The NRL Schoolboy Cup is the premier secondary schoolsrugby league competition in Australia, held annually since 1975. Formerly known under such names as the Amco Shield, Commonwealth Bank Cup, Arrive Alive Cup and GIO Schoolboy Cup nearly 450 schools from throughout Australia compete in the knock-out competition.[1]
Originally, the televised matches of the competition were played and recorded as the curtain raisers to mid week Amco Cup games. After the midweek competitions died out, the televised matches were played prior to Friday Night Football and were shown on Channel 9 in the weeks leading up to the NRL Grand Final. The games are currently played and recorded midweek and shown on Fox Sports, with commentary by Andrew Voss.
In 1980, St Gregory's College, Campbelltown became the first school to win back-to-back titles. They later became the first school to win three titles in a row from 1989 to 1991.
In 2017, Keebra Park State High School became first Queensland school to win the competition three times, becoming the most successful school in the state. A year later, Palm Beach Currumbin won their third title, drawing level with Keebra Park. In 2019, Kirwan State High School won the competition for the second time, making it three straight years a Queensland school has won.
In 2020 and 2021, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, no national finals were held for the first time in the competition's history.[3]
Due to sponsorship, the Schoolboy Cup has gone under many different names since first being held in 1975. Originally known as the Amco Shield, it has been known as the NRL Schoolboy Cup since 2018.
The competition is divided into two conferences. The Northern Conference, comprising schools from Queensland, is further divided into smaller competitions: the Aaron Payne Cup, the Allan Langer Trophy, and the Dolphin Cup. The winners of these cups compete against each other, with the victor being crowned the Queensland Schoolboy Cup Champion. The Southern Conference, known as the Peter Mulholland Cup, includes schools from New South Wales, the Australian Capital Territory and Victoria. The winners of the Queensland Schoolboy Trophy and the Peter Mulholland Cup then face off in the National Schoolboy Final, with the winner being crowned the National Schoolboy Champion.
The Peter Sterling Medal is awarded to the most outstanding player in the competition. Sterling, one of rugby league's most decorated players, won the award in 1978 while attending Patrician Brothers' College, Fairfield. In 1996, the medal was renamed in his honour.
Patrician Brothers' College, Fairfield is an independent Roman Catholic comprehensive single-sex secondary day school for boys, located in Fairfield, a western suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
Matt Geyer is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer. A New South Wales State of Origin representative wing, he played his club football primarily with the Melbourne Storm of the National Rugby League competition, winning the 1999 premiership with them. He also represented City Origin and played for the Western Reds.
The Australian Schoolboys rugby league team is the national rugby league football team for secondary school students in Australia.
Rugby league in New South Wales is the most popular spectator sport in the state, with the attendance and television audiences exceeding that of the various other codes of football. There are over 400,000 active rugby league participants, with a further 1 million playing the sport in schools, placing the sport second only to soccer for the most played sport in the state. There are more than 500 active clubs, ten of which are professional teams competing in the National Rugby League (NRL).
Peter Mulholland was an Australian rugby league football coach. He coached ARL premiership expansion club Western Reds in their first two seasons before moving to France to take up the coaching position of Super League expansion team, Paris Saint-Germain. Before moving to the Bulldogs, Mulholland was Assistant Coach from 1999 to 2001 and Director of Recruitment (2002–2008) at the Penrith Panthers.
Matthew Wright is a Samoa international rugby league footballer who plays as a centre, wing and fullback for the Townsville Blackhawks in Hostplus Cup.
George Jennings is a Tonga international rugby league footballer who last played as a winger for the Melbourne Storm in the National Rugby League (NRL).
Chris Smith is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who plays as a second-row forward and lock for the Penrith Panthers in the NRL.
JJ CollinsnéFelise is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who last played for the Dolphins as a prop in the National Rugby League (NRL).
Jai Arrow is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who plays as a second-rower, lock and prop for the South Sydney Rabbitohs in the NRL
Joseph "Joey" Tramontana is an Italy international rugby league footballer who plays as a hooker for the Blacktown Workers Sea Eagles for the Intrust Super Premiership.
David Fifita is an Australian rugby league player. He plays as a second-rower for the Gold Coast Titans in the National Rugby League (NRL). He previously played for the Brisbane Broncos in the NRL and has played for the Indigenous All Stars, Queensland, the Prime Minister's XIII and the Tonga national rugby league team.
Marion Seve is a Samoa international rugby league footballer who plays as a centre for the Melbourne Storm in the National Rugby League (NRL).
Thomas Dearden is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who captains and plays as a halfback for the North Queensland Cowboys in the NRL.
Xavier Coates is a Papua New Guinea international rugby league footballer who plays as a winger for the Melbourne Storm in the National Rugby League (NRL).
Keenan Palasia is a Samoa international rugby league and Māori All Stars footballer who plays as a lock and prop for the Gold Coast Titans in the National Rugby League (NRL).
Tanah Boyd is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who plays as a halfback or five-eighth for the Gold Coast Titans in the National Rugby League (NRL).
Connelly Lemuelu is a professional rugby league footballer who plays as a second-rower for the Dolphins in the National Rugby League (NRL).
The Confraternity Carnival, commonly referred to as Confro, is the premier rugby league competition for Catholic and independent secondary schools in Queensland, Australia, held annually since 1980. Administered by the Queensland Rugby League and run by the Queensland Independent Secondary Schools Rugby League, the competition is a week-long carnival that features over 1200 students from up to 54 schools in July each year.
Brendan Piakura is a Cook Islands international rugby league footballer who plays as a second-row forward for the Brisbane Broncos in the National Rugby League (NRL).
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