1951 NSWRFL season

South Sydney ascended to the minor premiership with relative ease in 1951, losing only one match during the season to finish the regular season ahead by a record eleven-point margin.

Odds-on favourites to retain the premiership, Souths reserved their worst performance of the year for the semifinal against St. George being trounced 35–8. This loss meant that a grand final would be necessary to determine the season's premiers.^[1] The next week, the Dragons were beaten by a gutsy Manly side in a preliminary final, 18–8. The infant Manly club thus qualified for its first grand final only five seasons after having entered the League in 1947.

Home	Score	Away	Match Information
			Date and Time	Venue	Referee	Crowd
Semifinals
South Sydney	8–35	St. George	1 September 1951	Sydney Cricket Ground	Aub Oxford	39,735
Manly-Warringah	37–9	Western Suburbs	8 September 1951	Sydney Cricket Ground	George Bishop	29,444
Preliminary Final
Manly-Warringah	18–8	St. George	15 September 1951	Sydney Cricket Ground	George Bishop	41,845
Final
South Sydney	42–14	Manly-Warringah	23 September 1951	Sydney Sports Ground	Jack O'Brien	28,505

Manly were without former Test star and captain-coach Wally O'Connell who had a fractured bone in his wrist.^[2] The Sea Eagles were instead captained by hooker Kevin Schubert. Gordon Willoughby played out the match with his leg heavily strapped rather than leave his side further depleted but Manly’s hopes of upsetting the defending premiers were shattered in a spectacular display of attacking rugby league by Souths.

 

The smallest crowd for a final since 1944 was on hand at the Sports Ground to witness a one-sided game which Souths won 42–14. A highlight of the record win was Test winger John Graves’ four tries in the match – the only time this has been achieved in grand final history. Souths 42 points remains the highest score made in a Grand Final.

Souths scored first through Bernie Purcell and led 15–4 at the break. They then piled on twenty-seven points in the second-half. Tries to Clive Churchill, Ray Mason, Jack Rayner and Chick Cowie added to Graves' record haul. The Rabbitohs pack, led by front rower Denis Donoghue, dominated Manly’s forwards with Ernie Hammerton giving his team a feast of possession. Bernie Purcell landed seven goals from nine attempts and was also dynamic in attack, being chosen by The Sunday Herald judge, Frank McMillan as the man-of-the-match, for which he received a £10 reward.^[3]

Other records set that day include the most combined points scored in a grand final (56 total); the most tries scored by one team in a grand final (8), (a mark later matched by Eastern Suburbs in 1975 Grand Final, and Manly Warringah Sea Eagles in the 2008 NRL Grand Final), the most goals scored in grand final by the winning team (9) and the most total combined goals scored in a Grand Final (13).

 

South Sydney Rabbitohs 42
Tries: Graves (4), Churchill, Mason, Rayner, Cowie
Goals: Purcell (7), Hammerton, Donoghue.

Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles 14
Tries: Lumsden (2)
Goals: Rowles (4)

The following statistics are as of the conclusion of Round 18.

Top 5 point scorers Points Player Tries Goals Field Goals 199   Ron Rowles 11 83 0 183   Noel Pidding 13 72 0 128   Johnny Graves 22 31 0 117   Don Worne 1 57 0 115   Ian Johnston 13 38 0 Top 5 try scorers Tries Player 22   Johnny Graves 18   Mitchell Wallace 13   Noel Pidding 13   Ian Johnston 12   Kevin Woolfe 12   Ron Roberts 12   Jack Troy 12   John McClean

Top 5 goal scorers Goals Player 83   Ron Rowles 72   Noel Pidding 57   Don Worne 46   Joe Jorgenson 45   Ron Willey

• Rugby League Tables - Season 1951
• List of Season Results Hunterlink List
• Whiticker, Alan (1992), Grand Finals of the New South Wales Rugby League, Gary Allen, Sydney
• Results:1951-1960 at rabbitohs.com.au
• 1951 J J Giltinan Shield at rleague.com
• MSWRFL season 1951 at rugbyleagueproject.org
• [1]1951 coaches