrara Stadium | 1998 | 1998 |
| 'Logan Scorpions' | Logan City | Meakin Park | 1987 | 2002 |
| 'Mackay Sea Eagles' | Mackay | Mackay Junior Rugby League Ground | 1996 | 1996 |
| 'Past Brothers' | Brisbane | Corbett Park, Crosby Park, Lang Park, ANZ Stadium | 1917 | 1998 |
| 'Port Moresby Vipers' | Port Moresby | Lloyd Robson Oval | 1996 | 1997 |
| 'Souths Magpies' | Brisbane | Davies Park | 1933 | 2002 |
| 'Sunshine Coast Falcons' | Sunshine Coast | Quad Park | 1996 | 1996 |
| 'Townsville Stingers' | Townsville | Dairy Farmers Stadium, Townsville Sports Reserve | 1998 | 1998 |
| 'Toowoomba Clydesdales' | Toowoomba | Athletic Oval (Clive Berghofer Stadium) | 1996 | 2006 |
| 'Wests Panthers' | Brisbane | Purtell Park | 1915 | 2003 |
External links
Queensland Cup News
★ Queensland Rugby League
★ Queensland Rugby League Queensland Cup Page
★ Rleague.com's Queensland page
★ League Unlimited's Queensland Page
Queensland Rugby League forums
★ Rleague's Queensland Forum
★ League Unlimited's Queensland Forum
See also
★ FOGS Cup and FOGS Colts Challenge
★ Brisbane Rugby League
★ Winfield State League
★ Queensland Rugby League
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