2020 NRL season
The 2020 NRL season is the 113th season of professional rugby league in Australia and the 23rd season run by the National Rugby League.
Teams
The lineup of teams remained unchanged for the 14th consecutive year.| Colours | Club | Season | Home ground | Head coach | Captain |
| Brisbane Broncos | 33rd season | Suncorp Stadium | Anthony Seibold | Alex Glenn | |
| Canberra Raiders | 39th season | GIO Stadium Canberra, Campbelltown Stadium | Ricky Stuart | Jarrod Croker & Josh Hodgson | |
| Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs | 86th season | ANZ Stadium, Belmore Sports Ground, Bankwest Stadium | → Steve Georgallis | Josh Jackson | |
| Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks | 54th season | Netstrata Jubilee Stadium, Bankwest Stadium | John Morris | Wade Graham | |
| Gold Coast Titans | 14th season | Cbus Super Stadium, Suncorp Stadium | Justin Holbrook | Kevin Proctor | |
| Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles | 71st season | Lottoland, Central Coast Stadium | Des Hasler | Daly Cherry-Evans | |
| Melbourne Storm | 23rd season | AAMI Park, Sunshine Coast Stadium | Craig Bellamy | Cameron Smith | |
| Newcastle Knights | 33rd season | McDonald Jones Stadium, Central Coast Stadium | Adam O'Brien | Mitchell Pearce | |
| New Zealand Warriors | 26th season | Mt. Smart Stadium, Central Coast Stadium | → Todd Payten | Roger Tuivasa-Sheck | |
| North Queensland Cowboys | 26th season | Queensland Country Bank Stadium | → Josh Hannay | Michael Morgan | |
| Parramatta Eels | 74th season | Bankwest Stadium | Brad Arthur | Clint Gutherson | |
| Penrith Panthers | 54th season | Panthers Stadium, Campbelltown Stadium | Ivan Cleary | James Tamou | |
| South Sydney Rabbitohs | 111th season | ANZ Stadium & Bankwest Stadium | Wayne Bennett | Adam Reynolds | |
| St. George Illawarra Dragons | 22nd season | Netstrata Jubilee Stadium, WIN Stadium, Campbelltown Stadium | Paul McGregor | Cameron McInnes | |
| Sydney Roosters | 113th season | Sydney Cricket Ground, Bankwest Stadium | Trent Robinson | Jake Friend & Boyd Cordner | |
| Wests Tigers | 21st season | Leichhardt Oval, Campbelltown Stadium, Bankwest Stadium | Michael Maguire | Moses Mbye & Benji Marshall |
; Notes
Pre-season
The pre-season featured a returning Nines competition held at HBF Park in Perth on 14 & 15 February, replacing the competition previously held in Auckland. The All Stars match was played on 22 February at Cbus Super Stadium, returning to the contest's original venue. The 2020 World Club Challenge saw the NRL premiers Sydney Roosters defeat the Super League champions St. Helens, making them the first club to win consecutive World Club Challenges.Regular season
The NRL announced that the Grand Final would be hosted at the Sydney Cricket Ground while the main venue for the decider, ANZ Stadium, undergoes an $810m redevelopment. The last Grand Final to be played at the SCG was in 1987.State of Origin is scheduled to be played in Adelaide for the first time, with Game 1 of the 2020 series to be played at Adelaide Oval, but could possibly be scrapped due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic
The 2020 season was disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, which was formally declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization on 11 March 2020, one day prior to the scheduled start of the premiership season. Restrictions imposed by the different state governments related to social distancing, lockdowns of non-essential services which lasted for three months across the country, and border controls for interstate and international travel, all had significant effects on the completion of the 2020 season.Fixture
Prior to the recommencement of the season, the NRL announced the fixture would be shortened from 24 matches per team to 20, which each team playing each other once, and an additional five teams for a second time. The season had commenced on 12 March as originally scheduled; but as restrictions, followed for periods of formal quarantine, were introduced on interstate travel, the season was suspended after round two.The round two match between the Sydney Roosters and Manly Warringah Sea Eagles, which was originally meant to be played at Central Coast Stadium, was shifted to Leichhardt Oval.
