Northern Eagles

Defunct Australian rugby league club, based in Northern Sydney, NSW and Gosford, NSW

Northern Eagles

Club information
Full name| Northern Eagles Rugby League Football Club
Colours|  Maroon, Black, Red, White
Founded| 2000; 25 years ago (2000)
Exited| 2002; 23 years ago (2002)
Former details
Competition| National Rugby League
2002| 9th of 15

Team colours

Records
Most capped| 69 – Steve Menzies
Highest points scorer| 279 – Ben Walker

The Northern Eagles were a rugby league team that competed in the National Rugby League (NRL) between 2000 and 2002. The club was formed during the rationalisation process of the NRL by forming a joint venture with the North Sydney Bears and the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles in 2000. The team shared home games between Brookvale Oval and Central Coast Stadium, Gosford, New South Wales.

Little success was had during three seasons (2000-2002), finishing 12th, 10th, and 9th, winning 30 of 76 games. Also, the new club's decision to play games in Gosford instead of the Bears home ground at North Sydney Oval alienated many North Sydney fans, despite North Sydney's planned move to the new Central Coast Stadium, which had been rebuilt for the Bears on the site of the old Grahame Park ground.[citation needed] In spite of this, the club provided more players for the 2001 State of Origin series' New South Wales team than any other club.

The partnership folded in 2002, with Manly emerging as the standalone entity as the licence revert to them. That year's season was played under the Northern Eagles name, although effectively the club was the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles by another name due to Manly managing all affairs and pocketing all of the money offered by the NRL as an incentive to form joint ventures. Halfway through the season, the Eagles even abandoned playing games at Gosford, due to a sharp decline in attendances. The people of Gosford preferred to wait until a home-grown team was based there. The Manly Warringah Sea Eagles name and colours returned to the NRL in 2003.[1][2]

North Sydney now field a team in the NSW Cup, the competition immediately below NRL level, as a feeder club to the Melbourne Storm. They previously had feeder deals with both the South Sydney Rabbitohs and the Sydney Roosters.

## Home grounds

[edit]

The Northern Eagles shared their home games between Brookvale Oval in Sydney and Grahame Park in Gosford. The record attendance for the club was 20,059 for the club's opening game against the Newcastle Knights at Grahame Park on 6 February 2000. The record attendance for the club at Brookvale Oval was 14,521 against Cronulla on 21 July 2002.

## Emblem and colours

[edit]

* Northern Eagles – Logos
* 2000

* 2001–2002

The colours of the Northern Eagles derived from both teams being maroon and white from Manly Warringah, and red and black of North Sydney. In the logo, the use of gold was to provide a point of difference and to appeal to both former teams.

## Players

[edit]

Main article: List of Northern Eagles players

A total of sixty nine players played for the club. Steve Menzies played the most games for the club, with 69 caps.[3]

### State of Origin

[edit]

#### New South Wales

[edit]

* Geoff Toovey (2000)
* Adam Muir (2000–01)
* Steve Menzies (2001–02)
* Brett Kimmorley (2001)

### City Vs Country origin

[edit]

#### NSW City

[edit]

* Steve Menzies (2001)

#### NSW Country

[edit]

* Brett Kimmorley (2001)

## Records

[edit]

### Club records

[edit]

Biggest win

* 28 points, 30–2 against Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks at Brookvale Oval on 18 March 2000

Biggest loss

* 58 points, 10–68 against New Zealand Warriors at Ericsson Stadium on 14 April 2002

Most consecutive wins

* 2 matches, 21–26 February 2000
* 2 matches, 23–29 April 2000
* 2 matches, 25 June – 2 July 2000
* 2 matches, 22–28 April 2001
* 2 matches, 23–29 June 2002
* 2 matches, 4–11 August 2002

Most consecutive losses

* 4 matches, 25 March – 15 April 2000
* 4 matches, 9–30 July 2000
* 4 matches, 25 August 2001 – 30 March 2002

Most points in a season

* Ben Walker – 279 (18 tries, 103 goals, 1 field goal) in 2001

Record attendance

* 20,059 vs Newcastle Knights at NorthPower Stadium, 6 February 2000
* 14,521 vs Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks at Brookvale Oval, 21 July 2002

## Post 2003

[edit]

Since the Northern Eagles folded at the end of 2002, Manly and North Sydney have gone their separate ways.

