Football league season
The 1961 New South Wales Federation of Soccer Clubs (NSWSF) season was the fifth season of football in New South Wales under the administration of the federation since its breakaway from the NSW Soccer Football Association in January of 1957. The home and away league season began on the 15th of April with twelve teams, reducing the number of teams by two compared to the previous season. Sydney Prague were Federation Premiers for a third consecutive season after finishing first on the ladder of the twenty-two round regular season.
After defeating Federation Premiers, Prague , in the preliminary final, Hakoah went on to defeat reigning champions Canterbury-Marrickville 4–1 in the grand final to be crowned Federation Champions for the first time.
Other tournaments held this season once again included the Ampol Cup and the Federation Cup (this year renamed the 'Craven A' Cup). Prague were the Ampol Cup winners for the second time as were Hakoah in the Federation Cup.
Clubs
Changes from last season
Number of teams reduced from 14 to 12.
Pan Hellenic were promoted into the competition from Second Division for the first time.
Granville AEK, Balgownie and Manly were relegated to Second Division .
Corrimal United merged with Illawarra District Soccer Association club, Woonona-Bulli to form South Coast United
North Side United–E.P.T. merged with Polonia to form Polonia North Side.
Club
Ground
Colours
Founded
A.P.I.A.-Leichhardt
Lambert Park , Leichhardt
Maroon and blue
1954
5th
1957
2nd (preliminary finalists)
Auburn SFC
Mona Park, Auburn
Green and gold
1957
5th
1957
4th (minor semifinalists)
Bankstown SFC
Wiley Park
Green and gold
1944
5th
1957
8th
Budapest–South Sydney
Sydney Athletics Field , Moore Park
Red, white and green
1957
3rd
1959
6th
Canterbury-Marrickville
Arlington Oval , Dulwich Hill
Blue and gold
1896[ a]
5th
1957
3rd (winners )
Gladesville-Ryde
Gladesville Sports Ground, Gladesville
Gold and black
1951
4th
1957
8th
Hakoah
Wentworth Park , Glebe
Blue and white
1953
4th
1957
4th (preliminary finalists)
Pan Hellenic
Wentworth Park , Glebe
Light blue and white
1957
1st
1961
Div. II
Polonia–North Side
Drummoyne Oval and North Sydney Oval
Red, black and white
1961
1st
1961
[ b]
South Coast United
Balls Paddock, Woonona
Dark blue, red and white
1958[ c]
4th
1958
11th
Prague
Sydney Athletics Field , Moore Park
Black with red, white and blue sash
1952
5th
1957
1st (runners-up)
Sydney Austral
Sydney Cricket Ground No. 2 , Moore Park
Orange, white and blue
1952
5th
1957
10th
Source: [ 1]
^ As Canterbury Bankstown in 1943. As Canterbury-Marrickville in 1951.
^ North Side finished 7th in Div. I, Polonia played in Div. II
^ Corrimal United merged with Woonona-Bulli for 1961 season. Keeps Corrimal United's historical records
Regular season
Table and results
Source: www.rsssf.org
[ 2] Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions;
(R) Relegated
Results
Source:
[ 3] Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.
Finals series
Semi-finals
Preliminary final
Grand final
NSWSF First Division 1961 Premiers
Hakoah First Title
Notes
^ Australian attendance record
Awards and statistics
Top goal-scorers
Attendance
Below is a list of total attendances per club in all matches, both home and away.[ 5]
Club
Attendance
APIA Leichhardt FC
114,000
Pan Hellenic
97,000
Sydney Hakoah
96,500
Sydney FC Prague
95,000
Canterbury-Marrickville
69,000
Polonia–North Side
65,600
South Coast United
52,000
Budapest–South Sydney
50,800
Auburn SFC
49,000
Gladesville-Ryde DSFC
38,000
Bankstown SFC
36,000
Sydney Austral SFC
23,000
Other competitions
Ampol Cup
Originally formed in 1957 as the William Kennard Cup, this was the fourth year to be sponsored by Ampol .
Final
Craven A Federation Cup
This was the fifth year contesting the Federation Cup , named the Craven A for sponsorship reasons.
Final
References
Current teams Former teams
NSW First Division NSW Super League NSW Premier League National Premier Leagues NSW