The Canterbury Cup NSW has finished the season on a high note with the Grand Final extra-time thriller between Newtown Jets and Wentworthville Magpies returning the highest ratings ever for the competition.
Newtown prevailed 20-15 over the Magpies in a match that went down to the wire with fullback William Kennedy scoring the match-winner to hand the Jets their first premiership since 2012.
The match televised on Nine from 3pm (AEST) had an average audience of 129,783 and a peak audience of 215,614 to continue a successful season for the NSWRL with ratings up by 10 per cent for both Nine and Fox League on Fox Sports.
The audience for Canterbury Cup NSW games on Nine and Gem rose on average from 23,700 in 2018 to 26,100 in 2019 while on Fox League on Fox Sports it went from 24,000 to 27,000.
The Canterbury Cup NSW Grand Final also surpassed last week’s previous record high figures for the Preliminary Final between Minor Premier St George Illawarra Dragons and the Jets which had an average audience of 109,308 with a peak of 157,999.
“Canterbury Cup NSW has delivered an outstanding product this season and I’m thrilled by ratings that it has produced,” NSWRL Chief Executive David Trodden said.
“The Grand Final between the Jets and the Magpies was a memorable game and Rugby League fans were obviously glued to their screens as it went down to the wire.
“I’d like to thank our broadcast partners Nine and Fox League on Fox Sports, and our naming rights partner Canterbury, for all the support they’ve shown our wonderful competition this season.
“It was a fantastic finish and I can’t wait until we do it all again next year.”
Canterbury Sports Marketing Manager – Team Sports, Nathan Russell added: “We’ve had a long-standing relationship with the NSWRL as their official apparel partner and we were excited to extend that and be part of the Canterbury Cup NSW this season.
“The players and the teams turned on some fantastic football all year and it’s exciting to be part of a competition that could unearth the next Rugby League star.
“The Grand Final was a fitting finale to end the season and I’d like to congratulate all the players involved for making it memorable.”
