1978 NSWRFL Season — Final Regular-Season Ladder
22 rounds, 12 teams. 2 points for a win, 1 for a draw. Two ties: Cronulla-Sutherland and Manly-Warringah tied on 30 points (Cronulla ranked 2nd on superior differential); Canterbury-Bankstown and Parramatta tied on 28 points, with Canterbury-Bankstown ranked 4th ahead of Parramatta per the source ladder despite Parramatta's larger differential (+219 vs +34) — this ordering is as published by the source and could not be independently re-derived from a tiebreak rule, so it is flagged rather than altered. Western Suburbs won the minor premiership (1st) but Manly-Warringah won the Grand Final (drawn first match, won replay 16-0 over Cronulla-Sutherland), so Manly-Warringah is premiers despite finishing tied-2nd on the table.
Ladder
| Pos | Club | P | W | D | L | PF | PA | Diff | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Western Suburbs | 22 | 16 | 1 | 5 | 426 | 288 | +138 | 33 |
| 2 | Cronulla-Sutherland | 22 | 15 | 0 | 7 | 418 | 261 | +157 | 30 |
| 3 | Manly-Warringah | 22 | 15 | 0 | 7 | 427 | 287 | +140 | 30 |
| 4 | Canterbury-Bankstown | 22 | 13 | 2 | 7 | 307 | 273 | +34 | 28 |
| 5 | Parramatta | 22 | 14 | 0 | 8 | 525 | 306 | +219 | 28 |
| 6 | Eastern Suburbs | 22 | 13 | 0 | 9 | 337 | 280 | +57 | 26 |
| 7 | South Sydney | 22 | 12 | 1 | 9 | 298 | 300 | -2 | 25 |
| 8 | St. George | 22 | 10 | 1 | 11 | 367 | 354 | +13 | 21 |
| 9 | Balmain | 22 | 9 | 1 | 12 | 337 | 344 | -7 | 19 |
| 10 | Penrith | 22 | 4 | 2 | 16 | 206 | 463 | -257 | 10 |
| 11 | North Sydney | 22 | 4 | 1 | 17 | 325 | 439 | -114 | 9 |
| 12 | Newtown | 22 | 2 | 1 | 19 | 199 | 577 | -378 | 5 |
Qualified for the finals series — top 5 (“final five”) that season.
Finals series
Major Preliminary Semi-Final
| Date | Result | Venue | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 26 Aug 1978 | Cronulla-Sutherland 17–12 Manly-Warringah | Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney, NSW | 17,718 |
Minor Preliminary Semi-Final
| Date | Result | Venue | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 27 Aug 1978 | Parramatta Eels 22–15 Canterbury-Bankstown | Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney, NSW | 24,967 |
Major Semi-Final
| Date | Result | Venue | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 Sep 1978 | Cronulla-Sutherland 14–10 Western Suburbs Magpies | Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney, NSW | 22,789 |
Minor Semi-Final
| Date | Result | Venue | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 Sep 1978 | Parramatta Eels 13–13 Manly-Warringah | Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney, NSW | 30,850 |
Minor Semi-Final Replay
| Date | Result | Venue | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6 Sep 1978 | Manly-Warringah 17–11 Parramatta Eels | Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney, NSW | 42,678 |
Preliminary Final
| Date | Result | Venue | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9 Sep 1978 | Manly-Warringah 14–7 Western Suburbs Magpies | Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney, NSW | 27,345 |
Grand Final
| Date | Result | Venue | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 16 Sep 1978 | Manly-Warringah 11–11 Cronulla-Sutherland | Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney, NSW |
Grand Final Replay
| Date | Result | Venue | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 19 Sep 1978 | Manly-Warringah 16–0 Cronulla-Sutherland | Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney, NSW |
Full Grand Final page (Clive Churchill Medal, match context, sources) →
Sources
Sources
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