2009 NRL Grand Final
The 2009 NRL Grand Final was the conclusive and premiership-deciding game of the NRL's 2009 Telstra Premiership season. Played on 4 October 2009 at Sydney's ANZ Stadium was contested between the Parramatta Eels and the Melbourne Storm, the latter competing in their 4th grand final in a row. That was later stripped from them for breaking the salary cap rule. It was also the first Grand Final to feature the two referee system, with Shayne Hayne and Tony Archer being the first referees to jointly officiate in an NRL Grand Final.
| 2009 NRL Grand Final | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
| Date | Sunday 4 October 2009 | ||||||||||||
| Stadium | ANZ Stadium | ||||||||||||
| Location | Sydney, NSW, Australia | ||||||||||||
| Clive Churchill Medallist | Billy Slater (MEL) | ||||||||||||
| National anthem | Mark Vincent | ||||||||||||
| Referee | Tony Archer Shayne Hayne Paul Holland (Touch Judge) David Abood (Touch Judge) | ||||||||||||
| Attendance | 82,538 | ||||||||||||
| Broadcast partners | |||||||||||||
| Broadcasters |
| ||||||||||||
| Commentators |
| ||||||||||||
The Melbourne Storm led 10–0 at halftime and fought off a Parramatta comeback to eventually win 23–16 and claim their third premiership since entering the competition. This title was later stripped from the club due to salary cap breaches. Melbourne went on to defeat the Leeds Rhinos, winners of the 2009 Super League Grand Final, in the 2010 World Club Challenge. The latter title was also stripped from the Melbourne club.