Format
The format of the 2009 season is identical to that of the 2008 season. During the round-robin stage, played over 14 weeks, each team played every other team once, and played teams from their home country a second time, with one bye somewhere between Rounds 5–9. The top four teams from the round-robin stage progressed to the finals stage, played over three weeks in a Page-McIntyre System.
Round 1 matchups in 2008 were identical to the round 14 matchups in 2009. In addition, in trans-Tasman matches the home and away teams are switched around from 2008 to ensure that the teams get to play home and away games over two years: e.g., the Swifts hosted the Magic in round 3 in 2008, but the same game in 2009 will be hosted by the Magic. The 2009 season featured a "Rivalry Round" in Week 13, in which all matches were contested between teams from Australia and New Zealand. Round 4 matchups in 2008 were identical to the matchups in "Rivalry Round". The goals scored by each country were accumulated, with Australia winning the inaugural Rivalry Round Trophy.
Read more about this topic: 2009 ANZ Championship Season