2002 NRL season

The 2002 NRL season was the 95th season of professional rugby league football in Australia and the fifth to be run by the National Rugby League. The season was affected by the competition-leading Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs' salary cap breach finding, which saw them relegated to the bottom of the NRL ladder. As a result, the New Zealand Warriors won their first minor premiership and made it to the grand final for the first time, playing against foundation club the Sydney Roosters who won the match and collected their first premiership in 27 years.

2002 National Rugby League
Duration	15 March – 6 October 2002
Teams	15
Premiers	Sydney (12th title)
Minor premiers	New Zealand (1st title)
Matches played	189
Points scored	9083
Average attendance	14,054
Attendance	2,656,198
Top points scorer(s)	Hazem El Masri (254)
Player of the year	Andrew Johns (Dally M Medal)
Top try-scorer(s)	Nigel Vagana (23)
← 2001 2003 →

Pre-season

In February 2002 the National Rugby League's Director of Legal and Business Affairs, David Gallop, was appointed Chief Executive Officer of the NRL, succeeding David Moffett.

The legendary Broncos and Maroons halfback, Allan Langer, returned from England to play his final season of professional football with the Brisbane club. In doing so he became the NRL's oldest player for the 2002 season at 36 years and 60 days.^[1]

The return of South Sydney

See also: South Sydney Rabbitohs history § The troubled 1990s and exclusion

Following the club's departure from the NRL after the 1999 season, there was a continuing push from both fans and the wider rugby league community to reinstate the South Sydney Rabbitohs into the NRL competition. After two unsuccessful years of lobbying, South Sydney finally received a court ruling in their favour in 2001. On 15 March 2002, the South Sydney club opened the NRL season with a home match against long-time rivals, the Sydney Roosters, losing badly, 40-6.

It turned out to be a tough year for South Sydney, winning only five matches from 24 played.

Teams

The number of teams contesting the Premiership increased for the 2002 season from 14 to 15 due to the re-inclusion of the South Sydney Rabbitohs. It was the first time the number of Premiership teams had increased since the 1995 ARL season when the introduction of the Auckland Warriors, North Queensland Cowboys, South Queensland Crushers and Western Reds saw the number of teams increase from 16 to 20.

Brisbane Broncos 15th season Ground: Queensland Sport and Athletics Centre Coach: Wayne Bennett Captain: Gorden Tallis	Bulldogs 68th season Ground: Sydney Showground Coach: Steve Folkes Captain: Steve Price	Canberra Raiders 21st season Ground: Canberra Stadium Coach: Matthew Elliott Captain: Simon Woolford	Melbourne Storm 5th season Ground Olympic Park Stadium Coach: Mark Murray Captain: Robbie Kearns	New Zealand Warriors 8th season Ground: Mt Smart Stadium Coach: Daniel Anderson Captain: Stacey Jones & Monty Betham
Newcastle Knights 15th season Ground: Newcastle International Sports Centre Coach: Michael Hagan Captain: Andrew Johns	North Queensland Cowboys 8th season Ground: Willows Sports Complex Coach: Murray Hurst → Graham Murray Captain: Paul Bowman	Northern Eagles 3rd season Ground: Brookvale Oval & Central Coast Stadium Coach: Peter Sharp Captain: Steve Menzies	Parramatta Eels 56th season Ground: Parramatta Stadium Coach: Brian Smith Captain: Nathan Cayless	Penrith Panthers 36th season Ground: Penrith Stadium Coach: John Lang Captain: Craig Gower
Sharks 38th season Ground: Shark Park Coach: Chris Anderson Captain: David Peachey	South Sydney Rabbitohs 93rd season Ground: Sydney Football Stadium Coach: Craig Coleman Captain: Adam Muir	St. George Illawarra Dragons 4th season Ground: Kogarah Oval & WIN Stadium Coach: Andrew Farrar Captain: Trent Barrett	Sydney Roosters 95th season Ground: Sydney Football Stadium Coach: Ricky Stuart Captain: Brad Fittler	Wests Tigers 3rd season Ground: Campbelltown Stadium & Leichhardt Oval Coach: Terry Lamb Captain: Darren Senter

Regular season

In 2002, as in 2001, the NRL's advertising was handled by Saatchi & Saatchi Sydney. As in the previous season, there was no big budget season launch advertising campaign. The NRL focussed on stretching its marketing spending throughout the season with newspaper ads promoting individual rounds and clubs, and with simple TV ads to promote key games.