The new draw was released on 21 May, with just six venues used between Rounds 3 to 7. The Warriors moved to Gosford to play at Central Coast Stadium, the Titans played home games at Suncorp Stadium with the Broncos, and the NSW teams and Canberra were divided between Bankwest Stadium, Campbelltown Stadium, and Central Coast Stadium in a way that no stadium hosts more than one match in a day. The Cowboys and Storm continued to host games at their normal home grounds, Queensland Country Bank Stadium and AAMI Park respectively. From round eight, all teams bar the Storm and Warriors were permitted to return to their home grounds; in the Storm's case, a second wave of COVID-19 cases in Victoria forced the team to evacuate the state and set up camp on the Sunshine Coast, the home of their netball sister side the Sunshine Coast Lightning, for an indefinite period.
Opening round
The first round of play continued almost unimpeded, although crowd numbers were impacted by fears surrounding the virus.International restrictions on travel made in New Zealand, whereby all arrivals would be required to self-isolate for two weeks, resulted in the New Zealand Warriors temporarily setting up base in Kingscliff, New South Wales, having already come to Australia to play their Round 1 match. Their Round 2 game against Canberra was played at Cbus Super Stadium on the Gold Coast, instead of at the Warriors' home ground in Auckland.
Crowds
Government restrictions on gatherings meant that, starting in Round 2, crowds were locked out of senior NRL matches for the first time in the code's history. State governments gradually allowed crowds, often small and restricted in size, into games, starting immediately from Round 5 in New South Wales, and from Round 6 in Queensland.Season suspension
During Round 2, speculation that the season would be suspended, if not cancelled, grew. Circumstances surrounding the virus were evolving at a rapid rate, and the future beyond Round 2 was unknown. Many ideas to ensure the season could continue, including moving all players and matches to a single location in Central Queensland where they could continue to play in self-isolation.On 23 March, the NRL suspended the season indefinitely for the first time in the competition's history, in response to tightening government restrictions to slow the spread of COVID-19. In the following weeks, matches that were scheduled to be played at regional venues were cancelled, as was the Magic Round.
Season resumption
On 9 April, the NRL announced its intentions to restart the competition on 28 May, with most details still to be determined. The decision was one of three recommendations to come out of Project Apollo, which was created by the NRL's innovations committee to analyse potential solutions to restart the season. The other recommendations included ensuring that a full State of Origin series be played, and keeping with a one-match grand final. However, the NRL would need Federal and State governments, as well as broadcasters Fox and Nine, on board with the plan. The structure of the restarted season would also largely depend on what government restrictions were in place by the end of May.By 22 April, the NRL had obtained government approval to restart the season on 28 May. On 28 April 2020, the NRL announced that the competition would be a 20-round competition, which would allow each team to play each other once with 5 extra fixtures. Points earned in the first two rounds will still be counted. State of Origin will now be played in November after the season's conclusion, while the Grand Final will now be played on 25 October at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
During late April and early May, general government restrictions began to ease in Australia due to successful efforts to slow the spread of COVID-19. The Queensland State Government has allowed the three Queensland-based sides to train and play at home, the announcement meaning they will not have to base themselves in New South Wales. The Melbourne Storm were forced to move to Albury in NSW to begin their training, with Victoria's government waiting longer to begin easing restrictions, but were able to return to AAMI Park the following week. On 2 May, the New Zealand Warriors were permitted by both Federal governments to enter Australia the following day. They entered two weeks of self-isolation in the regional city of Tamworth, where they were permitted to train to avoid any unfair disadvantage. Current international travel restrictions mean the side will have to remain in Australia for an indefinite period of time, however talks of a Trans-Tasman 'bubble', in which travel between Australia and New Zealand will be exclusively permitted, leaves the possibility open for the Warriors to return to New Zealand and play home matches there later in the season.
