| 2022 (2022) NRL Grand Final | |||||||||||||
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 Official logo for the match. | |||||||||||||
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| Date | 2 October 2022 | ||||||||||||
| Stadium | Accor Stadium | ||||||||||||
| Location | Sydney,New South Wales,Australia | ||||||||||||
| Clive Churchill Medal |  Dylan Edwards | ||||||||||||
| Advance Australia Fair | Alinta Chidzey | ||||||||||||
| Pre Match Entertainment | Jimmy Barnes,Mahalia Barnes,Johnny Diesel,Midlife CrisisJosh Teskey,Emma Donovan,Bliss n Eso,Sheldon Riley[1] | ||||||||||||
| Referees | Ashley Klein, Phil Henderson (Touch Judge) Drew Oultram (Touch Judge) | ||||||||||||
| Attendance | 82,415 | ||||||||||||
| Broadcast partners | |||||||||||||
| Broadcasters | |||||||||||||
| Commentators | |||||||||||||
The2022 NRL Grand Final was the conclusive and premiership-deciding game of the2022 National Rugby League season in Australia. It was contested between thePenrith Panthers and theParramatta Eels on Sunday the 2nd of October atAccor Stadium inSydney.[2] Penrith, who were both the defending premiers and minor premiers, won the match 28–12 to claim theirfourth premiership title, and their first back-to-back premierships in the club's 56-year history. Panthers fullbackDylan Edwards was awarded theClive Churchill Medal for being judged as theman of the match.
The match was preceded by the 2022NRL State Championship and the2022 NRL Women's Grand Final. The grand final was attended by 82,415 spectators, and was broadcast live throughout Australia by theNine Network.
This was the first NRL grand final between thePenrith Panthers and theParramatta Eels, and the second consecutive year that the grand final featured two Sydney-based clubs. The match-up between both clubs has long been regarded as theWestern Sydney Derby, due to the long standing rivalry between the two clubs being closely located amongWestern Sydney. The Panthers, who became the first side since theMelbourne Storm in 2018 to reach three consecutive grand finals, were aiming for a fourth premiership, after defeatingCanberra Raiders in1991,Sydney Roosters in2003 andSouth Sydney Rabbitohs in2021. It wasIvan Cleary's fourth grand final appearance as a coach, after previously losing with theNew Zealand Warriors againstManly Sea Eagles in2011, and losing with Penrith againstMelbourne Storm in2020.[3]
Meanwhile, the Eels were aiming for their fifth premiership victory; their most recent being againstCanterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs in1986. Their last grand final appearance was a defeat to the Melbourne Storm in2009. It wasBrad Arthur's first grand final appearance as a coach.[4]
The Panthers finished the 2022 regular season in first place after twenty wins and four losses, of which two were against the Eels. Parramatta finished fourth after sixteen wins and eight losses.[5]
The2022 Penrith Panthers season was the 56th season inthe club's history. Coached byIvan Cleary and co-captained byNathan Cleary andIsaah Yeo, the Panthers are competing in theNational Rugby League's2022 Telstra Premiership.[citation needed]
| Round | Opposition | Score |
|---|---|---|
| QF | Parramatta Eels (H) | 27–8 |
| SF | Bye | |
| PF | South Sydney Rabbitohs (H) | 32–12 |
| Key: (H) = Home venue; (A) = Away venue; (N) =Neutral venue | ||
The2022 Parramatta Eels season was the 76th inthe club's history. Coached byBrad Arthur and co-captained byClinton Gutherson andJunior Paulo, they will compete in theNRL's2022 Telstra Premiership.[6] The season saw a club record membership tally of 34,264.[7]
| Round | Opposition | Score |
|---|---|---|
| QF | Penrith Panthers (A) | 8–27 |
| SF | Canberra Raiders (H) | 40–4 |
| PF | North Queensland Cowboys (A) | 24–20 |
| Key: (H) = Home venue; (A) = Away venue; (N) =Neutral venue | ||