The Bulldogs won 17 games in a row and had an unbeaten run of 18 games, the most in the club's history. However they were deducted 37 premiership points for a gross salary cap breaches, the most points deducted in premiership history. That left the club with just four competition points attained from the two byes earlier in the season. Four more competition points followed since the salary cap scandal, all from wins in the last two rounds of the season.

The New Zealand Warriors won the club's first Minor Premiership in its 8-year history and also made it to their first Grand Final. The Warriors were not in first place almost during the entire season, only taking top spot on the ladder at the conclusion of Round 26.

John Hopoate ran 3,976 metres with the ball in 2002, more than any other player in the competition.^[2]

At the end of the season NRL referees' coach Peter Louis resigned from his position.^[3]

As of 2023, 2002 is the most recent season in which the Melbourne Storm did not qualify for the finals due to not winning enough games, though in 2010 they were sentenced to finish last due to salary cap breaches which prevented the club from earning any premiership points that season.^[4]

Bulldogs salary cap breach

See also: Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs salary cap breach

In mid-2002, the Canterbury club were found guilty of serious and systemic breaches of the salary cap. NRL Chief Executive David Gallop described the violation as "exceptional in both its size and its deliberate and ongoing nature". The club received a $500,000 fine, and was stripped of 37 of its 41 competition points accumulated up to Round 23.^[5] The latter action was particularly harmful, as the club were poised to take the Minor Premiership and had won 17 consecutive matches (the second highest in Australian club rugby league history at the time). The deduction of the 37 competition points meant that the Canterbury side would win the wooden spoon, as the South Sydney Rabbitohs had already accumulated 12 competition points by the end of Round 24.

The deduction of Canterbury's points also enabled the Canberra Raiders to make the finals with a points differential of -170, the poorest such record of any finalist in the competition's history, and the Raiders only won one game outside of Canberra for the entire season. It also enabled the New Zealand Warriors to secure their first minor premiership in the club's history.