Club medical restrictions
During the pandemic, the NRL brought in strict new biosecurity measures to protect those in the game, including a code-wide request that players be vaccinated against the common flu, as "any player that has any respiratory illness... potentially will take the whole team out." The NSW Government did not enforce the compulsory vaccination agreement, whereas the Queensland Government stood by the vaccination measures previously agreed to by the NRL that 100% of players would be flu-vaccinated prior to the competition restarting. Only players who had been vaccinated, or had genuine medical grounds exempting them, were permitted to play or train in Queensland.Rule changes
It was announced that the remainder of the games would be played with just one referee. The referees threatened to strike as a result of this. However, an agreement was reached on 22 May for the one-ref system to be used.Results
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | F1 | F2 | F3 | GF |
| Brisbane Broncos | NQL 7 | SOU 4 | PAR 28 | SYD 59 | MAN 2 | NEW 21 | GCT 18 | NZL 10 | CBY 18 | WTI 48 | MEL 38 | CRO 10 | SOU | CAN | ||||||||||
| Canberra Raiders | GCT 18 | NZL 14 | MEL 16 | NEW 16 | WTI 8 | MAN 8 | PAR 1* | SGI 6 | MEL 6 | SYD 4 | SOU 6 | NQL 2 | PEN | BRI | ||||||||||
| Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs | PAR 6 | NQL 8 | MAN 26 | SGI 20 | SYD 36 | CRO 2 | WTI 28 | SOU 16 | BRI 18 | SGI 6 | NEW 6 | PAR 2 | MEL | WTI | ||||||||||
| Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks | SOU 4 | MEL 2 | WTI 12 | NQL 10 | SGI 14 | CBY 2 | MAN 18 | GCT 30 | PEN 32 | NZL 36 | SGI 4 | BRI 10 | PAR | GCT | ||||||||||
| Gold Coast Titans | CAN 18 | PAR 40 | NQL 30 | WTI 5 | SOU 20 | SGI 12 | BRI 18 | CRO 30 | NZL 4 | MEL 36 | PEN 8 | SYD 6 | NQL | CRO | ||||||||||
| Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles | MEL 14 | SYD 1 | CBY 26 | PAR 3 | BRI 2 | CAN 8 | CRO 18 | NEW 2 | SGI 30 | PAR 4 | NQL 12 | PEN 30 | NZL | NEW | ||||||||||
| Melbourne Storm | MAN 14 | CRO 2 | CAN 16 | SOU 14 | NEW 14 | PEN 7 | NZL 44 | SYD 2* | CAN 6 | GCT 36 | BRI 38 | NEW 10 | CBY | SYD | ||||||||||
| Newcastle Knights | NZL 20 | WTI 18 | PEN 0* | CAN 16 | MEL 14 | BRI 21 | NQL 12 | MAN 2 | PAR 6 | SOU 2 | CBY 6 | MEL 10 | WTI | MAN | ||||||||||
| New Zealand Warriors | NEW 20 | CAN 14 | SGI 18 | PEN 26 | NQL 11 | SOU 28 | MEL 44 | BRI 10 | GCT 4 | CRO 36 | SYD 8 | WTI 6 | MAN | PEN | ||||||||||
| North Queensland Cowboys | BRI 7 | CBY 8 | GCT 30 | CRO 10 | NZL 11 | WTI 16 | NEW 12 | PAR 38 | SYD 26 | PEN 12 | MAN 12 | CAN 2 | GCT | SOU | ||||||||||
| Parramatta Eels | CBY 6 | GCT 40 | BRI 28 | MAN 3 | PEN 6 | SYD 14 | CAN 1* | NQL 38 | NEW 6 | MAN 4 | WTI 10 | CBY 2 | CRO | SGI | ||||||||||
| Penrith Panthers | SYD 6 | SGI 4 | NEW 0* | NZL 26 | PAR 6 | MEL 7 | SOU 8 | WTI 7 | CRO 32 | NQL 12 | GCT 8 | MAN 30 | CAN | NZL | ||||||||||
| South Sydney Rabbitohs | CRO 4 | BRI 4 | SYD 16 | MEL 14 | GCT 20 | NZL 28 | PEN 8 | CBY 16 | WTI 8 | NEW 2 | CAN 6 | SGI 8 | BRI | NQL | ||||||||||
| St. George Illawarra Dragons | WTI 10 | PEN 4 | NZL 18 | CBY 20 | CRO 14 | GCT 12 | SYD 14 | CAN 6 | MAN 30 | CBY 6 | CRO 4 | SOU 8 | SYD | PAR | ||||||||||
| Sydney Roosters | PEN 6 | MAN 1 | SOU 16 | BRI 59 | CBY 36 | PAR 14 | SGI 14 | MEL 2* | NQL 26 | CAN 4 | NZL 8 | GCT 6 | SGI | MEL | ||||||||||
| Wests Tigers | SGI 10 | NEW 18 | CRO 12 | GCT 5 | CAN 8 | NQL 16 | CBY 28 | PEN 7 | SOU 8 | BRI 48 | PAR 10 | NZL 6 | NEW | CBY | ||||||||||
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | F1 | F2 | F3 | GF |
Bold – Home game
X – Bye
* – Golden point game
Opponent for round listed above margin
Ladder
Ladder progression
- Numbers highlighted in green indicate that the team finished the round inside the top 8.
- Numbers highlighted in blue indicates the team finished first on the ladder in that round.
