List of South Sydney Rabbitohs records

Last updated May 12, 2024

The following is a list of the South Sydney Rabbitohs club records. The list encompasses the first-grade honours won by South Sydney, records set by the club, their coaches and their players.

Club records

These are NRL records which relate to the South Sydney Rabbitohs.

Grand Finals

Most First Grade Premierships

21

Most Reserve Grade Premierships

21

Highest Score in a Grand Final

42 points versus Manly Sea Eagles in 1951 (Souths won 42–14)

Most Tries in a Grand Final

8 tries versus Manly Sea Eagles in 1951

Most Goals in a Grand Final

9 goals versus Manly Sea Eagles in 1951

Most Tries in a Grand Final by an Individual Player

4 tries by Johnny Graves (rugby league) versus Manly Sea Eagles in 1951

Most Field Goals in a Grand Final by an Individual Player

4 field goals by Eric Simms versus Manly Sea Eagles in 1970 (Souths won 23–12)

Most Points in all Grand Final appearances

42 points by Eric Simms (1965, 1967, 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971)

Most Grand Final successes as a Captain

5 by Jack Rayner (1950, 1951, 1953, 1954, 1955)

Most Grand Final successes as a Coach

5 by Jack Rayner (1950, 1951, 1953, 1954, 1955)

Premiership

Most goals in a season by an individual player

131 by Eric Simms in 1969

Most Career Field Goals by an Individual Player

86 by Eric Simms between 1965 and 1975

Most Career Points scored by a Forward

1,128 by Bernie Purcell between 1949–1952 and 1954–1960

Most Field Goals in a Game by an Individual Player

5 by Eric Simms versus Penrith, Penrith Park, 27 July 1969 (Souths won 40–18)

World Club Records

Wins

Highest Score in a WCC

39 points versus St. Helens in 2015 (Souths won 39–0)

Individual awards

Rothmans Medal winners

The Rothmans Medal was previously awarded to the player of the year.

1969 – Denis Pittard
1971 – Denis Pittard

Dally M Medal winners

The Dally M Medal is currently awarded to the player of the year.

1980 – Rocky Laurie

Harry Sunderland Medal winners

1970 – Ron Coote

NSW Player of the Year

1949, 1950 and 1952 – Clive Churchill
1953 – Jack Rayner
1968 and 1969 – Ron Coote

Sun-Herald Best and Fairest Player

1952 – Clive Churchill
1958 – Fred Nelson
1964 – Richie Powell
1972 and 1973 – Denis Pittard

E E Christensen Player of the Year (1946–1977)

1949, 1950 and 1952 – Clive Churchill
1953 – Jack Rayner
1968 and 1969 – Ron Coote

Claude Corbett Memorial Trophy

1950 and 1954 – Clive Churchill

Rugby League Week Player of the Year

1971 – Bob Grant

Dally M Rookie of the Year

1989 – Jim Serdaris
2008 – Chris Sandow
2012 – Adam Reynolds
2013 – George Burgess

ARL Hall of Fame inductees

Clive Churchill Medal

2014 – Sam Burgess

Individual records

Most First Grade Games for the Club

Games played	Player	Years played
336	John Sutton	2004–2019
234	Tom Burgess	2013–
231	Adam Reynolds	2012–2021
218	Nathan Merritt	2002–2003, 2006–2014
218	Alex Johnston	2014–
211	Bob McCarthy	1963–1975, 1978
208	Craig Coleman	1982–1992
206	Eric Simms	1965–1975
200	Cody Walker	2016 -
195	John Sattler	1963–1972

Most Points for the club

Points	Player	Games played
1,896 (38 tries, 860 goals, 22 field goals)	Adam Reynolds	231
1,841 (23 tries, 803 goals, 86 field goals)	Eric Simms	206
1,128 (36 tries, 510 goals)	Bernie Purcell	173
836 (144 tries, 202 goals)	Benny Wearing	172
752 (188 tries)	Alex Johnston	218
653 (146 tries, 34 goals, 1 field goal)	Nathan Merritt	218

