2009 Super League Grand Final
Encyclopedia
The 2009 Super League
Grand Final was held on Saturday 10 October 2009, at Old Trafford, Manchester, UK. The match was contested by defending champions
and 2009 League Leaders Leeds Rhinos
, and the team they had faced in the grand final for the past two years, St Helens.
The 2009 decider, contested by the sides finishing 1st and 2nd in the competition, was a very close contest, played at a furious pace from end to end with the lead changing several times and rarely being more than a single point. Every ruling on try-scoring situations was given by the video referee, with some allowed and some disallowed, including a few very close and controversial calls. Leeds Rhinos
were eventual victors, winning the match 18 to 10. They became the first side in Super League history to be champions in three successive years.
It was the third consecutive year that these two teams faced each other in the Super League Grand Final. Both sides were at full strength.
Pre-match entertainment was provided by The Wombats
, an indie rock
band from Liverpool, UK. The band performed songs from their album, A Guide to Love, Loss & Desperation
. All Angels
, a classical and pop
group, performed, with Yorkshire Co-op Brass Band, the Grand Final anthem, Jerusalem
.
only gave the four points after checking that there was no knock-on in the regather and Grand Final débutante Eastmond converted his own try to give the Saints a 6 nil lead. In the twenty-sixth minute, St. Helens were again down in Leeds' half when Sean Long put up a bomb and as the ball came down the Rhinos defence was ruled to have interfered with the attacking Saints players, drawing a penalty. The decision to take the two points was made and the goal was kicked by Eastmond, pushing St. Helens' lead out to 8 nil. A few minutes later Leeds had managed to get to the other end of the field and were on the attack when Matt Diskin dived over the line from dummy-half, reaching out through the defenders to put the ball down. The video referee was again called on to make the ruling and gave the try. Kevin Sinfield's conversion attempt hit the upright so the score was 8 - 4 in favour of St. Helens with less than ten minutes of the first half remaining. In the thirty-seventh minute the Rhinos were again in an attacking position when Danny McGuire got the ball out to the right and chipped it ahead in goal where the St. Helens defence failed to secure it and Lee Smith came through to touch it down. Sinfield again missed the conversion so the scores remained level at 8 all and did not change before the half-time siren.
It was the Rhinos' two-try hero, Lee Smith's final game for Leeds before moving to rugby union
. Leeds' forward Kevin Sinfield was awarded the Harry Sunderland Trophy
as man-of-the-match.
The following day over 8,000 fans were at Headingley Carnegie Stadium to celebrate the victorious Leeds players' homecoming.
, the game was also shown live in the United States
, the Middle East
, Russia
, Romania
, Poland
and New Zealand
. France
, Australia
, Papua New Guinea
, Serbia
, Croatia
, Slovenia
and Spain
saw the match in a delayed telecast. BBC Sport
showed an hour-long programme of extended highlights.
had earned the right to play against the 2009 NRL grand final
-winners, the Melbourne Storm
in the 2010 World Club Challenge
.
Super League
Super League is the top-level professional rugby league football club competition in Europe. As a result of sponsorship from engage Mutual Assurance the competition is currently officially known as the engage Super League. The League features fourteen teams: thirteen from England and one from...
Grand Final was held on Saturday 10 October 2009, at Old Trafford, Manchester, UK. The match was contested by defending champions
Super League XIII
Engage Super League XIII was the official name, due to sponsorship, for the 2008 Super League season by Engage Mutual. Twelve teams competed for the Minor Premiership over 27 rounds after which, the top 6 finishing teams entered the play-offs where they competed for a place in the Grand Final and...
and 2009 League Leaders Leeds Rhinos
Leeds Rhinos
Leeds Rhinos is an English professional rugby league football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire. The club won the 2011 Super League and became the most successful club in the Super League era, beating St Helens 32-16 on 8th October 2011. Formed in 1890, Leeds competes in Europe's Super League...
, and the team they had faced in the grand final for the past two years, St Helens.
The 2009 decider, contested by the sides finishing 1st and 2nd in the competition, was a very close contest, played at a furious pace from end to end with the lead changing several times and rarely being more than a single point. Every ruling on try-scoring situations was given by the video referee, with some allowed and some disallowed, including a few very close and controversial calls. Leeds Rhinos
Leeds Rhinos
Leeds Rhinos is an English professional rugby league football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire. The club won the 2011 Super League and became the most successful club in the Super League era, beating St Helens 32-16 on 8th October 2011. Formed in 1890, Leeds competes in Europe's Super League...
were eventual victors, winning the match 18 to 10. They became the first side in Super League history to be champions in three successive years.