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	F1	F2	F3	GF
Brisbane Broncos	NQL +36	CBY 0	SYD +14	CRO +2	CAN +2	PEN +4	NEW +6	SOU +26	NTE +38	X	SGI −8	WTI +14	PAR −4	NQL +44	X	NZL −10	SGI +12	PEN +18	WTI +32	PAR +20	MEL +28	SYD −10	NZL −14	NEW −30	CAN +34	CBY −7	PAR +10	X	SYD −4
Canberra Raiders	MEL −4	SOU −8	WTI +5	NEW −46	BRI −2	NTE −24	PAR −38	CRO +26	SGI 0	SOU −6	NQL +12	NTE +12	X	CRO −10	CBY −40	PEN +12	SYD −30	NEW +6	NQL −16	NZL +8	X	WTI +20	SYD −26	CBY +4	BRI −34	MEL +9	NZL −16
Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs	WTI −6	BRI 0	SGI +19	SOU +26	MEL +16	NZL +8	CRO +20	X	PEN +3	CRO +26	NTE +18	SOU +10	PEN +14	X	CAN +40	PAR +14	NTE +20	SGI +2	SYD +12	NEW +1	NQL +8	NZL −8	PAR +18	CAN −4	MEL +8	BRI +7
Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks	SGI +6	MEL +6	PEN +8	BRI −2	WTI +6	NEW −44	CBY −20	CAN −26	PAR −30	CBY −26	PEN −2	NZL −22	SGI +21	CAN +10	NQL +30	X	NZL +12	PAR +1	NTE +22	SOU +16	SYD +14	NEW +50	WTI +16	NQL +22	X	SYD −12	SYD −12	SGI +16	NZL −6
Melbourne Storm	CAN +4	CRO −6	NQL +28	PAR +2	CBY −16	SGI +8	NZL −10	NEW −8	SYD −28	PAR −2	NZL −16	X	NEW −21	SGI 0	SOU +38	NTE −14	WTI +6	SYD +38	X	PEN −20	BRI −28	NQL +10	PEN +32	WTI −10	CBY −8	CAN −9
Newcastle Knights	NTE +26	NQL +32	NZL +18	CAN +46	SYD +16	CRO +44	BRI −6	MEL +8	X	NZL −22	SOU +26	X	MEL +21	PAR +14	WTI −16	SOU +18	PAR +6	CAN −6	PEN +16	CBY −1	SGI +8	CRO −50	NTE +14	BRI +30	PEN +2	SGI −18	SGI −4	SYD −26
New Zealand Warriors	X	SYD +7	NEW −18	NQL +30	NTE +58	CBY −8	MEL +10	WTI +22	SOU +7	NEW +22	MEL +16	CRO +22	NQL +28	SOU +36	SGI −10	BRI +10	CRO −12	X	PAR +16	CAN −8	PEN +14	CBY +8	BRI +14	SYD −44	NTE −2	WTI +16	CAN +16	X	CRO +6	SYD −22
North Queensland Cowboys	BRI −36	NEW −32	MEL −28	NZL −30	SOU +12	SYD −46	PEN +10	PAR −1	WTI +24	PEN −30	CAN −12	SGI +8	NZL −28	BRI −44	CRO −30	SGI −27	X	NTE −16	CAN +16	NTE +12	CBY −8	MEL −10	X	CRO −22	SOU +2	PAR +9
Northern Eagles	NEW −26	X	SOU −24	SYD +6	NZL −58	CAN +24	WTI −18	SGI +4	BRI −38	X	CBY −18	CAN −12	WTI +24	SYD −27	PEN +4	MEL +14	CBY −20	NQL +16	CRO −22	NQL −12	PAR +9	SGI +2	NEW −14	PAR −13	NZL +2	PEN −40
Parramatta Eels	PEN +58	WTI −6	X	MEL −2	SGI 0	SOU +8	CAN +38	NQL +1	CRO +30	MEL +2	SYD −14	X	BRI +4	NEW −14	SYD 0	CBY −14	NEW −6	CRO −1	NZL −16	BRI −20	NTE −9	SOU +54	CBY −18	NTE +13	WTI +12	NQL −9	BRI −10
Penrith Panthers	PAR −58	SGI −8	CRO −8	WTI −16	X	BRI −4	NQL −10	SYD −4	CBY −3	NQL +30	CRO +2	SYD +10	CBY −14	WTI +4	NTE −4	CAN −12	SOU −7	BRI −18	NEW −16	MEL +20	NZL −14	X	MEL −32	SOU +16	NEW −2	NTE +40
South Sydney Rabbitohs	SYD −34	CAN +8	NTE +24	CBY −26	NQL −12	PAR −8	X	BRI −26	NZL −7	CAN +6	NEW −26	CBY −10	SYD −36	NZL −36	MEL −38	NEW −18	PEN +7	WTI +14	SGI −38	CRO −16	WTI −46	PAR −54	SGI −42	PEN −16	NQL −2	X
St. George Illawarra Dragons	CRO −6	PEN +8	CBY −19	X	PAR 0	MEL −8	SYD −4	NTE −4	CAN 0	WTI +11	BRI +8	NQL −8	CRO −21	MEL 0	NZL +10	NQL +27	BRI −12	CBY −2	SOU +38	WTI +34	NEW −8	NTE −2	SOU +42	X	SYD −16	NEW +18	NEW +4	CRO −16
Sydney Roosters	SOU +34	NZL −7	BRI −14	NTE −6	NEW −16	NQL +46	SGI +4	PEN +4	MEL +28	X	PAR +14	PEN −10	SOU +36	NTE +27	PAR 0	WTI +2	CAN +30	MEL −38	CBY −12	X	CRO −14	BRI +10	CAN +26	NZL +44	SGI +16	CRO +12	CRO +12	NEW +26	BRI +4	NZL +22
Wests Tigers	CBY +6	PAR +6	CAN −5	PEN +16	CRO −6	X	NTE +18	NZL −22	NQL −24	SGI −11	X	BRI −14	NTE −24	PEN −4	NEW +16	SYD −2	MEL −6	SOU −14	BRI −32	SGI −34	SOU +46	CAN −20	CRO −16	MEL +10	PAR −12	NZL −16
Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	F1	F2	F3	GF

Bold – Home game
X – Bye
Opponent for round listed above margin

Ladder

The Warriors received A$100,000 prize money for finishing the regular season as minor premiers.^[6]

