2008 Centenary Events Calendar

January 2008

• The naming of Rugby League's 100 greatest players. Rugby League will celebrate its most famous year to date with one of the debates of the century. A team of expert judges has been compiled to name the 100 greatest players of all time. The names of the selected players will be unveiled at the start of 2008. 

Tuesday, January 8, 2008
• Newtown Centenary Anniversary

Thursday, January 17, 2008
• Souths Centenary Anniversary

Wednesday, January 23, 2008
• Balmain Centenary Anniversary – Celebration at Balmain Town Hall

Thursday, January 24, 2008
• Roosters Centenary Anniversary

February 2008

Saturday, February 2, 2008
• Centenary Fan Day at Telstra Stadium
The Centenary celebrations will kickoff with a huge public fan day featuring all 16 NRL clubs and 400 NRL players at Telstra Stadium. Rugby League fans of all ages can take part in a host of activities, including ARL skills clinics, autograph signings and kicking competitions in what is certain to be the biggest public fan event in the game's history. 

Monday, February 4, 2008
• Western Suburbs Centenary Anniversary – Plaque unveiling event

Thursday, February 7, 2008
• North Sydney Centenary Anniversary

March 2008

March – September
• Harvey Norman Regional Celebrations
Rugby League will celebrate the contribution regional Australia has made to the game over a 100-year period by hosting 10 Regional Celebrations across New South Wales and Queensland. 

Local footy heroes will be invited back to their home town for a day-long celebration, which will also feature a traditional “local derby” between two Rugby League rivals, ARL skills clinics and a host of community-oriented activities. 

A Rugby League museum will be erected in each local Harvey Norman store two weeks prior to each Regional Celebration, showcasing a collection of local memorabilia as well as a selection of artefacts from the National Museum of Australia's exhibition. 

The Harvey Norman Regional Celebrations will commence in Nowra on March 19 and conclude in Mackay on September 10.  Please refer to attached Press Release for detailed information including all 10 regional locations and dates.  

March – July
• Toyota Centenary Cup
The Toyota Centenary Cup is a grass-roots knock-out competition to find the best bush footy team in Australia. Every NSW Country Group and Queensland region will be represented with the best team from each state showcasing their talents in front of a packed Telstra Stadium crowd as the curtain raiser to State of Origin Three.

Wednesday, March 5, 2008 
• Season Launch of the 2008 Telstra Premiership
The NRL will host the official launch of the 2008 Telstra Premiership in Sydney, highlighting Rugby League's heritage and commemorating the start of the game's Centenary season.

Friday, March 7, 2008
• Official opening of the National Museum of Australia exhibition – Canberra. The National Museum of Australia will mark the Centenary of Rugby League with a major exhibition showcasing rare ‘treasures of the game' in Canberra, Brisbane, Sydney and Townsville throughout 2008.

The exhibition will officially open in March at the National Museum of Australia in Canberra and feature an array of priceless Rugby League memorabilia, including the Royal Agricultural Society Shield – the game's inaugural Premiership trophy.

A host of Rugby League legends will attend the official opening on Friday, March 7, while the Canberra Raiders will celebrate the official public opening the following day by hosting a fan day. 

Thursday, March 13, 2008
• NSW Referees Association – Centenary anniversary celebrations
A celebration of the history of the Referees Association and their contribution to the development of Rugby League.

March 14/15/16/17, 2008 
• Round 1 of the 2008 NRL Telstra Premiership
Two of the game's pioneers, South Sydney Rabbitohs and the Sydney Roosters, will be scheduled at Telstra Stadium in Round 1 as a Centenary feature match. Wests Tigers will host a match at the SCG while the Gold Coast Titans will welcome the opening of their new home ground, Skilled Park.  

Friday, March 28, 2008
• Anniversary of the establishment of the Queensland Rugby Association in 1908. An esteemed list of Rugby League legends will gather at Suncorp Stadium for a luncheon to mark the 100-year anniversary of a governing body in Queensland. Round 3 of the Telstra Premiership will incorporate a Queensland weekend, featuring the Brisbane Broncos and North Qld Cowboys at Suncorp Stadium and the Gold Coast Titans playing at Skilled Park.

April 2008

Friday, April 11, 2008
• Newcastle Centenary Anniversary

Wednesday, April 16, 2008 
• Captains' Table Centenary Ball
A Centenary Ball will be held in Sydney on the eve of the anniversary of the Premiership's first round. This will be the game's premier corporate Centenary event, honouring players past and present and giving the public a chance to purchase tables at the ball. A highlight of the evening will be the naming of the official Team of the Century.  