Route to final
Regular season final standings| # | Team | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Leeds RhinosLeeds Rhinos Leeds Rhinos is an English professional rugby league football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire. The club won the 2011 Super League and became the most successful club in the Super League era, beating St Helens 32-16 on 8th October 2011. Formed in 1890, Leeds competes in Europe's Super League... |
27 | 21 | 0 | 6 | 805 | 453 | +352 | 42 |
| 2 |  St Helens |
27 | 19 | 0 | 8 | 733 | 466 | +267 | 38 |
Leeds Rhinos
Position in Super League table: 1st- Qualifying play-off: Won 44-8 v Hull Kingston RoversHull Kingston RoversHull Kingston Rovers or Hull KR is an English professional rugby league football club based in Hull, England. The club formed in 1882 and currently competes in Super League, having won promotion from National League One in 2006...
- Qualifying semi-final: Won 27-20 v Catalans DragonsCatalans DragonsThe Catalans Dragons are a French professional rugby league club based in Perpignan, Pyrénées-Orientales. They currently play in the Super League, and are the only team in the competition from outside of the United Kingdom...
St Helens
Position in Super League table: 2nd- Qualifying play-off: Won 15-2 v Huddersfield GiantsHuddersfield GiantsHuddersfield Giants are a professional rugby league club from Huddersfield, West Yorkshire who play in the European Super League competition. They play their home games at the Galpharm Stadium which is shared with Huddersfield Town F.C....
- Qualifying semi-final: Won 14-10 v Wigan WarriorsWigan WarriorsWigan Warriors is an English rugby league club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester. The club's first team squad competes in the engage Super League and the team are the current Challenge Cup holders as of the 27th August 2011....
Match details
| Leeds Rhinos | Position | St Helens |
|---|---|---|
| 1 Brent Webb Brent Webb Brent Webb is an Australian-born New Zealand rugby league footballer who currently plays for the Leeds in the Super League. Webb plays as a full-back and is a former New Zealand international.-Early years:... |
FB | 1 Paul Wellens Paul Wellens Paul Simon Wellens is an English multi-award–winning rugby league footballer. Wellens plays for St. Helens in the European Super League. Wellens is a Great Britain and England international... |
| 2 Scott Donald Scott Donald Scott Albert Donald is a retired Australian professional rugby league footballer and played for the Leeds Rhinos of the European Super League competition... |
WG | 2 Ade Gardner Ade Gardner Adrian Antonio Gardner is an English professional rugby league footballer for St. Helens of Super League. A Great Britain representative winger, he previously played for Barrow Raiders. He is the older brother of Ex-Salford City Reds winger, Mat Gardner.Gardner went to St Columba's Roman... |
| 3 Lee Smith Lee Smith (rugby league) Lee Smith is an English rugby league player who is currently in his second stint playing for the Leeds Rhinos in the Super League. He had a brief spell in rugby union with the London Wasps in the Guinness Premiership.-Early career:... |
CE | 3 Matthew Gidley Matthew Gidley Matthew "Matt" Gidley is an Australian rugby league administrator and retired professional footballer. Born in Newcastle, New South Wales, Gidley represented New South Wales and Australia. He is the currently CEO of Football Operations at the Newcastle Knights... |
| 4 Keith Senior Keith Senior Keith Senior is an English professional rugby league or who most recently played for the Leeds Rhinos in Super League. He has won every honour in the English domestic game. He holds the record for the most Super League appearances & the most Super League tries... |
CE | 18 Kyle Eastmond Kyle Eastmond Kyle Eastmond is a professional rugby union footballer who currently plays for Bath, and has played for St. Helens in Super League and internationally for England. Eastmond has been compared to Australian international Scott Prince, because of his darting runs to the line and a good kicking game.... |
| 5 Ryan Hall Ryan Hall (rugby league) Ryan Hall is an English professional Rugby League Winger for the Leeds in Super League. He has played his entire professional career to date with Leeds, winning the 2008, 2009 &2011 Super League Championships with them.-Club career:... |
WG | 5 Francis Meli Francis Meli Francis Meli is a professional rugby league player who currently plays for St. Helens in the Super League competition. Meli has represented both New Zealand and Samoa in internationals. His usual position is on the wing.... |
| 6 Danny McGuire Danny McGuire Danny McGuire is an English professional rugby league player who currently plays for the Leeds Rhinos in the Super League. His preferred position is at /. He has played his entire career to date with the Rhinos, having come through the club's Academy.... |
SO | 6 Leon Pryce Leon Pryce Leon Pryce is an English professional rugby league footballer of Jamaican descent for the St. Helens club of Super League... |
| 7 Rob Burrow Rob Burrow Rob Burrow is an English professional rugby league footballer with the Leeds Rhinos of Super League. He has represented both England and Great Britain as a hooker/half. He has spent his whole career to date at Leeds, having won the Super League championship with them five times... |
SH | 7 Sean Long Sean Long Sean Long is an English former professional rugby league and current rugby union footballer with Preston Grasshoppers. He has played for Wigan, Widnes and Hull but is best known for playing for St Helens in the Super League. Internationally he has represented England and Great Britain at /... |