Most points in a season

Points	Player	Games played	Season
265 (1 try, 112 goals, 19 field goals)	Eric Simms	24	1969
260 (5 tries, 118 goals, 2 field goals)	Adam Reynolds	25	2021
241 (3 tries, 96 goals, 20 field goals)	Eric Simms	22	1970
233 (3 tries, 100 goals, 12 field goals)	Eric Simms	24	1967
221 (7 tries, 95 goals, 3 field goals)	Adam Reynolds	26	2014

Most Points in a Match

Points	Player	Opponent	Venue	Date	Match score
29 (3 tries, 10 goals)	Johnny Graves	Eastern Suburbs	Sports Ground	Round 8, 1952	Souths won 50–0
27 (5 tries, 6 goals)	Johnny Graves	Eastern Suburbs	Redfern Oval	Round 14, 1949	Souths won 48–6
26 (3 tries, 7 goals)	Latrell Mitchell	Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs	Accor Stadium	Round 6, 2023	Souths won 50-16
24 (4 tries, 6 goals)	Terry Fahey	Penrith	Redfern Oval	Round 5, 1979	Souths won 39–9
24 (2 tries, 8 goals)	Latrell Mitchell	New Zealand Warriors	Sunshine Coast Stadium	Round 21, 2022	Souths won 48-10
23 (3 tries, 7 goals)	Johnny Graves	Parramatta	Redfern Oval	Round 10, 1948	Souths won 38–5
23 (1 try, 10 goals)	Johnny Graves	Newtown	Redfern Oval	Round 18, 1952	Souths won 41–2
22 (11 goals)	Eric Simms	Cronulla	Redfern Oval	Round 3, 1969	Souths won 43–4
22 (6 goals, 5 field goals)	Eric Simms	Penrith	Penrith Park	Round 18, 1969	Souths won 40–18
22 (2 tries, 8 goals)	Mark Ross	St George Dragons	Redfern Oval	Round 13, 1981	Souths won 34–17
22 (1 try, 9 goals)	Tony Melrose	Cronulla	Redfern Oval	Round 9, 1983	Souths won 46–10

Most Tries for the Club

Tries scored	Player	Games Played	Years played
188	Alex Johnston	218	2014–
146	Nathan Merritt	218	2002–2003, 2006–2014
144	Benny Wearing	172	1921–1933
105	Ian Moir	110	1952–1958
102	Harold Horder	86	1912–1919, 1924
100	Bob McCarthy	211	1963–1975, 1978
91	Cody Walker	200	2016–
88	Michael Cleary	140	1962–1970
79	Johnny Graves	77	1947–1952
71	Greg Inglis	146	2011–2019

Most Tries in a season

Tries	Player	Games played	Season
30	Alex Johnston	22	2021
30	Alex Johnston	25	2022
29	Les Brennan	19	1954
28	Johnny Graves	17	1951
23	Alex Johnston	22	2020
23	Ian Moir	19	1953
23	Nathan Merritt	22	2011
22	Nathan Merritt	24	2006
22	Alex Johnston	22	2017
21	Alex Johnston	23	2023

Most Tries in a Match

Tries	Player	Opponent	Venue	Date
5	Harold Horder	North Sydney	Sydney Showground	4 June 1917
5	Harold Horder	North Sydney	Sydney Showground	14 June 1917
5	Alan Quinlivan	University	Earl Park	11 July 1936
5	Don Manson	University	Sports Ground	17 April 1937
5	Johnny Graves	Eastern Suburbs	Redfern Oval	16 July 1949
5	Ian Moir	Parramatta	Redfern Oval	6 June 1957
5	Eric Sladden	Parramatta	Cumberland Oval	10 August 1957
5	Nathan Merritt	Parramatta	ANZ Stadium	8 August 2011
5	Alex Johnston	Penrith	ANZ Stadium	2 July 2017
5	Alex Johnston	Sydney Roosters	ANZ Stadium	25 September 2020