April 18/19/20/21, 2008
• Anniversary of the first ever Premiership round on April 20, 1908
One hundred years since those gallant pioneers first lined up for their teams in the Premiership, the NRL will schedule a “Heritage Round”. 

This is certain to be one of the biggest rounds of Rugby League in history, with NRL clubs scheduled to play against each other on the basis of the eras they first entered the competition. Each team will play in heritage jerseys honoring their own club's proud history.

Heritage Round
– Wests Tigers v Souths  - Parramatta v Manly 
– Newcastle v Roosters  - Cowboys v Warriors
– Bulldogs v Dragons  - Cronulla v Penrith
– Broncos v Titans   - Storm v Raiders

Saturday, April 19, 2008
• Premier League match between foundation clubs North Sydney and Newtown at North Sydney Oval

Sunday, April 20, 2008
• Premier League match between foundation clubs Balmain and Wests at Birchgrove Oval. This famous oval was the scene of one of the first matches, along with Wentworth Park, and remains a treasured part of the game's history.

Friday, April 25, 2008
• Anzac Day match - Dragons v Roosters - Sydney Football Stadium. As well as continuing a modern-day tradition between the St George Illawarra Dragons and the Sydney Roosters, this event will celebrate Rugby League's links with the Defence Forces over the past century. 

May 2008

Friday, May 2, 2008
• City v Country - Wollongong
WIN Stadium, Wollongong has been chosen by the Country Rugby League to host the City v Country match during the Centenary year. The week's activities and the match itself will showcase the contribution of country and regional areas to the development of Rugby League over the past century. 

Friday, May 9, 2008
• Centenary Test  - Sydney Cricket Ground
• Anniversary of the first ever Test between Australia and New Zealand in 1908. The Test between Australia and New Zealand marks 100 years to the day since these two countries played on May, 9, 1908. The Test will be played on the historic Sydney Cricket Ground with both teams wearing heritage replica jerseys.

Wednesday, May 21, 2008
• First State of Origin game in the 2008 series - Telstra Stadium
The 2008 Harvey Norman State of Origin series will celebrate a century of interstate Rugby League rivalry, with both teams wearing 1908 heritage jerseys. The NSW Team of the Century will be presented to the crowd. 

June 2008

Tuesday, June 10, 2008
• 100 Years of Queensland v New South Wales function - Brisbane
A gala event will be held at the Brisbane Convention Centre to mark a century of interstate Rugby League between Queensland and New South Wales. A host of Rugby League legends from both states will be in attendance, with a feature of the evening to be the announcement of the Queensland Team of the Century.

Wednesday, June 11, 2008
• Harvey Norman State of Origin Game Two - Suncorp Stadium
Queensland will present their Team of the Centenary as part of a spectacular pre- game entertainment program.

July 2008

Wednesday, July 2, 2008
• Harvey Norman State of Origin Game Three - Telstra Stadium  
The match that has decided so many Origin series in the past will take on unprecedented significant in the game's Centenary. 

Tuesday, July 8, 2008
• Balmain Hall of Fame Dinner - Westin Hotel Sydney

August 2008

South Sydney - Back to Redfern Street Fair & Concert - DATE TO BE CONFIRMED

Centenary International Schoolboys Series
A Test Series to be played between the Australian Schoolboys and England Academy at various locations throughout August. 

Saturday, August 4 - Monday, August 6, 2008
• Centenary All Schools Carnival
More than 5000 schoolboy players will take part in a Rugby League knock-out competition through out Australia.

Wednesday, August 27, 2008
• Anniversary of the first ever Premiership Final in 1908 - Easts v Souths. One of the great rivalries in Australian sport will be reignited during Round 25 as the Roosters and Rabbitohs battle it out in honour of the first Premiership final 100 years ago.   

September 2008

Friday, September 19, 2008
• Western Suburbs Black and White Ball

October 2008

Tuesday, September 30, 2008
• Men of League Ball - Sydney
Each year The Men of League Ball brings together players from the past to honour champions and help those in need.  A century of Rugby League camaraderie will be on show during one of the most special sporting nights of the year.

Sunday, October 5, 2008
• 2008 NRL Grand Final – Telstra Stadium
The 2008 Premiers are destined to hold a special place in the game's rich history and Grand Final day will honour that occasion in spectacular fashion. 

Saturday, October 25 – Saturday, November 22, 2008
• The Centenary World Cup – Final to be played at Suncorp Stadium. Ten nations will compete in the crowning moment of the 2008 Centenary Year. The World Cup will be the first on Australian soil since 1977.

2008 RUGBY LEAGUE CENTENARY NEWS & UPDATES