| 8 Kylie Leuluai Kylie Leuluai Kylie Leuluai is a professional rugby league footballer currently contracted to the Leeds Rhinos of Super League... |
PR | 10 James Graham James Graham (rugby league) James Graham is a rugby league player for St. Helens of Super League. A Great Britain and England international representative front row forward, he has played his entire professional career to date at St... |
| 14 Matt Diskin Matt Diskin Matt Diskin is an English professional rugby league footballer for the Bradford Bulls of Super League. A Great Britain and England international representative hooker, he played ten years with Leeds Rhinos, having won four Super League championships with the club, before moving to the Bulls for the... |
HK | 9 Keiron Cunningham Keiron Cunningham Keiron Cunningham is a former British professional rugby league footballer. A Great Britain and Wales international representative hooker, he played his entire club rugby career at St... (c) |
| 10 Jamie Peacock Jamie Peacock James "Jamie" Peacock is an English professional rugby league footballer for the Leeds Rhinos of the European Super League... |
PR | 16 Tony Puletua Tony Puletua Anthony Puletua is a New Zealand professional rugby league footballer for St. Helens in the European Super League. A New Zealand and Samoan international, Puletua previously played for the Penrith Panthers in the National Rugby League competition... |
| 11 Jamie Jones-Buchanan Jamie Jones-Buchanan Jamie Jones-Buchanan is an English professional rugby league footballer who plays for Leeds of Super League. An England international representative second-rower, he has played his entire professional career to date with Leeds and has won four Super League championships with the club.His Leeds... |
SR | 13 Chris Flannery |
| 18 Carl Ablett Carl Ablett Carl Ablett is an English professional rugby league footballer who plays for the Leeds Rhinos of Europe's Super League competition. Carl made numerous appearances in the second half of the 06/07 season after recovering from injury, he was part of the Grand Final 2007 winning squad selected by Tony... |
SR | 12 Jon Wilkin |
| 13 Kevin Sinfield Kevin Sinfield Kevin Sinfield is an English professional rugby league player. He is the captain of the Leeds Rhinos in Super League. His recognised position is /, although he can cover both /, and . He has represented both England and Great Britain at international level.-Career:Sinfield began his career at... (c) |
LF | 11 Lee Gilmour Lee Gilmour Lee Gilmour is an English professional rugby league footballer who plays for Huddersfield Giants of Super League.Gilmour's usual position is , but he has played on the and in the s when a back-line player suffered an injury.... |
| 12 Ali Lauitiiti Ali Lauitiiti Ali Lauitiiti is a New Zealand professional rugby league footballer for English club Leeds Rhinos in the European Super League. Both a Samoa and New Zealand international representative forward, he previously played in the National Rugby League for the Warriors... |
Int. | 14 James Roby James Roby James Roby is an English professional rugby league footballer for St. Helens of Super League. A Great Britain and England international representative hooker, he has played his entire professional career to date at St Helens, winning the 2006 Super League XI Championship with them.-Career:Roby... |
| 16 Ryan Bailey | Int. | 15 Bryn Hargreaves Bryn Hargreaves Bryn Hargreaves is an English rugby league player with Super League team Bradford Bulls .Bryn Hargreaves played prop forward in the Wigan Academy since 2002. He made his first team debut from the subs' bench against Salford City Reds in July 2004 and his full debut against London Broncos in... |
| 17 Ian Kirke Ian Kirke Ian Kirke is an English professional rugby league footballer for English club Leeds Rhinos of Super League. He made his Leeds debut on March 5, 2006 when Leeds played Castleford Tigers. During the close to season 2006 he had surgery on both his shoulders to fix a long term injury. Attended Hornsea... |
Int. | 17 Paul Clough Paul Clough Paul Clough is an English rugby league footballer who plays for St Helens. He is the brother of former Salford and Halifax hooker John Clough.In November 2006 Paul Clough was promoted to train full time with the Saints' first team squad... |
| 19 Luke Burgess Luke Burgess (rugby league) Luke Burgess is an English rugby league footballer currently playing for Australian NRL side South Sydney RabbitohsBorn in Wakefield, he played for the Leeds Rhinos having previously been on loan to Harlequins RL and Doncaster... |
Int. | 23 Maurie Fa'asavalu Maurie Fa'asavalu Maurie Fa'asavalu is a Samoan rugby union player who formerly played rugby league for St Helens. He was recently picked in the Great Britain rugby league squad after living in England for 4 years... |
| Brian McClennan Brian McClennan Brian "Bluey" McClennan is the head coach for the New Zealand Warriors of the National Rugby League . He was previously the head coach of the New Zealand national team and then England's Leeds Rhinos club... |
Coach | Mick Potter Michael Potter Michael "Mick" Potter is an Australian professional rugby league football coach and former player. He is currently coaching English Super League club Bradford Bulls. Potter played in the Australian club competition for the Canterbury Bulldogs, St... |
It was the third consecutive year that these two teams faced each other in the Super League Grand Final. Both sides were at full strength.