Most Goals for the Club

Goals	Player	Games played
889¹	Eric Simms	206
882²	Adam Reynolds	231
510	Bernie Purcell	173
237³	Neil Baker	87

¹ includes 86 field goals

² includes 22 field goals

³ includes 31 field goals

Most goals in a season

Goals	Player	Games played	Season
131¹	Eric Simms	24	1969
120²	Adam Reynolds	25	2021
116³	Eric Simms	22	1970
112⁴	Eric Simms	24	1967
100⁵	Adam Reynolds	26	2013

¹ includes 19 field goals

² includes 2 field goals

³ includes 20 field goals

⁴ includes 12 field goals

⁵ includes 2 field goals

Most Goals in a Match

Goals	Player	Opponent	Venue	Date	Match score
11	Eric Simms	Cronulla	Redfern Oval	11 April 1969	Souths won 43 – 4
11¹	Eric Simms	Penrith	Penrith Park	27 July 1969	Souths won 40 – 18
10	Arthur Oxford	University	Marrickville Oval	1 September 1920	Souths won 47 – 5
10	Johnny Graves	Eastern Suburbs	Sydney Sports Ground	7 July 1952	Souths won 50 – 0
10	Johnny Graves	Newtown	Redfern Oval	23 August 1952	Souths won 41 – 2
10	Adam Reynolds	Sydney Roosters	ANZ Stadium	25 September 2020	Souths won 60 – 8

¹ includes 5 field goals

Team records

Biggest winning margins

Margin	Score	Opponent	Venue	Date
67	67–0	Western Suburbs	Sydney Showground	23 July 1910
63	63–0	University	Sports Ground	17 April 1937
54	59–5	Penrith	Redfern Oval	11 May 1980
53	53–0	North Sydney	Sports Ground	12 August 1939
52	60–8	Sydney Roosters	ANZ Stadium	25 September 2020
50	50–0	Eastern Suburbs	Sports Ground	7 June 1952
50	56–6	Parramatta Eels	ANZ Stadium	8 August 2011

Biggest Losing Margins

Margin	Score	Opponent	Venue	Date
66	0–66	New Zealand Warriors	Telstra Stadium	25 June 2006
62	0–62	Sydney City Roosters	Sydney Football Stadium	25 April 1996
60	0–60	Newcastle Knights	EnergyAustralia Stadium	8 August 1999
58	6-64	Melbourne Storm	AAMI Park	26 August 2017
54	0-54	Parramatta Eels	Parramatta Stadium	10 August 2002
52	8-60	North Queensland Cowboys	Dairy Farmers Stadium	23 August 2003

Biggest Wins vs Active Teams

Margin	Score	Opposition	Venue	Date
54	59–5	Penrith Panthers	Redfern Oval	11 May 1980
52	60–8	Sydney Roosters	ANZ Stadium	25 September 2020
50	56–6	Parramatta Eels	ANZ Stadium	8 August 2011
46	52–6	Newcastle Knights	ANZ Stadium	25 July 2015
46	46–0	Brisbane Broncos	Suncorp Stadium	17 June 2021
44	54–10	Wests Tigers	ANZ Stadium	17 May 2013
40	56–16	Manly Warringah Sea Eagles	ANZ Stadium	22 August 2020
39	43–4	Cronulla-Sutherland	Redfern Oval	11 April 1969
38	38–0	Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs	Stadium Australia	2 April 2021
38	60–22 48–10	New Zealand Warriors	Sunshine Coast Stadium Sunshine Coast Stadium	24 July 2021 6 August 2022
36	50–14	St. George Illawarra Dragons	Suncorp Stadium	1 August 2021
30	37–7 32–2	Canberra Raiders	Redfern Oval ANZ Stadium	27 February 1982 28 June 2013
28	32–4	North Queensland Cowboys	ANZ Stadium	7 June 2010
28	32–4	Gold Coast Titans	Skilled Park	27 July 2013
27	41–14	Melbourne Storm	Sydney Football Stadium	8 June 2003
22	36–14	Dolphins	Suncorp Stadium	13 April 2023

