Brisbane Rugby League 1922 season
League Table
| Team | Played | Won | Lost | Drew | For | Against | Diff | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wests | 10 | 9 | 0 | 1 | 215 | 75 | 140 | 19 |
| Valleys | 10 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 136 | 93 | 43 | 12 |
| Carlton | 10 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 118 | 121 | -3 | 11 |
| Coorparoo | 10 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 139 | 143 | -4 | 11 |
| University | 10 | 2 | 8 | 0 | 71 | 175 | -105 | 4 |
| Brothers | 10 | 1 | 8 | 1 | 64 | 135 | -71 | 3 |
Rounds
Finals
| Stage | Date | Teams | Link |
|---|---|---|---|
| Semi-Final | 19 August 1922 | Wests vs Valleys | Details |
| Semi-Final | 19 August 1922 | Coorparoo vs Carlton | Details |
| Final | 26 August 1922 | Wests vs Coorparoo | Details |
The new dawn and the avalanche
A couple of months before the start of the 1922 season, the metropolitan clubs seized control of the league from the QRL. While many acknowledged Harry Sunderland’s contribution to the growth of the game since the uncertain early years, he’d annoyed enough people to prompt a well-organised putsch, and he seemed to know it.
The players were clearly a bit fed-up, with the facilities at the Davies Park ‘dairy’ for one, but mostly with the ‘always a day away’ promise of better conditions and some modicum of professionalism. It was the official birth of the BRL – the new dawn. But there was trouble not far ahead.
On the field, Wests surged to the premiership like an avalanche coming down Mount Coot-tha, if such a thing were possible. For the second time in three seasons, the ‘Red and Blacks’ won the title undefeated, with only Brothers who hung on for a draw in late July taking a point off them.
Battle-hardened forwards Norm Potter, Jim Bennett and Bill Dunne, along with Harry Jacques who they pinched from Coorparoo, led the way and even withstood the departure of Bill Richards to Sydney.
Jack Sweeney was back, and despite Sam Hull returning to Valleys, Kangaroo Harry Fewin came in the opposite direction. The arrival of future state and national winger Cec Aynsley put them into overdrive. Wests’ points differential was greater than any other club’s aggregate points total.
The defending champions, Carlton lost some key players in Bath, Stallard and Moran and never quite got their mojo back. Coorparoo were almost there, with veterans Charlie Thorogood and W Ehlers playing behind an emerging forward pack. Valleys were still in transition, though doing it in some style. A key player for the future, Wally Cheyne firmly established himself in their team during 1922.
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