Current season, competition or edition: 2025 NSWRL Major Competitions | |
 NSW Cup Logo as of 2021 | |
| Formerly | Reserve Grade Presidents Cup NSWRL First Division NSWRL Premier League Intrust Super Premiership Canterbury Cup NSW Cup |
|---|---|
| Sport | Rugby League |
| Founded | 1908 |
| First season | 1908 |
| Owner | NSWRL |
| Director | Nick Politis, Deborah Healey |
| President | Dr George Peponis OAM |
| No. of teams | 14 |
| Countries |  Australia New Zealand |
| Most recent champion |  New Zealand Warriors(2025) |
| Most titles |  South Sydney Rabbitohs (21 titles) |
| Broadcasters | NSWRL TV Fox League Kayo Sports 9Now (Grand Final only) |
| Sponsor | The Knock-On Effect |
| Level on pyramid | Level 2 |
| Related competitions | National Rugby League NRL State Championship Hostplus Cup |
| Official website | NSWRL |
TheNSW Cup, currently known as theKnock-On Effect NSW Cup for sponsorship reasons, is arugby league competition for clubs inNew South Wales. The competition has a history dating back to theNSWRFL's origins in 1908, starting off as a reserve grade competition, and is now the premier open age competition in the state. TheNew South Wales Cup, along with theQueensland Cup, acts as a feeder competition to theNational Rugby League premiership. The competition is the oldest continuous rugby league competition in Australia.
The NSW Cup is contested by reserve squads of NSW-based NRL teams and also includes sides representing teams that once competed at the first grade level in the NSWRL Premiership but no longer field teams in the NRL competition, and teams that have not fielded teams in the NRL competition. TheNorth Sydney Bears are the only team to have competed in every season, since the start of the competition since 1908.
The New South Wales Cup consists of 13 teams, 1 each fromAuckland (Tāmaki Makaurau) andAustralian Capital Territory, and 11 fromNew South Wales. The league operates on a single group system, with no divisions or conferences and no relegation and promotion from other leagues. A number of clubs in the New South Wales Cup have an affiliation with a team in the Australian national competition, the National Rugby League, with most of the clubs in the being reserve grade teams to the senior grade teams of the NRL.
Bold indicates it is the club's highest level of competition.
*: The season the team joined competition in its current form and consecutive tenure.
+: Current affiliation between Cronulla and Newtown since 2015.
†:Does not include games played as NRL Curtain raisers
Of the 26 former clubs in the 21st century, 1 was each based in Australian Capital Territory, Queensland and Victoria, 2 were based in Auckland Region and the other 23 former clubs were based in New South Wales.
| New South Wales Cup | |||||||||
| Colors | Club | Est. | First | Last | City/ Cities | Titles | Last | Fate | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | Auckland Vulcans | 2008 | 2013 | Auckland | Departed | ||||
 | BalmainRydeEastwood Tigers | 2005 | 2012 | Leichhardt | Departed | ||||
 | Bankstown City Bulls | 2008 | 2008 | 2009 | Bankstown | Folded | |||
 | Blacktown Workers | 2016 | 2017 | 2024 | Sydney | Departed* | |||
 | Central Coast Centurions | 2010 | 2011 | Central Coast | Departed | ||||
 | Central Newcastle Rebels | 2008 | 2008 | 2008 | Newcastle | Departed | |||
 | Cronulla Cobras | 2008 | 2008 | 2008 | Cronulla | Folded | |||
| Illawarra Cutters | 2012 | 2012 | 2017 | Wollongong | Folded | |||
 | Melbourne Storm | 1997 | 2010 | 2010 | Melbourne | Departed* | |||
 | Mount Pritchard Mounties | 1927 | 2012 | 2022 | Sydney | Departed | |||
| New Zealand Warriors | 2014 | 2020 | Auckland | Departed* | ||||
 | Shellharbour City Dragons | 2009 | 2010 | Shellharbour | Departed | ||||
 | Wentworthville Magpies | 2013 | 2018 | Wentworthville | Departed | ||||
 | Windsor Wolves | 2008 | 2013 | Windsor | Departed | ||||
 | Wyong Roos | 2005 | 2018 | Wyong | Departed | ||||
| |||||||||
Of the 24 former clubs in the 20th century, 1 was based in Auckland Region, South Australia and Western Australia, 4 were based in Queensland and the other 20 former clubs were based in New South Wales.
