League Champions

In its first year the League played a full double round robin of games. But with more clubs joining that became impractical and so the Championship was replaced with the Senior Competitions. In 1901-02 the senior clubs resigned to form a separate league, and from 1902-03 the Senior Competitions were replaced with a two divisional system.
From 1905-06 the divisional system was done away with. Instead the clubs played intra-county full double round robins, and each organised separate inter-county games. As a result clubs did not play the same number of games and so table position was based on percentages ((wins+draws/2)/games played). The top four clubs then played each other in a Championship Play-Off to determine the championship. From 1930-31 the clubs standardised on the number of games played and percentages were done away with, but the Championship Play-Off was retained.
During World War I there was a ban on professional football and no games were played. During World War II professional football was also discontinued, the clubs playing in two unofficial county-based Wartime Emergency Leagues, with an inter-league playoff.
The league briefly returned to a two divisional system in 1962-63 and 1963-64, with no Championship Play-Offs in those seasons. From 1964-65 they went back to one division and expanded the Play-Offs to 16 teams. In 1973-74 they again went back to two divisions, replacing the Play-Offs with a complicated Club Championship, and then with the Premiership.
The League tried a three division system in 1991-92 and 1992-93, with second division clubs playing a quadruple round robin, but abandoned in for 1993-94.
From 1996 the league switched to a summer competition. As a result, the 1995-96 season was very short. In 1998 the Grand Final resurrected the Championship Playoff system used for most of the game's history. Based on the old Australian five team system the playoff series gave an easier passage to the higher placed teams in the League Ladder. In Season 2002 the playoffs were extended to the top six teams.

Since 1965 the Harry Sunderland Award has been given to the man of the match at firstly the Championship Final, then the Premiership Final, and now at the Super League Grand Final.

Super League Era

Two Divisions

One Division

Two Divisions

One Division

Wartime Emergency League

One Division

County Leagues

One Division

Two Divisions

One Division

County Leagues

One Division