2002 NRL season v t e
Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	B	PF	PA	PD	Pts
1	New Zealand Warriors	24	17	0	7	2	688	454	+234	38
2	Newcastle Knights	24	17	0	7	2	724	498	+226	38
3	Brisbane Broncos	24	16	1	7	2	672	425	+247	37
4	Sydney Roosters (P)	24	15	1	8	2	621	405	+216	35
5	Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks	24	15	0	9	2	653	597	+56	34
6	Parramatta Eels	24	10	2	12	2	531	440	+91	26
7	St George Illawarra Dragons	24	9	3	12	2	632	546	+86	25
8	Canberra Raiders	24	10	1	13	2	471	641	-170	25
9	Northern Eagles	24	10	0	14	2	503	740	-237	24
10	Melbourne Storm	24	9	1	14	2	556	586	-30	23
11	North Queensland Cowboys	24	8	0	16	2	496	803	-307	20
12	Penrith Panthers	24	7	0	17	2	546	654	-108	18
13	Wests Tigers	24	7	0	17	2	498	642	-144	18
14	South Sydney Rabbitohs	24	5	0	19	2	385	817	-432	14
15	Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs	24	20	1	3	2	707	435	+272	8^1

¹ The Bulldogs were deducted 37 premiership points due to gross salary cap breaches.

Ladder progression

• Numbers highlighted in green indicate that the team finished the round inside the top 8.
• Numbers highlighted in blue indicates the team finished first on the ladder in that round.
• Numbers highlighted in red indicates the team finished in last place on the ladder in that round
• Underlined numbers indicate that the team had a bye during that round.

	Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26
1	New Zealand	2	4	4	6	8	8	10	12	14	16	18	20	22	24	24	26	26	28	30	30	32	34	36	36	36	38
2	Newcastle	2	4	6	8	10	12	12	14	16	16	18	20	22	24	24	26	28	28	30	30	32	32	34	36	38	38
3	Brisbane	2	3	5	7	9	11	13	15	17	19	19	21	21	23	25	25	27	29	31	33	35	35	35	35	37	37
4	Sydney	2	2	2	2	2	4	6	8	10	12	14	14	16	18	19	21	23	23	23	25	25	27	29	31	33	35
5	Sharks	2	4	6	6	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	10	12	14	16	18	20	22	24	26	28	30	32	34	34
6	Parramatta	2	2	4	4	5	7	9	11	13	15	15	17	19	19	20	20	20	20	20	20	20	22	22	24	26	26
7	St George Illawarra	0	2	2	4	5	5	5	5	6	8	10	10	10	11	13	15	15	15	17	19	19	19	21	23	23	25
8	Canberra	0	0	2	2	2	2	2	4	5	5	7	9	11	11	11	13	13	15	15	17	19	21	21	23	23	25
9	Northern Eagles	0	2	2	4	4	6	6	8	8	10	10	10	12	12	14	16	16	18	18	18	20	22	22	22	24	24
10	Melbourne	2	2	4	6	6	8	8	8	8	8	8	10	10	11	13	13	15	17	19	19	19	21	23	23	23	23
11	North Queensland	0	0	0	0	2	2	4	4	6	6	6	8	8	8	8	8	10	10	12	14	14	14	16	16	18	20
12	Penrith	0	0	0	0	2	2	2	2	2	4	6	8	8	10	10	10	10	10	10	12	12	14	14	16	16	18
13	Wests	2	4	4	6	6	8	10	10	10	10	12	12	12	12	14	14	14	14	14	14	16	16	16	18	18	18
14	South Sydney	0	2	4	4	4	4	6	6	6	8	8	8	8	8	8	8	10	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	12	14
15	Bulldogs	0	1	3	5	7	9	11	13	15	17	19	21	23	25	27	29	31	33	35	37	39	39	41	4	6	8

Finals series

To decide the grand finalists from the top eight finishing teams, the NRL adopts the McIntyre final eight system.

Coincidentally, the finalists for 2002 were almost the same as the previous season, with the exception of the Bulldogs being replaced by Canberra. Had the Bulldogs not been deducted competition points, they would have become the minor premiers and completed the replication, with Canberra moving down to 9th.