Manly officially returned to the NRL in 2003 (playing out of Brookvale Oval, though they played at least two games per season in Gosford until 2015) and have since played in four NRL Grand Finals (2007, 2008, 2011 and 2013), winning the premiership in 2008 and 2011.

North Sydney began playing in the NSW Cup (formerly known as Reserve Grade) at their traditional base, North Sydney Oval, where they are a feeder team to the Melbourne Storm. Before this, Norths were the feeder team for the Sydney Roosters from 2019 to 2023, and the South Sydney Rabbitohs from 2007 to 2018. As of 2014, there have been several attempts for the Bears to come back into the NRL by being based at the Central Coast, North Sydney, Perth, Gold Coast and Brisbane. Former North Sydney internationals Greg Florimo and David Fairleigh play a prominent role in the club's push to join the NRL. The Bears have an with the Perth Bears that will enter the National Rugby League in 2027.[4]

## See also

[edit]

* Sports portal

* Central Coast Bears

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Manly Sea Eagles and North Sydney Bears must merge into a 'behemoth' club, says Brad Fittler". Sporting News. 14 August 2021.
2. ^ "Why the demise of the North Sydney Bears has Sydney Roosters officials worried". SMH. 12 April 2016.
3. ^ Northern Eagles rugbyleagueproject.org
4. ^ https://7news.com.au/sport/rugby-league/north-sydney-bears-confirm-return-to-nrl-as-western-bears-c-15648372

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|

* v
* t
* e

Manly Warringah Sea Eagles

Est. 1947 in Sydney, New South Wales

The club|

* History (Northern Eagles)
* Records
* Players
* Coaches

Culture|

* Rivalry with Melbourne Storm (Battle of Brookvale)
* Manly Seabirds

Home ground|

* Brookvale Oval

Important
figures|

* Roy Bull
* Ken Arthurson
* Rex Mossop
* Frank Stanton
* Fred Jones
* Bob Fulton
* Ron Willey
* Mal Reilly
* Graham Eadie
* Max Krilich
* Terry Randall
* Paul Vautin
* Des Hasler
* Cliff Lyons
* Geoff Toovey
* Steve Menzies
* Stewart brothers
* Jamie Lyon
* Daly Cherry-Evans
* Trbojevic brothers

League|

* NSWRL
* ARL
* NRL

Titles|

Premierships (8)
1972
1973
1976
1978
1987
1996
2008
2011

World Club Challenges (1)
2009

Seasons (76)|

* 1947
* 1948
* 1949
* 1950
* 1951
* 1952
* 1953
* 1954
* 1955
* 1956
* 1957
* 1958
* 1959
* 1960
* 1961
* 1962
* 1963
* 1964
* 1965
* 1966
* 1967
* 1968
* 1969
* 1970
* 1971
* 1972
* 1973
* 1974
* 1975
* 1976
* 1977
* 1978
* 1979
* 1980
* 1981
* 1982
* 1983
* 1984
* 1985
* 1986
* 1987
* 1988
* 1989
* 1990
* 1991
* 1992
* 1993
* 1994
* 1995
* 1996
* 1997
* 1998
* 1999
* 2000
* 2001
* 2002
* 2003
* 2004
* 2005
* 2006
* 2007
* 2008
* 2009
* 2010
* 2011
* 2012
* 2013
* 2014
* 2015
* 2016
* 2017
* 2018
* 2019
* 2020
* 2021
* 2022
* 2023
* 2024
* 2025

Other
competitions|

Current
S. G. Ball Cup
Harold Matthews Cup
New South Wales Cup
NRL Nines

Past
National Youth Competition
Amco Cup
Jersey Flegg Cup
World Sevens

Affiliations|

* Blacktown Workers Sea Eagles
* Manly-Warringah/North Sydney District Rugby League

Manly Warringah did not compete in the 2000–2002 National Rugby League seasons when they were part of the Northern Eagles joint venture.

