Touch Football Australia, the Sydney Roosters and the SCG Trust have today announced that next week’s Grand Final of the 2019 NRL Touch Premiership – an historical event for the sport of Touch Football – will be held at Sydney’s most iconic stadium, the SCG.
The event will be held at 12pm on Sunday 18th August.
This year has seen the first full season of the NRL Touch Premiership play out. The NRL Touch Premiership is an elite Touch Football tournament with men’s and women’s tournaments played simultaneously. Teams represent eight NRL clubs.
Games are played at major stadiums across Australia and New Zealand and are broadcast on Fox League, NRL.com and Kayo, as well as Sky Sport in New Zealand.
Last year, 2018, saw the NRL Touch Premiership launch, though that was a pilot tournament with just seven gamedays. This year the tournament has seen a full season played over five months.
The NRL Touch Premiership Grand Final will be hosted by the Sydney Roosters, one of the clubs involved in the NRL Touch Premiership. The Grand Final will tap off at midday, ahead of the 2pm Roosters vs Warriors NRL fixture.
TFA CEO Jamie O’Connor is thrilled that the NRL Premiers, the Roosters, are keen to host this history-making event – the Grand Final for the first full season of this elite touch tournament – at a venue with such a rich sporting history.
“This is a momentous occasion for our sport. The new NRL Touch Premiership is now the world’s premier domestic touch competition so to be able to play the Grand Final on one of the world’s most iconic stadiums is very special,” he said.
“Come Grand Final day you’ll see the best touch footballers in the world battling it out for the Premiership. It’ll be an entertaining spectacle from world-class athletes who are extremely fast, with phenomenal footwork and ball skills.
“The NRL Touch Premiership is the first time the public has been able to witness these athletes in action at major stadiums and on TV and I’m looking forward to the show they’ll put on.”
Sydney Roosters CEO Joe Kelly thanked TFA for allowing the Club to host their Grand Finals and called on Members and fans to show their support.
“We’re thrilled to play host to the 2019 NRL Touch Premiership Men’s and Women’s Grand Finals at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
“The competition has come a long way in a short amount of time and features some of the best touch football talent in the country, many Australian representative players.
“We’re calling on our Roosters Members and supporters to arrive early and show your support for the players that have qualified for the Grand Finals.”
Current status of the tournaments
The Parramatta Eels are guaranteed a spot in the Women’s Grand Final, while the North Queensland Cowboys are guaranteed a spot in the Men’s.
The Semi-Finals will determine who takes on the Eels in the Women’s and the Cowboys in the Men’s, when second place on each of the men’s and women’s ladders plays third place. The Semi-Finals will be held at 12pm this Sunday 11th August at GIO Stadium, Canberra.
In the Women’s, the Gold Coast Titans (second on the ladder) will take on the Brisbane Broncos (third) for a grand final spot; while in the Men’s, the Newcastle Knights (second) will go head to head with the Wests Tigers (third).
Touch Football is Australia’s largest social sport, with 680,000 participants around Australia. And it’s hugely popular in Sydney’s Eastern Suburbs – the Eastern Suburbs Touch Association is the largest Touch Football competition in NSW, and the second largest in Australia (after Brisbane Metropolitan Touch Association).
“We’re looking forward to footy fans from Sydney and across New South Wales – as well as those following their teams down from Queensland – coming to the SCG to witness this historic event.”
Those who can’t make it to the game can watch live on Fox League, or live and on-demand on Kayo Sports.
Key facts about the 2019 NRL Touch Premiership
8 NRL clubs: The tournament has expanded from six NRL clubs in 2018 to eight in 2019, with the Sydney Roosters and the New Zealand Warriors joining the Wests Tigers, Parramatta Eels, Newcastle Knights, Gold Coast Titans, Brisbane Broncos and North Queensland Cowboys in this elite Touch Football tournament.
240 elite athletes: Each of the eight NRL clubs have fielded both an elite women’s and elite men’s touch team, meaning that more than 120 female and 120 male athletes have been competing to win their club a Premiership.
26 gamedays: The tournament has also significantly extended in gamedays since 2018 – from just seven in 2018 to 26 in 2019. The tournament runs over a period of five months, from 6th April to 18th August 2019.
More than 10 stadiums: Matches have been played at all major stadiums throughout Australia (including ANZ, Suncorp and CBUS Stadiums), as well as the brand new Western Sydney Stadium, Adelaide Oval, Glen Willow Stadium in Mudgee, GIO Stadium in Canberra and Mt Smart Stadium in New Zealand.