Biggest Losses vs Active Teams

Margin	Score	Opposition	Venue	Date
66	0–66	New Zealand Warriors	ANZ Stadium	25 June 2006
62	0–62	Sydney City Roosters	Sydney Football Stadium	25 April 1996
60	0–60	Newcastle Knights	Marathon Stadium	8 August 1999
58	6–64	Melbourne Storm	AAMI Park	26 August 2017
54	0–54	Manly Warringah Sea Eagles	Brookvale Oval	24 August 1975
54	0–54	Parramatta Eels	Parramatta Stadium	10 August 2002
52	8–60	North Queensland Cowboys	Dairy Farmers Stadium	23 August 2003
50	6–56	Brisbane Broncos	ANZ Stadium	13 August 1995
50	12–62	Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs	Sydney Football Stadium	3 August 2003
50	6–56	Wests Tigers	Leichhardt Oval	8 August 2004
50	4–54	Canberra Raiders	ANZ Stadium	31 July 2016
44	12–56	Penrith Panthers	Apex Oval	23 May 2021
42	0–42	Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks	Caltex Field	27 August 1994
42	16–58	St. George Illawarra Dragons	WIN Stadium	18 August 2002
8	14–22 14–22	Gold Coast Titans	Skilled Park ANZ Stadium	2 May 2009 14 August 2009
–	–	Dolphins	–	–

Biggest Wins vs Discontinued Teams

Margin	Score	Opposition	Venue	Date
67	67–0	Western Suburbs	Royal Agricultural Society Showground	23 July 1910
63	63–0	University	Sydney Sports Ground	17 April 1937
53	53–0	North Sydney	Sydney Sports Ground	12 August 1939
39	41–2	Newtown	Redfern Oval	23 August 1952
37	39–2	Balmain Tigers	Redfern Oval	20 April 1975
36	48–12	Illawarra Steelers	Redfern Oval	7 August 1983
32	36–4 32–0	St. George Dragons	Belmore Sports Ground Sydney Football Stadium	4 April 1988 22 April 1989
32	48–16	South Queensland Crushers	Redfern Oval	14 July 1996
27	29–2 31–4	Glebe	Royal Agricultural Society Showground Sydney Sports Ground	29 May 1909 13 July 1929
26	34–8	Annandale	Royal Agricultural Society Showground	16 July 1910
24	44–20	Northern Eagles	Sydney Football Stadium	30 March 2002
21	23–2	Cumberland	Royal Agricultural Society Showground	9 May 1908
20	20–0	Newcastle	Royal Agricultural Society Showground	14 August 1909
18	30–12	Gold Coast Seagulls	Sydney Football Stadium	14 May 1994
6	24–18	Western Reds	Redfern Oval	23 June 1996
–	–	Adelaide Rams	–	–

Biggest Losses vs Discontinued Teams

Margin	Score	Opposition	Venue	Date
45	8–53	Western Suburbs	Pratten Park	21 June 1958
42	5–47	Newtown	Sydney Cricket Ground	8 July 1944
42	14–56	Illawarra Steelers	Steelers Stadium	14 April 1996
42	4–46	North Sydney Bears	North Sydney Oval	25 August 1996
36	7–43	Balmain	Leichhardt Oval	27 July 1946
36	4–40 6–42	St. George Dragons	Sydney Cricket Ground Sydney Football Stadium	16 August 1958 11 July 1993
26	12–38	Gold Coast Seagulls	Sydney Football Stadium	5 August 1990
17	7–24	Glebe	Sydney Sports Ground	10 June 1922
16	18–34	Adelaide Rams	Sydney Football Stadium	12 July 1998
5	0–5	Newcastle	Newcastle Showground	7 August 1909
4	14–18	Western Reds	WACA Ground	16 June 1995
1	2–3	Annandale	Erskineville Oval	17 July 1915
1	16–17	South Queensland Crushers	Suncorp Stadium	3 August 1997
–	–	Cumberland	–	–
–	–	Northern Eagles	–	–
–	–	University	–	–

