Amco Cup
title: "Amco Cup" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["amco-cup", "defunct-rugby-league-competitions-in-australia", "recurring-sporting-events-established-in-1974", "1974-establishments-in-australia", "new-south-wales-rugby-league-premiership", "national-cup-competitions", "rugby-league-pages-needing-cleanup"] topic_path: "sports" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amco_Cup" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::data[format=table title="Infobox football tournament"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| image | [[File:amcocup.jpg |
| caption | The Amco Cup Trophy |
| organiser | New South Wales Rugby League |
| founded | |
| abolished | |
| number of teams | 16-38 |
| region | Australia |
| related comps | NSWRL, BRL, CRL, QRL, NZRL |
| current champions | Brisbane Broncos (1989) |
| most successful club | Balmain (3 titles) |
| :: |
| image = [[File:amcocup.jpg|120px]] | caption = The Amco Cup Trophy | organiser = New South Wales Rugby League | founded = | abolished = | number of teams = 16-38 | region = Australia | related comps = NSWRL, BRL, CRL, QRL, NZRL | domestic cup = | confed cup = | current champions = Brisbane Broncos (1989) | most successful club = Balmain (3 titles) | website = | broadcasters = | current =
The Amco Cup (subsequently known by various other sponsors' names including the Tooth Cup, KB Cup, National Panasonic Cup and Panasonic Cup) was a mid-week rugby league competition held in Australia between 1974 and 1989. The format was usually a straight knock-out, but various group formats were used between 1979 and 1982. It aired on Channel Ten with Ray Warren and Keith Barnes the commentators for many years. The concept was created by Colin McLennan.
History
Promoter Colin McLennan, who also brought to Australia the jazz legend Benny Goodman and comedians Dudley Moore and Peter Cook, was the man who brought the mid-week Cup to life. The competition was essentially a "made for TV" event, featuring 4 x 20-minute quarters and a penalty countback rule in the event of a draw. Matches were played under floodlights, usually on a Wednesday evening. Initially Leichhardt Oval in Sydney was the main venue, though later matches were played at Lang Park in Brisbane, Parramatta Stadium and various country centres in New South Wales. The competition was scrapped after the increasingly professional clubs resented the additional burdens on their players caused by the mid-week games. In 1990 it was replaced by a preseason challenge cup played for only by the Sydney Rugby League premiership teams.
Naming rights sponsors
- Amco Cup (1974–79)
- Tooth Cup (1980–81)
- KB Cup (1982–83)
- National Panasonic Cup (1984–87)
- Panasonic Cup (1988–89)
Participating teams
::data[format=table]
| Year | Team/s | NSW City | QLD City | NSW Country | QLD Country | NSW Division 2 | New Zealand | State/Territory | PNG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1974 | 21 | All 12 | – | All 7 except Newcastle | – | Ryde-Eastwood | Auckland | – | – |
| 1975 | 28 | All 12 | Fortitude Valley, | ||||||
| Norths, | |||||||||
| Past Brothers, | |||||||||
| Souths | All 8 | Ipswich, | |||||||
| Toowoomba | Ryde-Eastwood | Auckland | – | – | |||||
| 1976 | 35 | All 12 | All 7 except Wynnum Manly | All 8 | All 4 except | ||||
| Central Queensland, | |||||||||
| Gold Coast | Ryde-Eastwood | Auckland, Canterbury | N.T | – | |||||
| 1977 | 37 | All 12 | All 8 | All 8 | All 5 except | ||||
| Gold Coast | – | Auckland, Canterbury | N.T, W.A. | – | |||||
| 1978 | 38 | All 12 | All 8 | All 8 | All 6 | – | Auckland, Wellington | N.T, W.A. | – |
| 1979 | 16 | All 12 | Brisbane | [New South Wales | |||||
| Country](country-new-south-wales-rugby-league-team) | Queensland | ||||||||
| Country | – | Auckland | – | – | |||||
| 1980 | 16 | All 12 | Brisbane | [New South Wales | |||||
| Country](country-new-south-wales-rugby-league-team) | Queensland | ||||||||
| Country | – | Auckland | – | – | |||||
| 1981 | 16 | All 12 | Brisbane | [New South Wales | |||||
| Country](country-new-south-wales-rugby-league-team) | Queensland | ||||||||
| Country | – | Central Districts | – | – | |||||
