Brisbane Rugby League 1927 Season
League Table
| Team | Played | Won | Lost | Drew | For | Against | Diff | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Coorparoo | 12 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 144 | 81 | 63 | 15 |
| Grammars | 12 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 172 | 117 | 55 | 15 |
| Valleys | 12 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 91 | 106 | -15 | 15 |
| Wests | 12 | 7 | 5 | 0 | 189 | 132 | 57 | 14 |
| Brothers | 12 | 6 | 5 | 1 | 121 | 134 | -13 | 13 |
| Carlton | 12 | 3 | 7 | 2 | 90 | 162 | -72 | 8 |
| University | 12 | 2 | 10 | 0 | 97 | 172 | -75 | 4 |
Rounds
| Round 1 | Round 2 | Round 3 | Round 4 | Round 5 |
| Round 6 | Round 7 | Round 8 | Round 9 | Round 10 |
| Round 11 | Round 12 | Round 13 | Round 14 |
Finals
| Stage | Date | Teams | Link |
|---|---|---|---|
| Semi-Final | 10 September 1927 | Wests vs Coorparoo | Details |
| Semi-Final | 10 September 1927 | Grammars vs Valleys | Details |
| Premiership Final | 17 September 1927 | Grammars vs Wests | Details |
Pike Cup
| Stage | Date | Teams | Link |
|---|---|---|---|
| Final | 6 June 1927 | Grammars vs Brothers | Details |
Shifting sands and a power rising in the north
While the early BRL was a bit of a wild west, it didn’t quite have the mercenary culture one might associate with such a description.
Plenty of players changed clubs, but they usually followed the frequently changing composition of the league (see R Davidson or J Lewis who did the rounds of the many south-side clubs preceding Carlton), were fringe players seeking opportunities, or both (see David Harrower, who played for almost everybody between 1909 and ’19).
A number of established players changed clubs both before and during the 1927 season. Beyond a few obvious reasons – Grammars’ centre F Brereton joining the rest of his clan at Wests, and Wests’ forward F Perry going to university and therefore University – it’s not clear why.
It may just have been the league maturing into semi-professionalism, though amid the chopping, changing and general inconsistency, there was also a sense that nobody was entirely happy with their lot.
The defending premiers, Brothers brought back essentially the same team, plus a few grizzled veterans of campaigns past, and went a bit stale. While Coorparoo’s veteran forward pack remained a force to be reckoned with, they couldn’t seem to settle on a general without halfback J Carroll, who’d returned to Carlton, and once again fell short in the finals.
Wests opted for a youth movement, promoting many of their premiership-winning junior team, with the youngsters guided back to the finals by their experienced trio of Breretons.
Three years after their last premiership, Valleys’ ranks had dwindled to representative half ‘Fatty’ Edwards, forward leader Kev McCormack and not much else. They even jettisoned premiership-winning prop T Rasey (Carlton) during the season, a move which could be construed as presaging a rebuild. In the end, they had to rebuild anyway after many of their best players joined the breakaway QRL competition in 1929.
Ultimately, it was the year of the Grammar School Old Boys – emphasis on the ‘boys’. By the time Grammars and Wests met in the final on 17 September, both were essentially down to their bare bones and juniors, with the average age of the teams being 21.
Wests had already lost star five-eighth Jeff Moores to a lucrative offer from England and then saw the Brereton brothers suspended for ‘disciplinary reasons’ just before the finals. Grammars were without injured captain Vic Armbruster, a product of northern NSW and one of Australia’s very best pre-WWII fowards, the sharp-shooting fullback H Bowden and the guidance of veteran half and former Brother, B McAllister.
The young Grammars Old Boys took their first title on the back of young stand-in fullback and skipper Jack Leet, along with a forward pack led by J Mahoney and stalwart C Sachse. A power was rising in the northern suburbs.
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