Longest Winning Streak

16 (2 May 1925 – 8 May 1926)

Longest Losing Streak

22 (23 June 1945 – 12 April 1947)

Golden point games

Played	Won	Drawn	Lost
19	8	4	7

Opponent	Result	Score	Venue	Date
New Zealand Warriors	Loss	30–31	Sydney Football Stadium	19 June 2003
Wests Tigers	Win	17–16	Sydney Football Stadium	21 March 2004
North Queensland Cowboys	Draw	20–20	Express Advocate Stadium	15 May 2004
Brisbane Broncos	Draw	34–34	Sydney Football Stadium	28 August 2004
Canterbury Bulldogs	Draw	21–21	Sydney Showground	4 June 2005
Parramatta Eels	Draw	16–16	ANZ Stadium	22 May 2009
Gold Coast Titans	Loss	18–19	ANZ Stadium	20 Mar 2010
Wests Tigers	Win	34–30	ANZ Stadium	7 Aug 2010
Sydney Roosters	Win	21–20	ANZ Stadium	16 Jul 2011
North Queensland Cowboys	Win	26–24	ANZ Stadium	19 August 2011
Wests Tigers	Win	17–16	Allianz Stadium	1 Apr 2012
St. George Illawarra Dragons	Win	19–18	Jubilee Oval	20 May 2012
St. George Illawarra Dragons	Loss	18-22	ANZ Stadium	22 July 2013
Gold Coast Titans	Loss	29-28	nib Stadium	5 June 2016
Melbourne Storm	Loss	15-14	AAMI Park	6 August 2016
Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles	Loss	13-12	Lottoland	13 July 2019
Wests Tigers	Win	18–14	ANZ Stadium	17 April 2021
Cronulla Sharks	Loss	21-20	Shark Park	30 July 2022
Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles	Win	13-12	Accor Stadium	25 March 2023

Premiership Finals Losses

Team	Current Team	Total	Years!
Sydney Roosters	Y	8	2019 2018 2013 1938 1935 1934 1923 1911
Balmain Tigers	N	8	2019 1986 1969 1956 1944 1939 1924 1916
Penrith Panthers	Y	3	2022 2021 2020
Canberra Raiders	Y	3	2019 1989 1987
Western Suburbs	N	3	1952 1932 1930
Melbourne Storm	Y	2	2018 2012
Canterbury Bulldogs	Y	2	2012 1986
St George	N	2	1965 1949
Newtown	N	2	1933 1910
Cronulla Sharks	Y	1	2015
Total		37

Attendance records

Sydney Football Stadium - Currently known as Allianz Stadium (1988–2005, 2022)

40,000 – South Sydney Rabbitohs v Balmain Tigers (Major semi-final, 10 September 1989)

39,816 - South Sydney Rabbitohs v Sydney Roosters (Elimination Final, 11 September 2022)

39,733 - South Sydney Rabbitohs v Cronulla Sharks (Preliminary Final, 17 September 2022)

Redfern Oval (1948–1987)

23,257 – South Sydney Rabbitohs v Manly Sea Eagles (Round 20, 19 July 1987). A crowd of over 25,000 watched Souths take on the US team, the "Tomahawks", while Souths were excluded from the NRL.

ANZ Stadium - Currently known as Accor Stadium (2006 – present)

83,833 – South Sydney Rabbitohs v Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs (Grand Final, 5 October 2014)

Sydney Cricket Ground (1908 – present)

78,056 – South Sydney Rabbitohs v St George Dragons (Grand Final, 18 September 1965)

Related Research Articles

The South Sydney Rabbitohs are an Australian professional rugby league football club based in the Sydney suburb of Redfern that competes in the National Rugby League (NRL). They are often referred to as Souths or the Bunnies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clive Churchill Medal</span> Australian rugby league medal

The Clive Churchill Medal is the award given to the player judged to be man-of-the-match in the National Rugby League's annual Grand Final. The award was created to honour Clive Churchill, one of the greatest rugby league players in Australian history, following his death in 1985. A prestigious honour in the NRL, the medal's recipient is chosen by the selectors of the Australian national team and announced and awarded at the post-grand final ceremony.

