North Sydney Bears

The North Sydney Bears are a Rugby League Club who were a former club in the New South Wales Rugby League premiership, the predecessor of the National Rugby League (NRL) as the premier Australian rugby league competition. The club was founded in 1908, making it one of the foundation members in the then New South Wales Rugby League competition. The club departed the top-flight competition in 1999 after a merger with Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles to form the Northern Eagles. The Bears now compete in the second-tier NSWRL Premier League. The Bears were traditionally based on Sydney north shore, and have played at North Sydney Oval. Their team colours were red and black.

History

North Sydney was formed as a foundation club of the newly arrived rugby league game in 1908 and were known as the Shoremen. Like the other Sydney district clubs, Norths were largely born from players and officials from the local rugby union club. The North Shore of Sydney is seen to be more of an upper-class than the remainder and the dominating code was the amateur rugby union which, with the foundation of the club, saw a struggle for rights over North Sydney Oval with the local union club. The early days of the club were shaky as many good players such as Denis "Dinny" Lutge, Jimmy Devereaux and Sid Deane were lost to English clubs and after making the semi-finals in their first season, in 1909 season they ended up at second last. They were nearly dropped from the competition during World War I because of dwindling spectator numbers. Towards the end of the war, Norths had started a steady incline in their playing quality and numbers of spectators had increased and won 2 premierships in 1921-1922. Unfortunately, these would be their last premierships and their last grand final appearance was in 1943 when they were flogged by Newtown 34-7. This disappointing state of play continued well through the rest of the century despite a brief revival in the mid to late 1990s until it finally ended when the club was in debt to the tune of $4 million, sparking a joint venture with Manly to form the Northern Eagles which was opposed by all true Bears fans.

Merger Years

After some deliberation and the rights of the members of the football club handed over to avoid an embarrassing 'NO' vote on the merger question, and the signing of most of the Bears younger brigade and few from the senior team, the name Northern Eagles was born. The name Northern Eagles had little relevance to North Sydney with many people feeling the word Northern represented the Northern Beaches and not the word Norths or North used to describe North Sydney since 1908. The word Eagles reflected the Eagle or Sea Eagle of the Manly club and had noting to do with the beloved Bear mascot of the North Sydney club. The joint venture club played out of North Power Stadium (now Blue Tongue Central Coast Stadium) at Gosford, and Brookvale Oval, but poor on-field performances quickly led to the collapse of the Northern Eagles in 2002, after only three years. Bears fans' worst fears were realised when the Northern Eagles' licence then reverted to Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles, leaving North Sydney out of the NRL competition. Compounding this, there was no official statement from the board of directors who sent the club into the merger.

North Sydney Bears players celebrate a try against traditional rivals Newtown in a Premier League clash.

NSWRL Premier League

North Sydney currently play in the second-tier NSWRL Premier League competition, serving as the reserve side for Souths. They have also been affiliated with the Warriors and the Storm in the past. There is a movement among Bears' fans for a return to first-grade Rugby League, with the North Sydney Bears relocating to Gosford (on the Central Coast, New South Wales) and becoming the Central Coast Bears. Some believe that a team in this part of New South Wales would be highly successful, while others believe the NRL should prioritise other areas of Australia and New Zealand for expansion teams. In the 2007 NSWRL Premier League the North Sydney Bears made the Grand Final facing off against Sydney rivals Parramatta. They were beaten 15-20 by Joel Reddy Scoring a try with just 10 seconds to go.

Team of the Century

On the 26th of August 2006 the club announced their Team of the Century.[1]

Former Players of Note

See also

• Northern Eagles
• Category:North Sydney Bears rugby league players

External links

• Official North Sydney Bears Website
• RL1908 history of North Sydney