- Numbers highlighted in red indicates the team finished last place on the ladder in that round.
- Underlined numbers indicate that the team had a bye during that round.
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | |
| 1 | Penrith Panthers | 2 | 4 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 9 | 11 | 13 | 15 | 17 | 19 | 21 | ||||||||
| 2 | Melbourne Storm | 2 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 14 | 16 | 18 | 20 | ||||||||
| 3 | Parramatta Eels | 2 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 10 | 12 | 14 | 16 | 16 | 18 | 20 | ||||||||
| 4 | Sydney Roosters | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 10 | 12 | 12 | 14 | 16 | ||||||||
| 5 | Canberra Raiders | 2 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 10 | 10 | 12 | 14 | 16 | ||||||||
| 6 | Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 14 | ||||||||
| 7 | Newcastle Knights | 2 | 4 | 5 | 7 | 7 | 9 | 9 | 11 | 11 | 13 | 13 | 13 | ||||||||
| 8 | South Sydney Rabbitohs | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 12 | ||||||||
| 9 | Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles | 0 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 12 | ||||||||
| 10 | Wests Tigers | 2 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 10 | 10 | 10 | ||||||||
| 11 | St. George Illawarra Dragons | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 8 | 8 | ||||||||
| 12 | New Zealand Warriors | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 8 | ||||||||
| 13 | North Queensland Cowboys | 0 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | ||||||||
| 14 | Gold Coast Titans | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | ||||||||
| 15 | Brisbane Broncos | 2 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | ||||||||
| 16 | Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 4 |
2020 Transfers
Players
Source:| Player | 2019 Club | 2020 Club |
| Shaun Fensom | Brisbane Broncos | Retirement |
| Matt Gillett | Brisbane Broncos | Retirement |
| Andrew McCullough | Brisbane Broncos | Newcastle Knights |
| Kodi Nikorima | Brisbane Broncos | New Zealand Warriors |
| James Roberts | Brisbane Broncos | South Sydney Rabbitohs |
| Jaydn Su'A | Brisbane Broncos | South Sydney Rabbitohs |
| Luke Bateman | Canberra Raiders | TBA |
| Ata Hingano | Canberra Raiders | Mackay Cutters |
| Joseph Leilua | Canberra Raiders | Wests Tigers |
| Aidan Sezer | Canberra Raiders | Super League: Huddersfield Giants |
| Fa'amanu Brown | Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs | TBA |
| Danny Fualalo | Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs | TBA |
| Corey Harawira-Naera | Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs | Canberra Raiders |
| Michael Lichaa | Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs | TBA |
| Rhyse Martin | Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs | Super League: Leeds Rhinos |
| Jayden Brailey | Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks | Newcastle Knights |
| Jayson Bukuya | Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks | Retirement |
| Kurt Capewell | Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks | Penrith Panthers |
| Sosaia Feki | Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks | Super League: Castleford Tigers |
| Paul Gallen | Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks | Retirement |
| Josh Morris | Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks | Sydney Roosters |
| Matt Prior | Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks | Super League: Leeds Rhinos |
| Michael Gordon | Gold Coast Titans | Retirement |
| Ryley Jacks | Gold Coast Titans | Melbourne Storm |
| Max King | Gold Coast Titans | Melbourne Storm |
| Leilani Latu | Gold Coast Titans | Super League: Warrington Wolves |
| Brenko Lee | Gold Coast Titans | Melbourne Storm |
| Will Matthews | Gold Coast Titans | Retirement |
| Jack Stockwell | Gold Coast Titans | Burleigh Bears |
| Kallum Watkins | Gold Coast Titans | Super League: Toronto Wolfpack |
| Kane Elgey | Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles | Retirement |
| Trent Hodkinson | Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles | Retirement |
| Apisai Koroisau | Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles | Penrith Panthers |
| Lloyd Perrett | Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles | Wynnum-Manly Seagulls |
