Amco Cup

The Amco Cup (subsequently known by various other sponsors' names including the Tooth Cup, KB Cup, National Panasonic Cup and Panasonic Cup) was a mid-week rugby league competition held in Australia between 1974 and 1989. The format was usually a straight knock-out, but various group formats were used between 1979 and 1982. It aired on Channel Ten with Ray Warren and Keith Barnes the commentators for many years. The concept was created by Colin McLennan.

Amco Cup
The Amco Cup Trophy
Organising bodyNew South Wales Rugby League
Founded1974 (1974)
Abolished1989 (1989)
RegionAustralia
Number of teams16-38
Related competitionsNSWRL, BRL, CRL, QRL, NZRL
Last championsBrisbane Broncos (1989)
Most successful club(s)Balmain (3 titles)

History

Promoter Colin McLennan, who also brought to Australia the jazz legend Benny Goodman and comedians Dudley Moore and Peter Cook, was the man who brought the mid-week Cup to life.[1] The competition was essentially a "made for TV" event, featuring 4 x 20-minute quarters and a penalty countback rule in the event of a draw. Matches were played under floodlights, usually on a Wednesday evening. Initially Leichhardt Oval in Sydney was the main venue, though later matches were played at Lang Park in Brisbane, Parramatta Stadium and various country centres in New South Wales. The competition was scrapped after the increasingly professional clubs resented the additional burdens on their players caused by the mid-week games. In 1990 it was replaced by a preseason challenge cup played for only by the Sydney Rugby League premiership teams.

Naming rights sponsors

Participating teams
YearTeamsNSWQLDNSWRL CountryQRL CountryNSWRL Second DivisionNew ZealandStatePapua New Guinea
197421All 12–All 7 except Newcastle–Ryde-EastwoodAuckland––
197528All 12Fortitude Valley, Past Brothers, Norths, SouthsAll 8Ipswich, ToowoombaRyde-EastwoodAuckland––
197635All 12All 7 except Wynnum-ManlyAll 8All 4 except Central Queensland, Gold CoastRyde-EastwoodAuckland, CanterburyNorthern Territory–
197737All 12All 8All 8All 5 except Gold Coast–Auckland, CanterburyNorthern Territory, Western Australia–
197838All 12All 8All 8All 6–Auckland, WellingtonNorthern Territory, Western Australia–
197916All 12BrisbaneNSW CountryQueensland Country–Auckland––
198016All 12BrisbaneNSW CountryQueensland Country–Auckland––
198116All 12BrisbaneNSW CountryQueensland Country–Central Districts––
198218All 14BrisbaneNSW CountryQueensland Country–South Island––
198318All 14BrisbaneNSW CountryQueensland Country–Central Districts––
198417All 13BrisbaneNSW CountryQueensland Country–Auckland––
198516All 13BrisbaneNSW Country––Auckland––
198617All 13BrisbaneNSW Country–––Western AustraliaPort Moresby
198720All 13BrisbaneNSW Country–––Northern Territory, South Australia, Victoria, Western AustraliaPort Moresby
198819All 16BrisbaneNSW Country––––Port Moresby
198919All 16BrisbaneNSW Country––––Port Moresby

Champions by Year
YearWinnersScoreRunners-upVenueCrowd
1974 Western Division6-2 PenrithLeichhardt Oval16,000
1975 Easts (Sydney)17-7 ParramattaLeichhardt Oval18,907
1976 Balmain21-7 Norths (Sydney)Leichhardt Oval21,670
1977 Wests6-5 Easts (Sydney)Leichhardt Oval15,350
1978 Easts (Sydney)16-4 St. GeorgeLeichhardt Oval14,000
1979 Cronulla22-5 BrisbaneLeichhardt Oval15,800
1980 Parramatta8-5 BalmainLeichhardt Oval17,829
1981 Souths (Sydney)10-2 CronullaLeichhardt Oval23,079
1982 Manly23-8 NewtownLeichhardt Oval14,490
1983 Manly26-6 CronullaLeichhardt Oval15,086
1984 Brisbane (Capitals)12-11 Easts (Sydney)Leichhardt Oval13,000
1985 Balmain14-12 CronullaLeichhardt Oval15,000
1986 Parramatta32-16 BalmainLeichhardt Oval15,839
1987 Balmain14-12 PenrithParramatta Stadium16,823
1988 St. George16-8 BalmainParramatta Stadium22,191
1989 Brisbane (Broncos)22-20 IllawarraParramatta Stadium16,698

Most NSWRL Midweek Cup Titles
Club Titles Years won
Balmain31976, 1985, 1987
Easts (Sydney)21975, 1978
Parramatta21980, 1986
Manly21982, 1983
Western Division11974
Wests (Sydney)11977
Cronulla11979
Souths (Sydney)11981
Brisbane (Capitals)11984
St. George11988
Brisbane (Broncos)11989

Cup and Premiership in the Same Season
  • Easts in 1975.
  • Parramatta in 1986.

See also

References
  1. Rowlands, David (24 May 1988). "Lights, Kick-off, Action... 14 Years of the Cup". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 14 February 2014.
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