'THE BALMAINIACS'

MEDIA RELEASE

It was the most dramatic action ever taken by a rugby league club, but a new book claims that Balmain forfeited the 1909 premiership decider in an attempt to bring down the NSWRL. Encouraged by officials of another club, their objective was to start a new rugby league body.

A new book, The Rugby Rebellion: The Divide of League and Union, written by Sydney author and sports historian Sean Fagan, reveals how in September 1909 officials of Balmain and North Sydney were determined to destroy the NSWRL.

The story of the forfeited Final, amidst a battle between Union and League for ''ownership" of Sydney rugby, is revealed for the first time in The Rugby Rebellion. Fagan's meticulous research uncovered news reports and records of meetings that showed the real reason why the Final was forfeited.

Scheduled to be held in late August of 1909, the Final was postponed when the startling news broke that half the Wallabies team had defected to League for a series of matches against the Kangaroos.

Financed by Sydney entrepreneur James Joynton-Smith, three reasonably well-attended matches were held between the two teams. However, not all of Joynton-Smith's outlay had been recovered, and he demanded that a fourth game be played. The NSWRL too had paid for uniforms, entertainment and ground hire, and they also needed the extra game to pay their bills.

The NSWRL decided to end the season with a 'double-bill' of matches - the last Kangaroos v Wallabies match, preceded earlier in the afternoon by the Balmain v Souths premiership Final. As South Sydney had won the minor premiership by a 2 point margin, the NSWRL rules required Balmain to defeat Souths twice to win the premiership - a feat that seemed unlikely to almost everyone.

Officials of North Sydney and Balmain, who felt that Souths and Easts were in control of the NSWRL, saw the Final as an opportunity to overthrow the current administration, and to take power themselves.

Balmain's officials and supporters were never afraid to speak out - many newspapers referred to them as "the Balmainiacs". Their particular hatred for South Sydney extended back to the early 1900s under rugby union - from 1900 to 1907 the MRU only once made Souths play a match at Balmain's home ground at Birchgrove.

With suggestions that the 1909 Final should have been played at Wentworth Park (located centrally between both districts), the NSWRL set the match for Souths' home field (the Agricultural Ground). Balmain feared the NSWRL was yet again favouring Souths.

Led by North Sydney's Alexander Knox, their thinking was that if the attendance at the day's matches was so poor, the NSWRL would not be able to pay its bills, including the money invested by Joynton-Smith. The NSWRL would be bankrupted, and Balmain and Norths officials would lead the formation of a new rugby league body.

With little hope of winning the premiership, Balmain felt they had more to gain by causing the NSWRL to collapse.

There was no evidence found that supports the view that Souths also agreed to not play the Final. The Rugby Rebellion also debunks the myth that the match was to be played too early in the afternoon for the players to attend - the Balmain footballers and officials actually stood outside the ground from just after midday, encouraging supporters not to enter the turnstiles.

Despite their efforts, and very poor weather, enough people did enter the ground to clear the debts of the NSWRL and repay the money invested by Joynton-Smith. Balmain and North Sydney officials held public meetings attempting to instigate legal proceedings and investigate forming a new League, but they eventually stalled.

The NSWRL called Norths' Alexander Knox before a meeting and banned him from rugby league for life.