| Kelepi Tanginoa | Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles | Super League: Wakefield Trinity |
| Will Chambers | Melbourne Storm | Suntory Sungoliath |
| Brodie Croft | Melbourne Storm | Brisbane Broncos |
| Curtis Scott | Melbourne Storm | Canberra Raiders |
| Joe Stimson | Melbourne Storm | Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs |
| Jamie Buhrer | Newcastle Knights | Retirement |
| James Gavet | Newcastle Knights | Super League: Huddersfield Giants |
| Shaun Kenny-Dowall | Newcastle Knights | Super League: Hull Kingston Rovers |
| Danny Levi | Newcastle Knights | Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles |
| Jesse Ramien | Newcastle Knights | Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks |
| Blake Ayshford | New Zealand Warriors | Retirement |
| Solomone Kata | New Zealand Warriors | ACT Brumbies |
| Sam Lisone | New Zealand Warriors | Gold Coast Titans |
| Issac Luke | New Zealand Warriors | St. George Illawarra Dragons |
| Ligi Sao | New Zealand Warriors | Super League: Hull F.C. |
| Kurt Baptiste | North Queensland Cowboys | Eastern Suburbs Tigers |
| Scott Bolton | North Queensland Cowboys | Retirement |
| Javid Bowen | North Queensland Cowboys | Northern Pride |
| Jordan Kahu | North Queensland Cowboys | Brisbane Broncos |
| Nene Macdonald | North Queensland Cowboys | Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks |
| Te Maire Martin | North Queensland Cowboys | Retirement |
| Matt Scott | North Queensland Cowboys | Retirement |
| Josh Hoffman | Parramatta Eels | Townsville Blackhawks |
| Tim Mannah | Parramatta Eels | Retirement |
| Manu Ma'u | Parramatta Eels | Super League: Hull F.C. |
| Tepai Moeroa | Parramatta Eels | New South Wales Waratahs |
| Waqa Blake | Penrith Panthers | Parramatta Eels |
| Reagan Campbell-Gillard | Penrith Panthers | Parramatta Eels |
| Wayde Egan | Penrith Panthers | New Zealand Warriors |
| Tyrell Fuimaono | Penrith Panthers | St. George Illawarra Dragons |
| Tim Grant | Penrith Panthers | Retirement |
| Sione Katoa | Penrith Panthers | Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs |
| James Maloney | Penrith Panthers | Super League: Catalans Dragons |
| Dallin Watene-Zelezniak | Penrith Panthers | Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs |
| Frank Winterstein | Penrith Panthers | Toulouse Olympique |
| George Burgess | South Sydney Rabbitohs | Super League: Wigan Warriors |
| Sam Burgess | South Sydney Rabbitohs | Retirement |
| Adam Doueihi | South Sydney Rabbitohs | Wests Tigers |
| Greg Inglis | South Sydney Rabbitohs | N/A |
| John Sutton | South Sydney Rabbitohs | Retirement |
| Kyle Turner | South Sydney Rabbitohs | Hiatus |
| Mitchell Allgood | St. George Illawarra Dragons | London Broncos |
| Patrick Kaufusi | St. George Illawarra Dragons | Townsville Blackhawks |
| Tim Lafai | St. George Illawarra Dragons | Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs |
| Jeremy Latimore | St. George Illawarra Dragons | Retirement |
| Luciano Leilua | St. George Illawarra Dragons | Wests Tigers |
| Lachlan Maranta | St. George Illawarra Dragons | Wynnum-Manly Seagulls |
| Gareth Widdop | St. George Illawarra Dragons | Super League: Warrington Wolves |
| Cooper Cronk | Sydney Roosters | Retirement |
| Latrell Mitchell | Sydney Roosters | South Sydney Rabbitohs |
| Zane Tetevano | Sydney Roosters | Penrith Panthers |
| Robbie Farah | Wests Tigers | Retirement |
| Mahe Fonua | Wests Tigers | Super League: Hull F.C. |
| Esan Marsters | Wests Tigers | North Queensland Cowboys |
| Ryan Matterson | Wests Tigers | Parramatta Eels |
| Ben Matulino | Wests Tigers | Retirement |
| Corey Thompson | Wests Tigers | Gold Coast Titans |
| Brayden Wiliame | Super League: Catalans Dragons | St. George Illawarra Dragons |
| Matt Frawley | Super League: Huddersfield Giants | Canberra Raiders |
| Trent Merrin | Super League: Leeds Rhinos | St. George Illawarra Dragons |
| Bryson Goodwin | Super League: Warrington Wolves | Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks |
| George Williams | Super League: Wigan Warriors | Canberra Raiders |
| Cameron King | Featherstone Rovers | Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks |
| Ben Te'o | Sunwolves | Brisbane Broncos |
| Valentine Holmes | New York Jets | North Queensland Cowboys |
| Young Tonumaipea | Hiatus | Gold Coast Titans |
| Zane Musgrove | N/A | Wests Tigers |
| Tony Williams | N/A | Manly-Warringah Sea Eagles |