 | |
| Club information | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Northern Eagles Rugby League Football Club |
| Colours |  Maroon, Black, Red, White |
| Founded | 2000 |
| Exited | 2002 |
| Former details | |
| Competition | National Rugby League |
| 2002 | 9th of 15 |
 Team colours | |
| Records | |
| Most capped | 69 – Steve Menzies |
| Highest points scorer | 279 – Ben Walker |
The Northern Eagles were a rugby league team that competed in the National Rugby League (NRL) between 2000 and 2002. The club was formed during the rationalisation process of the NRL by forming a joint venture with the North Sydney Bears and the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles in 2000. The team shared home games between Brookvale Oval and Central Coast Stadium, Gosford, New South Wales.
Little success was had during three seasons (2000-2002), finishing 12th, 10th, and 9th, winning 30 of 76 games. Also, the new club's decision to play games in Gosford instead of the Bears home ground at North Sydney Oval alienated many North Sydney fans, despite North Sydney's planned move to the new Central Coast Stadium, which had been rebuilt for the Bears on the site of the old Grahame Park ground.[citation needed] In spite of this, the club provided more players for the 2001 State of Origin series' New South Wales team than any other club. The partnership folded in 2002, with Manly emerging as the stand-alone entity as the licence revert to them. The 2002 season was played under the Northern Eagles name, although effectively the club was the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles by another name due to Manly managing all affairs and pocketing all of the money offered by the NRL as an incentive to form joint ventures. Halfway through the season, the Eagles even abandoned playing games at Gosford, due to a sharp decline in attendances. The people of Gosford preferred to wait until a home-grown team was based there. The Manly Warringah Sea Eagles name and colours returned to the NRL in 2003.[1][2]
North Sydney now field a team in the NSW Cup, the competition immediately below NRL level, as a standalone club. They previously had feeder deals with both the South Sydney Rabbitohs and the Sydney Roosters. There are plans to again be part of the NRL in coming years as the Central Coast Bears or Perth Bears.
- ^ "Manly Sea Eagles and North Sydney Bears must merge into a 'behemoth' club, says Brad Fittler". Sporting News. 14 August 2021.
- ^ "Why the demise of the North Sydney Bears has Sydney Roosters officials worried". SMH. 12 April 2016.