* v
* t
* e

North Sydney Bears

Est. 1908 in Sydney, New South Wales

The club|

* History (Northern Eagles)
* Records
* Players
* Honours
* Coaches

Home grounds|

* North Sydney Oval
* Central Coast Stadium

Culture|

* North Sydney Leagues Club

Important figures|

* Denis Lutge
* Chris McKivat
* Harold Horder
* Duncan Thompson
* Frank Hyde
* Brian Carlson
* Ken Irvine
* Don McKinnon
* Greg Florimo
* Les Kiss
* David Fairleigh
* Gary Larson
* Billy Moore
* Jason Taylor

League|

* NSWRL
* ARL
* NRL
* New South Wales Cup

Premierships (2)|

* 1921
* 1922

Other
competitions|

Current
S. G. Ball Cup
Harold Matthews Cup
NSWRL Women's Premiership

Past
Amco Cup
Jersey Flegg Cup

Affiliations|

* Boston Bears
* Central Coast Bears
* Tweed Heads Seagulls
* Manly-Warringah/North Sydney District Rugby League
* North Sydney Bowling Club
* North Sydney Chess Club
* Perth Bears

Past
South Sydney Rabbitohs
Sydney Roosters

* v
* t
* e

National Rugby League

Teams|

| Current|

* Brisbane Broncos
* Canberra Raiders
* Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs
* Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks
* Dolphins
* Gold Coast Titans
* Manly Warringah Sea Eagles
* Melbourne Storm
* Newcastle Knights
* New Zealand Warriors
* North Queensland Cowboys
* Parramatta Eels
* Penrith Panthers
* South Sydney Rabbitohs
* St. George Illawarra Dragons
* Sydney Roosters
* Wests Tigers

|

Future|

* Perth Bears (2027)
* Papua New Guinea (2028)

Former|

* Balmain Tigers (1908–1999)
* Western Suburbs Magpies (1908–1999)
* North Sydney Bears (1908–1999)
* Newtown Bluebags / Jets (1908–1983)
* Glebe Dirty Reds (1908–1929)
* Newcastle Rebels (1908–1909)
* Cumberland (1908)
* Annandale Dales (1910–1920)
* University (1920–1937)
* St. George Dragons (1921–1998)
* Illawarra Steelers (1982–1998)
* Gold Coast-Tweed Giants / Gold Coast Seagulls / Chargers (1988–1998)
* South Queensland Crushers (1995–1997)
* Western Reds / Perth Reds (1995–1997)
* Adelaide Rams (1997–1998)
* Hunter Mariners (1997)
* Northern Eagles (2000–2002)

Annual events|

* Pre-season
* NRL Nines
* All Stars
* World Club Challenge
* Charity Shield
* Regular season
* Las Vegas
* Good Friday
* Easter Sunday
* Easter Monday
* Anzac Day Cup
* Michael Moore Trophy
* Magic Round
* King's Birthday
* Finals
* Grand Final Breakfast
* State Championship
* Grand Final
* List
* State of Origin

History|

* League history
* NSWRL premiership
* Winfield Cup
* ARL Premiership
* ARL
* Super League
* Super League war
* Seasons
* All time club list
* Expansion
* Premiers
* All First-Class Premiers
* Winning captains and coaches
* Wooden spooners
* Records
* Grand Final
* Most tries in a game
* Golden point games
* Players sent off
* Rivalries
* Referees

Awards and honours|

* Dally M Awards
* Dally M Medal
* Clive Churchill Medal
* Hall of Fame
* The Immortals
* J. J. Giltinan Shield
* Rothmans Medal

Media|

* Friday Night Football
* Fox League
* Sunday Night with Matty Johns
* NRL 360
* The Fan
* Nine's Wide World of Sports
* The Footy Show
* The Sunday Footy Show
* 100% Footy
* Over the Black Dot
* Continuous Call Team
* Monday Night Football on Triple M
* Big League
* Rugby League Review
* Rugby League Week
* Rugby League (video games series)
* NRL SuperCoach

Administration|

* Australian Rugby League Commission
* Club owners
* Judiciary
* Salary cap
* Match officials
* Reserves affiliations
* Rugby League Players Association

Related articles|

* Current team squads
* Current head coaches
* Stadiums
* Men of League Foundation
* Women in League
* NRLW Premiership
* Brisbane Rugby League
* Amco Cup
* Tooheys Challenge Cup

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