Home	Score	Away	Match Information
			Date and Time	Venue	Referee	Crowd
Qualifying Finals
Sydney Roosters	32 – 20	Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks	13 September 2002	Aussie Stadium	Paul Simpkins	25,366
Brisbane Broncos	24 – 14	Parramatta Eels	14 September 2002	ANZ Stadium	Sean Hampstead	19,115
Newcastle Knights	22 – 26	St George Illawarra Dragons	14 September 2002	Energy Australia Stadium	Bill Harrigan	21,051
New Zealand Warriors	36 – 20	Canberra Raiders	15 September 2002	Ericsson Stadium	Tim Mander	25,800
Semi-finals
St George Illawarra Dragons	24 – 40	Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks	21 September 2002	Aussie Stadium	Bill Harrigan	31,783
Sydney Roosters	38 – 12	Newcastle Knights	22 September 2002	Aussie Stadium	Sean Hampstead	23,816
Preliminary Finals
Brisbane Broncos	12 – 16	Sydney Roosters	28 September 2002	Aussie Stadium	Bill Harrigan	28,251
New Zealand Warriors	16 – 10	Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks	29 September 2002	Telstra Stadium	Tim Mander	45,782

Chart

	Qualifying finals					Semifinals					Preliminary finals					Final
	1	New Zealand	36
	8	Canberra	20								1W	New Zealand	16
						4W	St. George Illawarra	24				Cronulla	10
	2	Newcastle	22			2L	Cronulla	40
																New Zealand		8
	7	St. George Illawarra	26
																Sydney		30
	3	Brisbane	24								2W	Brisbane	12
	6	Parramatta	14			3W	Sydney	38				Sydney	16
						1L	Newcastle	12
	4	Sydney	32
	5	Cronulla	20

Grand Final

Main article: 2002 NRL Grand Final

The 2002 NRL Grand Final was the conclusive and premiership-deciding game of the 2002 NRL season. It took place on Sunday, 6 October 2002, at Sydney's Telstra Stadium. 80,130 people saw the Sydney Roosters beat the New Zealand Warriors 30–8. The Clive Churchill Medalist was Craig Fitzgibbon of the Sydney Roosters. The match was also broadcast live in the United States by Fox Sports World.^[7]

2002 NRL Grand Final

Sunday, 6 October 19:00 AEST (UTC+10)

New Zealand Warriors	8 – 30	Sydney Roosters
Tries: 1 Jones   46' Goals: 2 Cleary   pen 29', 47' (2/2)	1st: 2–6 2nd: 6–24 Report^[8]	Tries: 5 Hegarty   23' Wing   57' Fitzgibbon   65' Flannery   71' Fletcher   74' Goals: 5 Fitzgibbon   25', 59', 66', 71', 76' (5/5)

Telstra Stadium, Sydney Attendance: 80,130^[9] Referee: Bill Harrigan Touch judges: Steve Richards, Shayne Hayne Clive Churchill Medal: Craig Fitzgibbon (Sydney)

Player statistics

The following statistics are as of the conclusion of Round 26.

Top 5 point scorers Points Player Tries Goals Field Goals 254   Hazem El Masri 12 103 0 246   Andrew Johns 10 102 2 233   Brett Kimmorley 13 90 1 222   Ivan Cleary 8 95 0 174   Michael De Vere 6 75 0 Top 5 try scorers Tries Player 23   Nigel Vagana 19   Timana Tahu 19   Rhys Wesser 17   Clinton Toopi 17   Lee Hookey 17   Aaron Moule 17   Luke Lewis

Top 5 goal scorers Goals Player 103   Hazem El Masri 102   Andrew Johns 95   Ivan Cleary 90   Brett Kimmorley 75   Michael De Vere