† The club also competed in the second grade/reserve grade of the1997 Super League competition
*= First grade club ground/ largest ground in the area
The NSW Cup was known as theReserve Grade/Presidents Cup/First Division from 1908 until 2002, and theNSWRL Premier League from 2003 to 2007, theNSW Cup from 2008 to 2015, theIntrust Super Premiership NSW from 2016 to 2018, theCanterbury Cup NSW from 2019 to 2020. The competition's lineage follows that of the NSWRL Reserve Grade from 1908 onwards.
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The New South Wales Cup, run by theNSWRL, has been known by a variety of names and operated in several different ways since the inception of theNSWRL Premiership in 1908. Between 1908 and 1996, the competition was known asReserve Grade and was competed for almost exclusively by reserve squads of each of the NSWRL Premiership Clubs, competing with that Club's name and colours. With the advent of theSuper League war, and the resultant split competition in 1997, the NSWRL reconfigured the competition as thePresidents Cup. From 2002 until 2007, the competition was known as theNSWRL Premier League until it was reorganised into its present form as theNew South Wales Cup in 2008.
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With the competitions having merged back together, and with sixNSWRL Premiership clubs having merged or became joint-ventures into three new NRL clubs (St. George Dragons andIllawarra Steelers;North Sydney andManly;Balmain Tigers andWestern Suburbs) the competition became known as theFirst Division and included these sides competing under their original name and colours.
The inclusion of these non-NRL clubs (along with the return of theNewtown Jets in 2000) in the competition signalled a move away from the 'reserve squad' competition it had become and became increasingly differentiated from the NRL competition with games played at non-NRL venues such asNorth Sydney Oval, Marrickville'sHenson Park andWestern Weekender Stadium at St Marys.
Another trend that began during this period was the phenomenon of NRL clubs outsourcing competing teams, with several NRL clubs choosing not to field sides in this competition and rather field either merged entities (as in theSt Marys Penrith Cougars andBalmain Ryde Eastwood Tigers, both formed withNSWRL Jim Beam Cup sides) or form agreements with another club to take their place in the competition, those players being eligible for NRL selection, such as the agreement betweenNewtown Jets andSydney Roosters for the 2006 season.
In 2007,Bartercard Cup clubAuckland Lions joined the competition.
In 2008 and 2009,Jersey Flegg Cup club Central Coast Storm fielded a team in the competition. The team was based on the NSW Central Coast but acted as a feeder club to theMelbourne Storm.[2]In addition, the Panthers were replaced by theWindsor Wolves and the Sharks were replaced by theCronulla-Sutherland Cobras. The Canberra Raiders withdrew from the competition on 1 August 2007. TheNewcastle Knights also announced a joint venture with the Central Charlestown. The team used the originalCentral Newcastle Rebels Name.[3] TheParramatta Eels also formed a joint-venture with theWentworthville Magpies to act as their Feeder Club in the competition from 2008 onwards.[4] TheSaints decided to no longer run a Reserve Grade Side, but would use the St George District Rugby League & the Illawarra District Rugby League competitions instead as their Feeder Team/s.
Two new teams have been added to the competition. These two new teams will have both previously played in theJim Beam Cup. The Shellharbour City Dragons, previously known as the Shellharbour Marlins, will be theSt George-Illawarra Dragons feeder side. The Bankstown Bulls, who were known as the Sydney Bulls, will act as theCanterbury Bulldogs feeder side. Bankstown will still field a team in theJim Beam Cup. TheManly Sea Eagles have withdrawn from the competition and will have a feeder team in theQueensland Cup. Newcastle had also withdrawn from the competition, discontinuing the link with theCentral Newcastle Rebels.
Season 2012 saw the return of feeder clubs for NRL teams St George Illawarra and Canberra. The Illawarra Steelers, in partnership with Illawarra Coal and the Illawarra Leagues Club re-entered a team into the league, the Illawarra Cutters. They previously acted as a feeder club to the Dragons. A Mounties Rugby League Club also entered the NSW Cup this season and is the Raiders' feeder club.
