Brisbane Rugby League 1979 season
League Table
| Team | Played | Won | Lost | Drew | For | Against | +/- | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Valleys | 21 | 17 | 3 | 1 | 549 | 263 | 286 | 35 |
| Easts | 21 | 14 | 7 | 0 | 435 | 315 | 120 | 28 |
| Souths | 21 | 13 | 8 | 0 | 374 | 312 | 62 | 26 |
| Wests | 21 | 12 | 8 | 1 | 381 | 310 | 71 | 25 |
| Norths | 21 | 9 | 12 | 0 | 337 | 418 | -81 | 18 |
| Redcliffe | 21 | 7 | 14 | 0 | 286 | 424 | -138 | 14 |
| Brothers | 21 | 5 | 15 | 1 | 350 | 488 | -138 | 11 |
| Wynnum-Manly | 21 | 5 | 15 | 1 | 282 | 464 | -182 | 11 |
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 | Round 15 | Round 16 | Round 17 | Round 18 |
| Round 19 | Round 20 | Round 21 |
Premiership Finals
| Stage | Date | Teams | Link |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minor Semi-Final | 26 August 1979 | Souths vs Wests | Details |
| Major Semi-Final | 2 September 1979 | Valleys vs Easts | Details |
| Preliminary Final | 9 September 1979 | Souths vs Easts | Details |
| Grand Final | 16 September 1979 | Valleys vs Souths | Details |
President’s Cup
| Stage | Date | Teams | Link |
|---|---|---|---|
| Final | 24 June 1979 | Valleys vs Souths | Details |
Peter Scott Memorial Trophy
In 1979, the Scott Trophy Final was played outside the premiership on the Tuesday between rounds 16 and 17.
| Stage | Date | Teams | Link |
|---|---|---|---|
| Final | 17 July 1979 | Easts vs Valleys | Details |
The Premiers: Valleys (21st premiership)
On the whole, this Valleys team was not quite as strong as the Scanlan-Strudwick-Gill-O’Doherty juggernaut of the early 1970s, but they produced a dominant season.
Easts declined a little. Wests were just starting a major slump. Redcliffe had a surprisingly poor season under former master coach Ron Raper. In other words, the competition wasn’t as strong as it had been.
Still, it was a nice blend of holdovers from their last premiership team (Strudwick, Alan Mills), solid contributors who’d emerged since (Peter McWhirter, Al McInnes, Ian Sommer), plus tank-like centre Chris Close and future monarch/Immortal, Wally Lewis. They rarely even looked like losing.
Most tries: Wally Lewis & Peter Falvey, Valleys (19)
Lewis was a try-scoring machine in his first couple of seasons as a young back-rower, scoring 29 in 43 games up to the end of the ’79 season.
Before he became a pub baron, Peter Falvey was a noted speedster and he had a career year in ’79 on the end of a very good Valleys backline.
Most points: Mick Neill, Valleys (260)
When Alan Mills took over from Norm Clarke as Valleys fullback in 1972, it gave the Diehards one of the best attacking fullbacks of the day. It also left them short of a recognised goal kicker. Mills had a go. So did Strudwick. John Crilly was their first choice for a while as well.
Neill finally filled the breach in 1978, then produced one of the most prolific point-scoring seasons in BRL history in ’79. Only Ian Pearce had scored more points in a single season.