Clive Bernard Churchill AM was an Australian professional rugby league footballer and coach in the mid-20th century. An Australian international and New South Wales and Queensland interstate representative fullback, he played the majority of his club football with and later coached the South Sydney Rabbitohs. He won five premierships with the club as a player and three more as coach. Retiring as the most capped Australian Kangaroos player ever, Churchill is thus considered one of the game's greatest ever players and the prestigious Clive Churchill Medal for man-of-the-match in the NRL grand final bears his name. Churchill's attacking flair as a player is credited with having changed the role of the fullback.

Eric Simms is an Indigenous Australian former professional and national representative rugby league footballer who has been named among the nation's finest of the 20th century. His primary position was at fullback although he could also play as a centre. Simms played his entire first grade career for South Sydney with whom he won four premierships and was top point-scorer for four consecutive seasons.

Robert James McCarthy MBE is an Australian former professional rugby league footballer and coach. He played for the South Sydney Rabbitohs, Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs, New South Wales and for the Australian national side. He later coached in Brisbane, taking Souths Magpies to a premiership in 1981 and coaching the Gold Coast-Tweed Giants upon their entry to the Winfield Cup. Since 2001 he has been the chairman of both the Australian and NSW state selection panels.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jack Rayner</span> Australia international rugby league footballer and coach

Rupert John Rayner was an Australian state and national representative rugby league player and NSWRFL coach. His club playing career was with the South Sydney Rabbitohs from 1946 to 1957 and he also represented New South Wales on eleven occasions and played in five Test matches for the Australian national side.

The history of the South Sydney Rabbitohs rugby league football club stretches back to the pre-schism (1908) days of rugby football in Australia to the present. The club's history is one of the longest of any Australian rugby league club and they are one of the National Rugby League's last two extant foundation clubs along with the Sydney Roosters.

Geoffrey Toovey, also known by the nickname of "Toovs" or "Tooves", is the former head coach of the Bradford Bulls and former professional rugby league footballer. Toovey played halfback for the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles, then played as a hooker later in his career at the Northern Eagles. He played 286 first-grade matches in all, and captained Manly to the 1996 ARL premiership and the 1995 and 1997 grand finals. He played in 13 international matches for Australia between 1991 and 1998. Toovey is the former head coach of Manly-Warringah.

The 1968 New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership was the 61st season of professional rugby league football in Australia. Twelve teams, including six Sydney-based foundation teams and another six from around Sydney competed for the J.J. Giltinan Shield and the WD & HO Wills Cup during the season, which culminated in a grand final between South Sydney and Manly-Warringah.

The 1971 New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership was the sixty-fourth season of Sydney's professional rugby league football competition, Australia's first. Twelve teams, including six foundation clubs and another six admitted since 1908, competed for the J. J. Giltinan Shield during the season, which culminated in a Grand Final match for the W.D. & H.O. Wills between the South Sydney and St. George clubs.

The 1955 NSWRFL season was the 48th season of the New South Wales Rugby Football League. Ten teams from across Sydney competed for the NSWRFL Premiership J. J. Giltinan Shield during the season, which culminated in a replay of the previous year's Grand Final between the South Sydney and Newtown clubs.

The 1951 New South Wales Rugby Football League premiership was the forty-fourth season of Sydney’s top-level rugby league competition, Australia’s first. Ten teams from across the city competed for the newly created J. J. Giltinan Shield during the season which culminated in a grand final between South Sydney and Manly-Warringah.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2008 NRL season</span> 101st season of National Rugby League

The 2008 NRL season was the 101st season of professional rugby league club competition in Australia, and the eleventh run by the National Rugby League. For the second year, sixteen teams competed for the 2008 Telstra Premiership title. The season commenced with the first matches played on 14 March and ended with the grand final, played on 5 October. The premiership was won by the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles who set the record for the biggest grand final winning margin (40–0) in Australia's rugby league history.