The 2013 season saw Wyong Roos enter a team in the NSW Cup for the first time. It will not be a feeder team to any NRL team.2013 was also the first time in Rugby League history that teams with the names Western Suburbs and Balmain would not field a team in the cup, they played as the Wests Tigers. There is a current state of ambiguity surrounding this joint venture, and it is suggested that both Wests and Balmain will return as two separate clubs once financial requirements are met.
In 2014 theAuckland Vulcans were replaced by a side from theNew Zealand Warriors.[5] The Penrith Panthers will also be returning to the competition in 2014, replacing Windsor, who remain in the Ron Massey Cup.
On 29 January 2016, it was announced that Intrust Super had secured naming rights for the competition for a three-year agreement[6] The name would have been decided not to be confused with the Queensland-based competition theIntrust Super Cup.
On 5 July 2016, it was announced that starting the following season, the Blacktown Workers would become the feeder club for the Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles in a joint-venture agreement.[7] The Blacktown Workers Sea Eagles made their NSW Cup debut in Round 1 of the 2017 Season with a defeat to the Newtown Jets, before finishing 10th in the regular season and subsequently missing a post-season berth.
In September, Intrust Super extended its naming rights partnership with the New South Wales State Cup through to the end of the 2018 season.[8]
On 27 October 2017, it was announced that Illawarra would be replaced by The St George Illawarra Dragons for The 2018 Intrust Super Premiership NSW season as part of a restructure in the competition.[9]
In late November 2017 it was announced that as part of a re-brand, the Western Suburbs Magpies would enter the competition from the following season acting as a feeder club to the Wests Tigers, who had previously competed under their own brand.[10]
On 2 March 2018, it was reported that the board of theWyong Roos, feeder toSydney Roosters since 2014, voted to cut all ties with the club at end of the 2018 season.[11] As a result, the Wyong Roos did not take part in the 2019 Intrust Super Premiership. On 5 September 2018, it was announced that theNorth Sydney Bears would assume the status as the official feeder club to the Roosters NRL side[12] until at least the end of the 2023 season, withJason Taylor, a former North Sydney player and assistant coach to the Roosters, appointed head coach.[13] Taylor, after leading the Bears to a third-place finish at the end of the regular season, was announced to have signed a two-year extension on 5 November 2019.[14]
On 7 March 2019, it was announced that apparel companyCanterbury of New Zealand won the rights to be the new naming partner of the NSW Cup competition which was renamed the Canterbury Cup NSW. The deal was announced to run to the end of the 2024 season. The NSWRL also announced that the newWestern Sydney Stadium would host the grand final in each of those seasons under the deal.[15]
South Sydney, having had a previous feeder relationship with North Sydney, would then field their own team in the Intrust Super Premiership,[16] keeping the number of competing teams at 12.
On 10 October 2018, it was reported that theParramatta Eels would field a team in the Intrust Super Premiership starting 2020, thus ending their relationship with theWentworthville Magpies at this time.[17] It was announced that former Wyong Roos coach, Rip Taylor, would coach the Magpies in their final season.[18]
On Friday, 27 March 2020, after round one of the season was completed, the 2020 Canterbury Cup NSW competition was suspended, and subsequently cancelled due to theCOVID-19 pandemic, with no premiers being crowned.[19]
On 8 June 2020, theNew Zealand Warriors andRedcliffe Dolphins announced a partnership agreement, effectively withdrawing the Warriors from the Canterbury Cup competition. Through this initiative a number of players from outside the Warriors’ NRL squad will appear for the Dolphins in the Intrust Super Cup each week.[20]
