Newtown 11–10 Balmain Tigers — Playoff, 1943 NRL Finals Series
7 Aug 1943 · Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney, NSW · Attendance: 47,232
Data last verified: 11 August 2026.
Playoff, 1943 NRL finals series: Newtown 11–10 Balmain Tigers, at Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney, NSW on 7 Aug 1943.
Sourcing caveat: Balmain's named scoring reconciles exactly (2 tries, 2 goals = 10). Newtown's named scoring (Ryan 2 tries + Kirk 2 goals) totals 10, 1 short of the recorded 11 - this 1-point gap cannot be explained by a whole try (3) or goal (2) under this era's confirmed point values, and re-querying the source did not resolve it. Reported as a genuine, unexplained discrepancy rather than an invented adjustment.
Scorers
| Newtown | Tries: B. Ryan (2) Goals: Kirk (2) |
| Balmain Tigers | Tries: Bourke (2) Goals: Hall (2) |
Team sheets
| Newtown | Balmain Tigers | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kirk | Fullback | Danzey | 1 |
| 2 | B. Ryan | Wing | Denton | 2 |
| 3 | Fullerton | Centre | Hall | 3 |
| 4 | L. Smith | Centre | Bourke | 4 |
| 5 | Jacobson | Wing | Patton | 5 |
| 6 | Bugden | Five-Eighth | Dreise | 6 |
| 7 | Nevin | Halfback | Ponchard | 7 |
| 8 | McLennan | Lock | Buckley | 8 |
| 9 | Brailey | Second Row | Watt (c) | 9 |
| 10 | Farrell (c) | Second Row | Spencer | 10 |
| 11 | Phillips | Prop | S. Ryan | 11 |
| 12 | Narvo | Hooker | A. Smith | 12 |
| 13 | Cahill | Prop | Hampstead | 13 |
| Arthur Folwell | Coach | Bill Kelly | ||
Match officials
| Referee | George Bishop (Goulburn) |
Match report
7 Aug 1943, SCG. Halftime: Newtown 8-7. Team changes: Balmain - Danzey, Denton, Ponchard in; Hampstead moved wing to lock. Attendance of 47,232 is unusually high for a playoff round (higher than several semi-finals and even one Final that season) - reported as given by the source, not independently cross-checked against a second one.