Daly Cherry-Evans is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who plays as a halfback for the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles in the National Rugby League (NRL) and Australia at international level. Daly is considered one of the best halfbacks of the NRL era.

Adam Reynolds, is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who captains and plays as a halfback for the Brisbane Broncos in the National Rugby League (NRL).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dylan Walker</span> Australia international rugby league footballer

Dylan Walker is a professional rugby league footballer who plays as a lock for the New Zealand Warriors in the National Rugby League (NRL), and has played for Australia and the New Zealand Maori at international level.

Apisai Koroisau is a Fiji international rugby league footballer who plays as a hooker and is the captain of the Wests Tigers in the National Rugby League (NRL). He has also represented New South Wales in the State of Origin series.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2020 NRL Grand Final</span> Premiership-deciding game of the 2020 NRL season

The 2020 NRL Grand Final was the conclusive and premiership-deciding game of the 2020 National Rugby League season held at Sydney's ANZ Stadium on October 25. The match was contested between minor premiers Penrith Panthers and second-placed Melbourne Storm. Melbourne led the game 22-0 at half-time before holding off a late Penrith comeback to win 26-20, claiming their fourth premiership title. Melbourne fullback Ryan Papenhuyzen was awarded the Clive Churchill Medal as the official man of the match. The match was attended by 37,303 spectators due to an enforced limit to stadium capacity by the NSW government as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia. The game would be the last for Melbourne hooker and captain Cameron Smith after announcing his retirement in the following year, making him the most-capped player in the NRL with 430 games, and the most for a single club.

The 2021 NRL Grand Final was the conclusive and premiership-deciding game of the 2021 National Rugby League season in Australia. It was contested between the Penrith Panthers and the South Sydney Rabbitohs on Sunday 3 October at Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane. Penrith won the match 14–12 to claim their third premiership title, and their first since 2003. Penrith co-captain and halfback Nathan Cleary was awarded the Clive Churchill Medal as the official man of the match.

References

External links

Rugby League Tables & Statistics The World of Rugby League.
Rabbitohs Club Records National Rugby League.
South Sydney Rabbitohs South Sydney Rabbitohs official website.
Andrews, Malcolm. The ABC of Rugby League. Australia: ABC Books, 2006.
Alan Whiticker & Glen Hudson, The Encyclopaedia of Rugby League Players – South Sydney Rabbitohs, Bas Publishing, 2005.

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v t e South Sydney Rabbitohs
Est. 1908 at Redfern Town Hall, Sydney, New South Wales
The club	History Honours Players Coaches Records George Piggins Medal
Home grounds	Current Stadium Australia Past Sydney Sports Ground Redfern Oval Sydney Football Stadium
Culture	Charity Shield South Side Story Book of Feuds Ron Coote Cup Good Friday Return to Redfern South Sydney Leagues Club George Piggins Medal Souths Cares
Important figures	Arthur Hennessy Benny Wearing George Treweek Jack Rayner Clive Churchill John Sattler Bob McCarthy George Piggins Russell Crowe John Sutton Greg Inglis Sam Burgess
League	Current NRL Past NSWRL ARL
Titles	Premierships (21) 1908 1909 1914 1918 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1931 1932 1950 1951 1953 1954 1955 1967 1968 1970 1971 2014 Minor Premierships (21) 1908 1909 1914 1918 1925 1926 1927 1929 1932 1949 1950 1951 1953 1968 1969 1970 1989 World Club Challenge (1) 2015
Seasons (113)	1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 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
Other competitions	Current NRL Nines New South Wales Cup NSWRL Women's Premiership Jersey Flegg Cup SG Ball Cup Harold Matthews Cup Tarsha Gale Cup Past City Cup Amco Cup NRL Under-20s
Affiliations	South Sydney District Junior Rugby Football League Past North Sydney Bears Newtown Jets
Related articles	The Burrow Reggie the Rabbit
South Sydney were excluded from the National Rugby League for the 2000 and 2001 seasons