2002 Transfers

Players

Player	2001 Club	2002 Club
Darren Burns	Brisbane Broncos	Super League: Warrington Wolves
Mark Corvo	Brisbane Broncos	Super League: Salford City Reds
Luke Priddis	Brisbane Broncos	Penrith Panthers
Wendell Sailor	Brisbane Broncos	Queensland Reds (Super 12)
Kevin Walters	Brisbane Broncos	Retirement
Anthony Colella	Canberra Raiders	South Sydney Rabbitohs
Andrew McFadden	Canberra Raiders	Parramatta Eels
Lesley Vainikolo	Canberra Raiders	Super League: Bradford Bulls
Luke Williamson	Canberra Raiders	Northern Eagles
Darren Britt	Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs	Super League: St. Helens
Steven Hughes	Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs	Retirement
Adam Peek	Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs	South Sydney Rabbitohs
Craig Polla-Mounter	Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs	Retirement
Rod Silva	Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs	Retirement
Barry Ward	Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs	Super League: St. Helens
Matt Daylight	Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks	Retirement
Shannon Donato	Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks	Penrith Panthers
Adam Dykes	Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks	Parramatta Eels
Jason Ferris	Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks	Northern Eagles
Martin Lang	Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks	Penrith Panthers
Nathan Long	Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks	Northern Eagles
Paul McNicholas	Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks	South Sydney Rabbitohs
Russell Richardson	Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks	South Sydney Rabbitohs
Mat Rogers	Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks	New South Wales Waratahs (Super 12)
Sean Ryan	Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks	Super League: Hull F.C.
Luke Stuart	Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks	South Sydney Rabbitohs
Russell Bawden	Melbourne Storm	Super League: London Broncos
Tasesa Lavea	Melbourne Storm	Northern Eagles
Ben Roarty	Melbourne Storm	Penrith Panthers
Brad Watts	Melbourne Storm	South Sydney Rabbitohs
Darren Albert	Newcastle Knights	Super League: St. Helens
Troy Fletcher	Newcastle Knights	Retirement
Glenn Grief	Newcastle Knights	South Sydney Rabbitohs
Paul Marquet	Newcastle Knights	Super League: Warrington Wolves
Richie Blackmore	New Zealand Warriors	Retirement
Jason Death	New Zealand Warriors	South Sydney Rabbitohs
Geoff Bell	North Queensland Cowboys	Penrith Panthers
Brett Hetherington	North Queensland Cowboys	Retirement
Danny Moore	North Queensland Cowboys	Retirement
Julian O'Neill	North Queensland Cowboys	Super League: Wigan Warriors
Lee Oudenryn	North Queensland Cowboys	Retirement
Mark Shipway	North Queensland Cowboys	Northern Eagles
Damien Smith	North Queensland Cowboys	Retirement
Kyle Warren	North Queensland Cowboys	Super League: Castleford Tigers
Greg Ebrill	Northern Eagles	Super League: Salford City Reds
Wayne Evans	Northern Eagles	Super League: London Broncos
Brett Kimmorley	Northern Eagles	Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks
Andrew King	Northern Eagles	South Sydney Rabbitohs
William Leyshon	Northern Eagles	Melbourne Storm
Karl Lovell	Northern Eagles	Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks
Adam Muir	Northern Eagles	South Sydney Rabbitohs
Mark O'Meley	Northern Eagles	Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs
Paul Stringer	Northern Eagles	South Sydney Rabbitohs
Geoff Toovey	Northern Eagles	Retirement
Steve Trindall	Northern Eagles	Wests Tigers
Ben Walker	Northern Eagles	Super League: Leeds Rhinos
PJ Marsh	Parramatta Eels	New Zealand Warriors
Jason Taylor	Parramatta Eels	Retirement
David Westley	Parramatta Eels	Northern Eagles
Matt Adamson	Penrith Panthers	Super League: Leeds Rhinos
Robbie Beckett	Penrith Panthers	Super League: Halifax Blue Sox
Steve Carter	Penrith Panthers	Super League: Widnes Vikings
Craig Greenhill	Penrith Panthers	Super League: Hull F.C.
Andrew Hinson	Penrith Panthers	South Sydney Rabbitohs
Peter Jorgensen	Penrith Panthers	Northampton Saints (English rugby union)
Duncan MacGillivray	Penrith Panthers	South Sydney Rabbitohs
Frank Puletua	Penrith Panthers	South Sydney Rabbitohs
Matthew Rieck	Penrith Panthers	Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks
Matthew Rodwell	Penrith Panthers	Super League: Warrington Wolves
David Woods	Penrith Panthers	Super League: Halifax Blue Sox
Jamie Ainscough	St. George Illawarra Dragons	Super League: Wigan Warriors
Wayne Bartrim	St. George Illawarra Dragons	Super League: Castleford Tigers
Jamie Fitzgerald	St. George Illawarra Dragons	South Sydney Rabbitohs
Wade Forrester	St. George Illawarra Dragons	Northern Eagles
Andrew Hart	St. George Illawarra Dragons	South Sydney Rabbitohs
Paul McGregor	St. George Illawarra Dragons	Retirement
Craig Smith	St. George Illawarra Dragons	Super League: Wigan Warriors
Darren Treacy	St. George Illawarra Dragons	Super League: Salford City Reds
Colin Ward	St. George Illawarra Dragons	Penrith Panthers
Quentin Pongia	Sydney Roosters	Villeneuve Leopards (Elite One Championship)
Ian Rubin	Sydney Roosters	Retirement
Matt Sing	Sydney Roosters	North Queensland Cowboys
John Carlaw	Wests Tigers	New Zealand Warriors
Owen Craigie	Wests Tigers	South Sydney Rabbitohs
Craig Field	Wests Tigers	Pia Donkeys (French Rugby League Championship)
Lee Murphy	Wests Tigers	Retirement
John Simon	Wests Tigers	Retirement
Tyran Smith	Wests Tigers	Canberra Raiders
Shane Walker	Wests Tigers	Melbourne Storm
Shane Rigon	Super League: Bradford Bulls	South Sydney Rabbitohs
Ben Kusto	Super League: Huddersfield Giants	Parramatta Eels
Luke Felsch	Super League: Hull F.C.	St. George Illawarra Dragons
Tony Grimaldi	Super League: Hull F.C.	Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs
Robert Mears	Super League: Leeds Rhinos	Wests Tigers
Brett Mullins	Super League: Leeds Rhinos	Sydney Roosters
Glen Air	Super League: London Broncos	Wests Tigers
Shane Millard	Super League: London Broncos	St. George Illawarra Dragons
Justin Brooker	Super League: Wakefield Trinity Wildcats	South Sydney Rabbitohs
Andrew Gee	Super League: Warrington Wolves	Brisbane Broncos
David Kidwell	Super League: Warrington Wolves	Sydney Roosters
Allan Langer	Super League: Warrington Wolves	Brisbane Broncos
Danny Nutley	Super League: Warrington Wolves	Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks
Ian Sibbit	Super League: Warrington Wolves	Melbourne Storm
Matthew Johns	Super League: Wigan Warriors	Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks
Ken McGuinness	Toowoomba Clydesdales (Queensland Cup)	North Queensland Cowboys
Chris Caruana	N/A	South Sydney Rabbitohs
Joe Galuvao	N/A	Penrith Panthers