On 28 August 2020, theCanterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs announced a joint venture with theMount Pritchard Mounties for two years.[21] As part of the joint venture, the Mounties will represent Canterbury-Bankstown in the Canterbury Cup, ending their nine-year relationship with theCanberra Raiders. At the time the Canberra Raiders were set to go it alone in 2021 rather than form an affiliation with a NSW Cup side[22]
On 10 November 2020, the NSWRL confirmed that the NSW Cup would return in 2021 with a 10-team competition, however Canterbury would no longer hold naming rights. A new naming rights partner was revealed prior to the season launch on 3 March 2021.[23]
On 28 January 2021, it was announced that theCanberra Raiders would be returning to the competition, fielding their own team or the first time since the 2007 season, thus increasing the number of competing teams to 11 in 2021. The competition commenced on 13 March 2021.[24]
On 3 March 2021, a new naming rights sponsor, The Knock-On Effect, was named at the launch of the 2021 season. The new partnership will be in place for the next three years replacing the previous sponsor, Canterbury NZ.[25]
For the second consecutive year, the competition was cancelled on 10 August 2021, after completion of 15 out of 24 scheduled rounds, due to the ongoingCOVID-19 pandemic.[26]
On 29 October 2021, it was announced that theCanterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs would be running their own team in the NSW Cup in 2022, in addition to continuing their partnership with Mounties for a further season due to contractual obligations[27]
The draw for the 2022 season was released on 17 December 2021, and announced a revision to the finals-system to a top five, a decrease from the previous top eight.[28]
On 17 August 2022, theNew Zealand Warriors announced they would be re-joining the NSW Cup after a three-year absence, ending their partnership with theRedcliffe Dolphins.[29]
On 9 November 2022, theSydney Roosters announced they would field their own team in the NSW Cup commencing in the 2023 season, ending their partnership with theNorth Sydney Bears from 2024 onwards.[30]
On 20 September 2024, theManly-Warringah Sea Eagles announced they would field their own team in the NSW Cup, commencing in the 2025 season. This ended their 9-year partnership with theBlacktown Workers that was established in 2016.[31]
The 2025 season broadcast deal features:
Hawkesbury Radio broadcast matches of thePenrith Panthers online during the season when played on non-NRL game days, selected other matches and all the finals matches.
Triple H Radio broadcast selected matches of theNorth Sydney Bears during the year plus selected finals matches.
There is also additional radio coverage of the finals series on2GB Radio and702 ABC Sydney.
The NSWRL website upload highlights of every game of the NSW Cup. It also gives half time and full-time scores of the other games.
All NSW Cup matches are shown LIVE on NSWRL TV via BarTV Sports.
| † | Club no longer participates in the NSW Cup competition |
|---|
| Club | Premierships | Years won | Runners-up | Years runners-up | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | South Sydney Rabbitohs | 21 | 1913, 1914, 1917, 1923, 1924, 1925, 1926, 1927, 1929, 1931, 1932, 1934, 1943, 1945, 1952, 1953, 1956, 1966, 1968, 1983, 2023 | 9 | 1908, 1918, 1920, 1930, 1933, 1954, 1963, 1964, 1967 |
| 2 | Balmain Tigers† | 16 | 1915, 1916, 1928, 1930, 1933, 1941, 1944, 1946, 1950, 1957, 1958, 1965, 1967, 1978, 1982, 1984 | 12 | 1923, 1925, 1934, 1935, 1938, 1943, 1960, 1966, 1969, 1992, 1999, 2009 |
| 3 |  Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs | 10 | 1939, 1971, 1972, 1980, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2010, 2011, 2018 | 4 | 1945, 1952, 1979, 2022 |
| 4 | Sydney Roosters | 9 | 1908, 1909, 1910, 1911, 1935, 1937, 1949, 1986, 2004 | 8 | 1914, 1916, 1928, 1946, 1970, 1982, 1988, 2005 |
 Newtown Jets | 9 | 1922, 1947, 1948, 1951, 1970, 1974, 2012, 2019, 2024 | 7 | 1910, 1932, 1937, 1949, 2006, 2008, 2018 | |
| 6 |  North Sydney Bears | 8 | 1940, 1942, 1955, 1959, 1989, 1991, 1992, 1993 | 7 | 1926, 1936, 1944, 1957, 2007, 2023, 2024 |
 Parramatta Eels | 8 | 1975, 1977, 1979, 1997, 1999, 2005, 2006, 2007 | 3 | 1980, 1981, 1986, 1998 | |
