Season Summary
For this season video refereeing was introduced to rugby league for the first time. The Telstra Cup premiership was held over eighteen rounds. The season was dominated by the minor premiers, the Brisbane Broncos, who won 14 of their 18 matches, losing only to the Penrith Panthers, the Hunter Mariners and eventual runners-up, the Cronulla Sharks. The Grand Final was played at Brisbane's ANZ Stadium in front of 58,000 people; the ground record for that venue. The Broncos defeated the Sharks 26-8 to win their third premiership. The Auckland Warriors had teams in both the reserve grade and under-19 Grand Finals but lost both.
The winners in all grades were:
- First Grade: Brisbane Broncos
- Reserve Grade: Canterbury Bulldogs
- Under-19s: Penrith Panthers
- Under-17s: Brisbane Broncos
At the end of the season, an Australian team was selected from the Telstra Cup Premiership's clubs to play in the Super League Test series against Great Britain in England.
Read more about this topic: 1997 Super League (Australia) Season
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