Coaches

Coach	2001 Club	2002 Club
John Lang	Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks	Penrith Panthers

References

1. Toohey, Barry (2 February 2011). "Still some bite in old Mad Dog". The Daily Telegraph. Australia: News Limited. Retrieved 2 February 2011.
2. Proszenko, Adrian (6 May 2012). "Gallen set to smash record". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 7 May 2012.
3. Steve Mascord and Brad Walter (6 September 2002). "Search for new refs chief to replace Louis". The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 30 August 2014.
4. Crawley, Paul (1 March 2015). "Predicted NRL top eight: Melbourne Storm and Manly Sea Eagles miss out". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 17 February 2024.
5. Tunnah, Helen (2002-08-24). "Rugby League: 37 nails in Bulldogs' kennel". The New Zealand Herald. APN Holdings NZ Limited. Retrieved 2009-10-06.
6. NZPA (2002-10-05). "Sorry guys, the cheque's not in the mail". nzherald.co.nz. APN Holdings NZ Limited. Retrieved 2009-12-04.
7. "National Rugby League Grand Final, Live on Fox Sports World This Sunday". Business Wire. Los Angeles. 2003-10-03. ProQuest 446309241.
8. Middleton, David. Rugby League 2003. Sydney: Harper Sports. pp. 182–183. ISBN 0732277531.
9. "2002 NRL Grand Final". Rugby League Project. Retrieved 8 March 2023.

Further reading

• Middleton, David (2002). National Rugby League 2002. HarperSports. ISBN 978-0-7322-7466-5.

External links

• NRL official website
• Blood, guts and Rooster glory - Sydney Morning Herald match report
• 2002 NRL Grand Final at sportsphotography.net 2005-09-10 at the Wayback Machine