| 8 | St. George Dragons† | 6 | 1938, 1962, 1963, 1964, 1976, 1985 | 16 | 1927, 1931, 1940, 1941, 1942, 1950, 1951, 1955, 1958, 1959, 1965, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1978, 1984 |
| 9 |  Glebe† | 5 | 1912, 1918, 1919, 1920, 1921 | 4 | 1909, 1911, 1915, 1922 |
 Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles | 5 | 1954, 1960, 1969, 1973, 1988 | 6 | 1953, 1961, 1968, 1977, 1983, 1987 | |
| 11 |  Penrith Panthers | 4 | 1987, 2014, 2017, 2022 | 1 | 2000 |
| 12 | Western Suburbs Magpies | 3 | 1936, 1961, 1981 | 5 | 1919, 1924, 1929, 1948, 1962 |
| Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks† | 3 | 1994, 1996, 2013 | 3 | 1975, 1976, 1995 | |
| 14 |  Newcastle Knights | 2 | 1995, 2015 | 3 | 1993, 1994, 2014 |
| 15 |  Brisbane Broncos | 1 | 1990 | 0 | — |
| St. George Illawarra Dragons | 1 | 2001 | 2 | 2002, 2004 | |
 Canberra Raiders | 1 | 2003 | 3 | 1985, 1990, 1991 | |
| Wentworthville Magpies† | 1 | 2008 | 1 | 2019 | |
| Bankstown City Bulls† | 1 | 2009 | 0 | — | |
| Illawarra Cutters† | 1 | 2016 | 0 | — | |
| 21 | Windsor Wolves† | 0 | — | 2 | 2010, 2013 |
| Wyong Roos† | 0 | — | 2 | 2015, 2017 | |
| Auckland Vulcans† | 0 | — | 1 | 2011 | |
| Auckland Warriors | 0 | — | 1 | 1996 | |
 Grosvenor† | 0 | — | 1 | 1913 | |
| Mount Pritchard Mounties† | 0 | — | 1 | 2016 | |
| Redfern United† | 0 | — | 1 | 1912 | |
 St Marys-Penrith Cougars† | 0 | — | 1 | 2003 |
Since 2014, The NSW Cup Grand Final has been played on the same weekend as the Queensland Cup Grand Final, the weekend prior to the NRL Grand Final, allowing for the creation of theNRL State Championship which saw the NSW Cup premiers face off against the Queensland Cup Premiers as a curtain raiser to theNRL Grand Final, originally following theNational Youth Competition Grand Final from 2014 to 2017[107][108] and following the NRL Women's Grand Final in their inaugural premiership year in 2018.
In 2019 the NRL State Championship was played prior the NRL Women's Grand Final. Newtown Jets became the fourth NSWRL team to win in as many years after the first two championships were won by the QRL.
The 2020 State Championship was cancelled due to the Queensland and New South Wales competitions being cancelled after Round 1 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the 2021 State Championship was cancelled due to the COVID-19 lockdown in Sydney
New South Wales CupIllawarra Cutters (2016)Penrith Panthers (2017)Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs (2018)Newtown Jets (2019)Penrith Panthers (2022)South Sydney Rabbitohs (2023)| NRL Season | NRL State Championship | Player of the Match | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winners | Score | Runners-up | Venue | ||
| 2014 |  Northern Pride | 32–28 | Penrith Panthers | Stadium Australia | Javid Bowen |
| 2015 | Ipswich Jets | 26–12 | Newcastle Knights | Stadium Australia | Matt Parcell |
| 2016 | Illawarra Cutters | 54–12 | Burleigh Bears | Stadium Australia | Drew Hutchison |
| 2017 | Penrith Panthers | 42–18 |  PNG Hunters | Stadium Australia | Kaide Ellis |
| 2018 | Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs | 42–18 |  Redcliffe Dolphins | Stadium Australia | Josh Cleeland |
| 2019 | Newtown Jets | 20–16 | Burleigh Bears | Stadium Australia | Toby Rudolf |
| 2020 | Match was cancelled due to theCOVID-19 pandemiclockdown inAustralia.[109] | ||||
| 2021 | Match was cancelled due to theCOVID-19 pandemic lockdown inNew South Wales. | ||||
| 2022 | Penrith Panthers | 44–10 |  Norths Devils | Stadium Australia | J'maine Hopgood |
| 2023 | South Sydney Rabbitohs | 42–22 | Brisbane Tigers (Easts Tigers) | Stadium Australia | Tyrone Munro |
| 2024 | Norths Devils | 20–18 | Newtown Jets | Stadium Australia | Oryn Keeley |
| 2025 | NZ Warriors | 50–20 | Burleigh Bears | Stadium Australia | |
| Federations |
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| Representative competitions |
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| Representative teams | |
| NRL clubs | |
| NSWRL Junior Representatives | |
| Metropolitan competitions | |
| Country competitions |
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| Discontinued competitions | |
| Related articles | |