Pre-match entertainment was provided by The Wombats
The Wombats
The Wombats are an indie rock band formed in Liverpool, England. The band comprises native Liverpudlians Matthew Murphy and Dan Haggis , alongside Norwegian-born Tord Øverland-Knudsen...
, an indie rock
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
band from Liverpool, UK. The band performed songs from their album, A Guide to Love, Loss & Desperation
The Wombats Proudly Present: A Guide to Love, Loss & Desperation
-Personnel:* Matthew Murphy – vocals, guitar, synths, piano* Dan Haggis – backing vocals, drums, piano, stylophone, harmonica, melodica, synthesizers* Tord Øverland-Knudsen – backing vocals, bass, synths, cello...
. All Angels
All Angels
All Angels are a British classical crossover group formed in 2006, consisting of Daisy Chute, Rachel Fabri, Melanie Nakhla andCharlotte Ritchie....
, a classical and pop
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
group, performed, with Yorkshire Co-op Brass Band, the Grand Final anthem, Jerusalem
And did those feet in ancient time
"And did those feet in ancient time" is a short poem by William Blake from the preface to his epic Milton a Poem, one of a collection of writings known as the Prophetic Books. The date on the title page of 1804 for Milton is probably when the plates were begun, but the poem was printed c. 1808...
.
1st half
St Helens kicked off and after thirteen minutes of end-to-end football they were thirty metres out from Leeds' goal-line when Jon Wilkin chip-kicked the ball ahead for Kyle Eastmond to regather, crossing the line then running back infield to improve the field position for the kick before grounding it. Video referee Phil BenthamPhil Bentham
Phil Bentham is an English professional rugby league referee.- First games :His first pro game was Sheffield Eagles V London Skolars on 22 February 2004....
only gave the four points after checking that there was no knock-on in the regather and Grand Final débutante Eastmond converted his own try to give the Saints a 6 nil lead. In the twenty-sixth minute, St. Helens were again down in Leeds' half when Sean Long put up a bomb and as the ball came down the Rhinos defence was ruled to have interfered with the attacking Saints players, drawing a penalty. The decision to take the two points was made and the goal was kicked by Eastmond, pushing St. Helens' lead out to 8 nil. A few minutes later Leeds had managed to get to the other end of the field and were on the attack when Matt Diskin dived over the line from dummy-half, reaching out through the defenders to put the ball down. The video referee was again called on to make the ruling and gave the try. Kevin Sinfield's conversion attempt hit the upright so the score was 8 - 4 in favour of St. Helens with less than ten minutes of the first half remaining. In the thirty-seventh minute the Rhinos were again in an attacking position when Danny McGuire got the ball out to the right and chipped it ahead in goal where the St. Helens defence failed to secure it and Lee Smith came through to touch it down. Sinfield again missed the conversion so the scores remained level at 8 all and did not change before the half-time siren.