| 1982 | 18 | All 14 | Brisbane | [New South Wales | |||||
| Country](country-new-south-wales-rugby-league-team) | Queensland | ||||||||
| Country | – | South Island | – | – | |||||
| 1983 | 18 | All 14 | Brisbane | [New South Wales | |||||
| Country](country-new-south-wales-rugby-league-team) | Queensland | ||||||||
| Country | – | Central Districts | – | – | |||||
| 1984 | 17 | All 13 | Brisbane | [New South Wales | |||||
| Country](country-new-south-wales-rugby-league-team) | Queensland | ||||||||
| Country | – | Auckland | – | – | |||||
| 1985 | 16 | All 13 | Brisbane | [New South Wales | |||||
| Country](country-new-south-wales-rugby-league-team) | – | – | Auckland | – | – | ||||
| 1986 | 17 | All 13 | Brisbane | [New South Wales | |||||
| Country](country-new-south-wales-rugby-league-team) | – | – | – | W.A. | Port Moresby | ||||
| 1987 | 20 | All 13 | Brisbane | [New South Wales | |||||
| Country](country-new-south-wales-rugby-league-team) | – | – | – | N.T, S.A., Victoria, W.A. | Port Moresby | ||||
| 1988 | 19 | All 16 | Brisbane | [New South Wales | |||||
| Country](country-new-south-wales-rugby-league-team) | – | – | – | – | Port Moresby | ||||
| 1989 | 19 | All 16 | Brisbane | [New South Wales | |||||
| Country](country-new-south-wales-rugby-league-team) | – | – | – | – | Port Moresby | ||||
| :: |
Champions by Year
::data[format=table]
| Year | Winners | Score | Runners-up | Venue | Crowd |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1974 | [[File:Canberra colours.svg | 16x16px]] Western Division | 6-2 | [[File:Penrith colours.svg | 16x16px]] Penrith |
| 1975 | [[File:Eastern Suburbs colours.svg | 16x16px]] Easterm Suburbs | 17-7 | [[File:Parramatta colours.svg | 16x16px]] Parramatta |
| 1976 | [[File:Balmain colours.svg | 16x16px]] Balmain | 21-7 | [[File:North Sydney colours.svg | 16x16px]] North Sydney |
| 1977 | [[File:Western Suburbs colours.svg | 16x16px]] Western Suburbs | 6-5 | [[File:Eastern Suburbs colours.svg | 16x16px]] Eastern Suburbs |
| 1978 | [[File:Eastern Suburbs colours.svg | 16x16px]] Eastern Suburbs | 16-4 | [[File:St. George colours.svg | 16x16px]] St. George |
| 1979 | [[File:Cronulla colours.svg | 16x16px]] Cronulla | 22-5 | [[File:Redcliffe colours.svg | 16x16px]] Brisbane |
| 1980 | [[File:Parramatta colours.svg | 16x16px]] Parramatta | 8-5 | [[File:Balmain colours.svg | 16x16px]] Balmain |
| 1981 | [[File:South Sydney colours.svg | 16x16px]] South Sydney | 10-2 | [[File:Cronulla colours.svg | 16x16px]] Cronulla |
| 1982 | [[File:Manly Sea Eagles colours.svg | 16x16px]] Manly | 23-8 | [[File:Newtown colours.svg | 16x16px]] Newtown |
| 1983 | [[File:Manly Sea Eagles colours.svg | 16x16px]] Manly | 26-6 | [[File:Cronulla colours.svg | 16x16px]] Cronulla |
| 1984 | [[File:Redcliffe colours.svg | 16x16px]] Brisbane | 12-11 | [[File:Eastern Suburbs colours.svg | 16x16px]] Eastern Suburbs |
| 1985 | [[File:Balmain colours.svg | 16x16px]] Balmain | 14-12 | [[File:Cronulla colours.svg | 16x16px]] Cronulla |
| 1986 | [[File:Parramatta colours.svg | 16x16px]] Parramatta | 32-16 | [[File:Balmain colours.svg | 16x16px]] Balmain |
| 1987 | [[File:Balmain colours.svg | 16x16px]] Balmain | 14-12 | [[File:Penrith colours.svg | 16x16px]] Penrith |
| 1988 | [[File:St. George colours.svg | 16x16px]] St. George | 16-8 | [[File:Balmain colours.svg | 16x16px]] Balmain |
| 1989 | [[File:Brisbane colours.svg | 16x16px]] Brisbane | 22-20 | [[File:Illawarra colours.svg | 16x16px]] Illawarra |
| :: |
Most NSWRL Midweek Cup Titles
::data[format=table]
| Club | Titles | Years won |
|---|---|---|
| Balmain | 3 | 1976, 1985, 1987 |
| Easts (Sydney) | 2 | 1975, 1978 |
| Parramatta | 2 | 1980, 1986 |
| Manly | 2 | 1982, 1983 |
| Western Division | 1 | 1974 |
| Wests (Sydney) | 1 | 1977 |
| Cronulla | 1 | 1979 |
| Souths (Sydney) | 1 | 1981 |
| Brisbane (Capitals) | 1 | 1984 |
| St. George | 1 | 1988 |
| Brisbane (Broncos) | 1 | 1989 |
| :: |
Cup and Premiership in the same season
- Easts in 1975.
- Parramatta in 1986.
References
References
- Rowlands, David. (24 May 1988). "Lights, Kick-off, Action... 14 Years of the Cup". [[The Sydney Morning Herald]].
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