Dylan Edwards,Stephen Crichton,Brian To'o,Jarome Luai,Nathan Cleary,Apisai Koroisau,James Fisher-Harris,Viliame Kikau,Liam Martin,Moses Leota andIsaah Yeo made their third-straight grand final appearance for Penrith, whilst Koroisau also played in the2014 premiership decider for theSouth Sydney Rabbitohs.Ryan Matterson andBailey Simonsson were the only players for Parramatta to have played in prior grand finals; Matterson won for theSydney Roosters in2018, while Simonsson played for theCanberra Raiders in2019.[8]
The match was broadcast live on theNine Network and delayed onFox League in Australia as well as onSky Sport in New Zealand. Radio broadcasters includedABC,Triple M,2GB,SEN andKoori Radio.[9]
On 23 September 2022, the pre-match entertainment acts for the grand final were announced. This includedJimmy Barnes,Mahalia Barnes,A.Girl,Diesel,Josh Teskey,Emma Donovan,Sheldon Riley andBliss n Eso. The Australian national anthem was performed by Alinta Chidzey.[10]
Ashley Klein refereed the match, his second NRL grand final. Grant Atkins was the senior review official, and Phil Henderson and Drew Oultram were the touch judges.Gerard Sutton was the standby referee and David Munro the standby touch judge.[11]
The 2022 Grand Final was the first since the beginning of theCOVID-19 pandemic to have no crowd restrictions. On 27 September 2022, the match was sold out.[12]
Curtain-raiser matches on the day were theNRL State Championship between theNorths Devils and thePenrith Panthers, andNRLW Grand Final between theNewcastle Knights and theParramatta Eels. Both were shown live on theNine Network in Australia.
| Penrith Panthers | 28 – 12 |  Parramatta Eels |
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| Tries:5 To'o  18', 46'Crichton 11'Sorensen 28'Staines 59'Goals:4 Cleary  13',pen 22',29',61'(4/6) | 1st: 18–0 2nd: 10–12 Report | Tries:2 Gutherson 77'Arthur 78'Goals:2 Moses 77',79'(2/2) |
Accor Stadium,Sydney Attendance: 82,415 Referee:Ashley Klein Bunker: Grant Atkins Touch judges: Phil Henderson, Drew Oultram Clive Churchill Medal:Dylan Edwards (Penrith) |
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Parramatta forwardRyan Matterson was charged by the match review with a grade one crusher tackle againstDylan Edwards.[13] Matterson was criticised[14] after taking an early guilty plea and electing to be suspended for three matches instead of taking a $4,000 fine.[15] Matterson defended his decision telling reporters "I just feel that $4000 is pretty hefty considering I have already paid close to $4000 in fines this year for things that are absurd", with the forward also suggesting that the charge was not warranted.[16]
Penrith players were criticised for their celebrations after their victory, with Sydney media identities outspoken against the way they celebrated.[17]Jarome Luai came under scrutiny for a social media post that some found offensive. Former Penrith captainGreg Alexander and coachIvan Cleary defended the players against the criticism.[18]
Both grand final teams' players featured in squads selected for the2021 Rugby League World Cup to be played in October–November 2022. Ten Panthers players were selected with the greatest representation (5) to play forSamoa. Parramatta had also had ten players selected, with the greatest representation (3) to play forNew Zealand.
As premiership winners, Penrith earned the right to play in theWorld Club Challenge against2022 Super League Grand Final winnersSt Helens. The match was played on 18 February 2023 atBlueBet Stadium.[19]
Twoopening matches were played on the ground prior to the grand final: theNRL State Championship andNRL Women's Grand Final. Both matches were broadcast live throughout Australia by theNine Network.
Sunday, 2 October 1:35pm (AEDT) |
| Penrith Panthers | 44 – 10 |  Norths Devils |
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| Tries: J'maine Hopgood 7', 71'Soni Luke Goals: | 1st: 18 – 0 2nd: 26 – 10 scorecard | Tries: Tony Tumusa Goals: |
Sunday, 2 October 4:05pm (AEDT) |
Newcastle Knights Women's | 32 – 12 | Parramatta Eels Women's |
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| Tries: Kiana Takairangi Goals: | 1st: 14 – 6 2nd: 18 – 6 scorecard | Tries: Brooke Anderson Goals: |