2nd half
Leeds kicked off and the ball went over the line after touching the arm of St. Helens' winger Ade Gardner. This gave a scrum feed to the Rhinos in an attacking position and when Sinfield got the ball close to the uprights he kicked a drop goal, putting Leeds in front for the first time in the match at 9 - 8. Just on forty-five minutes St. Helens centre Matt Gidley made a break and sent his winger Ade Gardner racing down the sideline to try to score in the corner. But after video analysis it was shown that the Leeds defenders coming across had forced him into touch before he grounded the ball. In the 58th minute St. Helens were again down at Leeds' end of the field when they got a penalty for a high shot on Sean Long from Rob Burrow. Saints opted to take the two points and Kyle Eastmond performed his third successful kick in a row, giving his side a one point lead at 10-9. About seven minutes later Leeds were right down on St. Helens' goal line when Keiron Cunningham, in an attempt to slow things down, knocked the ball out of a Rhinos player's arms as he got up to play it, giving away a penalty. Sinfield's kick from right in front was never going to miss, so the one-point lead was with Leeds once again at 11-10, now with just over fifteen minutes remaining. At the sixty-eight-minute mark, St. Helens were on the attack and moved the ball out to Eastmond's wing where he dived over in the corner. Again the video referee was called on to check whether the St. Helens winger was taken into touch before scoring and he was, a desperate tackle by Sinfield pushing Eastmond's body into the corner post. Back at the other end of the field, Saints' goal-line defence was forced to absorb mounting pressure as Leeds attacked repeatedly, eventually penetrating when a chip kick from McGuire on the last tackle was chased and picked up by Lee Smith who touched down in the seventy-third minute. Once more the video referee's decision was requested, this time to check whether the scorer was on-side. Despite Smith appearing to be slightly in front of McGuire when the ball left his boot, the benefit of the doubt was given and the try was awarded. The extras were kicked from straight in front by Sinfield, so the score was 17-10 in favour of Leeds with under seven minutes of play remaining. Just on the seventy-eight-minute mark the ball went to Rob Burrow for a drop goal attempt which he kicked successfully, putting the score at 18-10, which it would remain until the full-time siren.Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
. Leeds' forward Kevin Sinfield was awarded the Harry Sunderland Trophy
Harry Sunderland Trophy
The Harry Sunderland Trophy is awarded to the Man-of-the-Match in the Super League Grand Final by the Rugby League Writers' Association. It is named after Harry Sunderland, who was an Australian rugby league football administrator in both Australia and the United Kingdom...
as man-of-the-match.
The following day over 8,000 fans were at Headingley Carnegie Stadium to celebrate the victorious Leeds players' homecoming.
Telecast details
The Grand Final was shown in 30 countries worldwide with a potential audience of over 100 million people. In addition to a live broadcast in the United Kingdom by primary broadcast partner Sky SportsSky Sports
Sky Sports is the brand name for a group of sports-oriented television channels operated by the UK and Ireland's main satellite pay-TV company, British Sky Broadcasting. Sky Sports is the dominant subscription television sports brand in the United Kingdom and Ireland...
, the game was also shown live in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
and New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea
Papua New Guinea , officially the Independent State of Papua New Guinea, is a country in Oceania, occupying the eastern half of the island of New Guinea and numerous offshore islands...
, Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
, Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
, Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
and Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
saw the match in a delayed telecast. BBC Sport
BBC Sport
BBC Sport is the sports division of the BBC. It became a fully dedicated division of the BBC in 2000. It incorporates programmes such as Match of the Day, Grandstand , Test Match Special, Ski Sunday, Rugby Special and coverage of Formula One motor racing, MotoGP and the Wimbledon Tennis...
showed an hour-long programme of extended highlights.
2010 World Club Challenge
Having won the grand final, the Leeds RhinosLeeds Rhinos
Leeds Rhinos is an English professional rugby league football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire. The club won the 2011 Super League and became the most successful club in the Super League era, beating St Helens 32-16 on 8th October 2011. Formed in 1890, Leeds competes in Europe's Super League...
had earned the right to play against the 2009 NRL grand final
2009 NRL Grand Final
The 2009 NRL Grand Final was a rugby league football game played on 4 October 2009 at the ANZ Stadium in Sydney. It was the 12th annual championship game of the National Rugby League staged to decide the premiers of the 2009 NRL season....
-winners, the Melbourne Storm
Melbourne Storm
The Melbourne Storm are an Australian professional rugby league club based in the city of Melbourne. They are the first fully professional rugby league team based in the Australian rules football-dominated state of Victoria....
in the 2010 World Club Challenge
2010 World Club Challenge
-Teams:-Match details:-First half:Leeds almost scored early in the first half when Brent Webb ran over but he was held up by Luke MacDougall on the last tackle. Soon after they posted the first points with a penalty goal to captain Kevin Sinfield. Soon after Melbourne drew level with a penalty goal...
.