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The Balmain Tigers were one of the NRL’s foundation clubs, being founded on January 23, 1908 before merging with the Western Suburbs Magpies to form the Wests Tigers before the 2000 season.
It only took the Tigers two seasons to get into a grand final, but the infamous forfeit against the South Sydney Rabbitohs left a bad taste.
Over the course of the next 90 seasons, they would win 11 premierships and during their golden age of the late 1980’s be in two of the best grand finals in rugby league history. This was particularly true of 1989 as they lost 19-14 to the Canberra Raiders
They have had some wonderful and ground-breaking players at the club and here is my top ten.
10. Gary Freeman
With only four seasons at Balmain, he is still considered one of the greats. Across 51 games, Freeman scored 19 tries and appeared in both the 1988 and 1989 grand finals.
Also probably one of the best Kiwi players to never win a premiership in the NSWRL, he played 45 times for New Zealand and also captained the national side on multiple occasions.
9. Tim Brasher
Brasher’s rookie year in 1989 proved fruitful as he made the grand final while still a schoolboy. Although this was the last time the Tigers would ever appear in a grand final it didn’t stop Brasher from having a great career.
He scored 82 tries, the fourth highest in the club history and be sixth in total club appearances with 185 games. He had 21 appearances for New South Wales and 14 Tests for Australia.
8. Steve Roach
Roach was a powerhouse and along with Paul Sironen and Wayne Pearce, made up the most intimidating forward pack Balmain ever had.
During his 186 games, Roach played in two grand finals (1988 and 1989) and was a destructive force. A hard hitting steamroller earned him the nickname of ‘Blocker’. He represented NSW 17 times and played in 15 Tests for Australia.
7. Garry Jack
Jack was the second longest serving member of Balmain with 244 games, just two behind the all-time record holder Paul Sironen. He played fullback a majority of his career and appeared in the clubs ’88 and ’89 grand final appearances. Jack scored 62 tries, played 17 games for NSW and 22 Tests for Australia.
6. Ben Elias
Elias is the third longest serving member of Balmain with 234 games. After debuting at Balmain in 1982, he switched from halfback to hooker and became one of the best in the game.
In 1988, he was selected as the Rugby League Week Player of the Year and is only one of two hookers to do so. He played in both grand finals and in 1990 captained NSW to their first series win against Queensland since 1986. He kicked 33 field goals, a record for a hooker and made 22 appearances for NSW along with 14 Tests for Australia.
5. Paul Sironen
Sironen holds the record for most appearances at the club with 246 games to his name. Debuting in 1986 he won the Dally M for Rookie of the Year before playing in the 1988 and 1989 grand finals.
Sironen scored one of the best grand final tries in the 1989 grand final to give the Tigers a 12-2 lead at half time, however it wouldn’t be enough to get the Tigers the win.
This didn’t stop him from going on to have a great career winning the Dally M Second Rower of the Year in 1990. Sironen represented NSW 14 times and played 21 Tests for Australia, including the 1990 Great Britain and France tour with the Kangaroos.
4. Wayne Pearce
Debuting in 1980, Pearce would quickly rise and take the reigns of the club becoming captain in 1982. His leadership got the team to the semi-finals in 1983 and after a long period of no finals, they made the finals every year until Pearce’s retirement in 1990.
He won the Rothman’s Medal in 1985 for Best and Fairest and was awarded the Order of Australia in 1988 for his contribution to League. Pearce captained the 1988 and 1989 grand final sides and is one of the greatest captains never to win a premiership.
With 193 games under his belt, he also represented NSW 16 times and made 19 appearances for Australia.
3. Arthur Patton
One of the quickest men on field, Patton was a try scoring machine for the club. In his 117 games, he scored 95 tries and won three premierships (1944 as captain, 1946 and 1947). He is also the all-time leading try scorer for Balmain – a record that will never be beaten after the merger.
2. Arthur Holloway
Coming from Glebe in 1909, Holloway was the most successful player/coache at the club. Although the Tigers lost the 1909 grand final by forfeit and Holloway left the club at the end of the 1911 season, he returned in 1915 and led the club to five premierships as a player and a player-coach from 1916 to 1920.
In 1916 he scored the team’s only try in the game. In total, he played 108 games for the club and score 46 tries. He represented NSW 27 times and played ten Tests for Australia and captained the side in the 1919 tour of New Zealand winning the series 2-1.
1. Keith Barnes
There is no doubt Barnes is the no.1 player in the history of Balmain. He holds plenty of records and is a member of the 200 club, being the fourth longest-serving member of the Tigers.
Barnes is the highest points scorer with 1519 (1 tries, 542 goals and one field goal). This includes the most points in a game with 22 and most goals in a game with 11.
Unfortunately, like the many greats of the club, he never tasted premiership glory, losing all his attempts in 1964, 65 and 66. He made 12 appearances for NSW and played 17 Tests for Australia.
He is the greatest man to ever pull on a Tigers’ jersey.
Do you agree with my list? Who is your favourite Balmain Tigers player? The next top ten will be the Western Suburbs Magpies.
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