by Sean Fagan of RL1908.com (An edited version of this article was first published in The Daily Telegraph on October 4, 2003 to coincide with the Roosters v Panthers NRL Grand Final.)

The 1943 premiership decider provided drama even before the kick-off.

Like most of the world's major cities of the world in September 1943, Sydney was a hive of war-time activity. An end to WW2 was still nowhere in sight.

The D-Day invasion at Normandy was nine months away and the Japanese loomed to Australia's north in Papua New Guinea and had sent mini-subs into Sydney Harbour.

Watching rugby league became a source of much-needed relief for many Sydneysiders and visitors. Thanks to a competition that was being played in a good spirit, with open and attacking football, the game was enjoying unprecedented success.

The previous year had been declared the best season ever, but 1943 surpassed all expectations. Record crowds flocked to the suburban grounds and the SCG's weekly ‘match-of-the-day'.

The New South Wales Rugby League (NSWRL) also conducted very popular benefit matches to aid the war effort and contribute to the services supporting the Australian Comforts Fund.

Games involving Army, Combined Services, Rest of NSW and others regularly drew 25,000 crowds to the SCG. These were serious matches with the best players in the game.

First graders such as Captain Len Smith played for Army and their club side (Newtown in his case).

The late withdrawal of players was a regular occurrence. Every club had men involved in the Fighting Services. Eastern Suburbs' Dick Dunn recalls: "We'd have players, sometimes myself, available one weekend and not available the next. Some weren't seen again until the following season. You just got on with the game."

If they could secure a leave pass, some players would travel on a Friday night mail train back to Sydney. Clubs hoped their star players would appear, but last minute replacements were often needed.

Even club jerseys were affected as war-time resources became scarce. War coupons were needed to buy materials and the rugby-style hooped jerseys quickly disappeared. Except for Newtown (always in royal blue) all the clubs eventually adopted the simple V-style stitched over a plain jersey. At St George the red-V became an institution.

The foundation clubs of Newtown, Balmain and North Sydney were the front-runners in the bumper 1943 season. A play-off for the Minor Premiership between Norths and the Tigers (then known as the Watersiders) drew a premiership record crowd of 47,230 at the SCG.

By the time the eventual Grand Finalists of Newtown and North Sydney were decided, the NSWRL realised the ground wouldn't be able to hold all those wanting to go. They added 3,000 extra seats on the field in front of the Ladies Stand. It was never going to be enough, especially with service members allowed into the ground for free.

Special tram services ran from Circular Quay and Central railway station from mid-morning. At lunch-time city workers left their offices, and factory hands and servicemen finished for the day. Driver Avenue, outside the SCG, became a sea of people.

As the two teams mingled at the rear of the Members Stand awaiting the team-photo shoot at 1.45pm, police shut the grandstand gates. The great Dally Messenger soon arrived and, according to witnesses "spent some time outside before he was recognised and admitted". Messenger and the other pioneers of the game were to be presented to the crowd before the match.

Entry to the Hill was soon as the ‘house full' signs went up. The more resourceful did not give up. Newspapermen reported seeing "hundreds scale the walls in commando style" - no doubt military training proving useful. When a lorry carrying much needed extra refreshments arrived, as soon as the gates were ajar dozens of men sprinted through the opening and disappeared into the back of the stands.

Long before kick-off, men appeared on the roofs of the stands and refreshment booths. Perched from their daring positions they would have seen the thousands of servicemen who had set themselves up at the back of the Sydney Showground to gain a view.

While the northern Paddington Hill was full, its patrons were able to sit. At the Randwick end the spectators stood shoulder to shoulder on the famous Hill. Many bartered for suddenly valuable timber crates and other containers to stand upon. It wasn't the only money exchange going on.

There were no Saturday race meetings at the time, and enterprising bookies set boards up inside the football ground. The police and SCG management had their hands full with the crowd and did not notice. A double on the the first try scorer for each team was a popular bet.

As the anticipation escalated, the team captains expressed their final views. Norths' Frank Hyde, destined for a radio career, spoke fairly: "We will endeavour to give the big crowd the football it expects. We hope to play the same type of game that got us to the grand final and must be given a good chance of winning."

The Newtown captain - and Sydney policeman - Frank Farrell was more direct: "We think we are certain to win".

The War, though, had one more trick to play. Norths lost star lock forward Harry Taylor to the military. He had been called to Brisbane by the Army to prepare for shipping to New Guinea.

Rumours swept the SCG that the military police had caught him outside the ground after being tipped off by Newtown officials as to his whereabouts. Norths had hopes of his return to Sydney for the match, and plenty of people claimed to have seen Taylor there.

The more prosaic truth is that Taylor was in camp at Brisbane on Grand Final day. He wasn't going AWOL, nor would he get (or ask for) a leave pass at what was an obviously important staging point. Without even a radio in camp, Taylor had to read the result the next day in the newspaper.

The North Sydney players put on their red jerseys emblazoned with a black V, and waited in vain for Taylor to appear. With a reshuffled team they took the field.

Bluebags' forward Charles Cahill describes that day as "a great thrill to walk onto that SCG ground and the cacophony of noise as you walked into it - marvellous. We hadn't beaten Norths all year. We employed some tactics to offset where they were getting advantages. In the previous matches they were short kicking over our heads and getting to the ball, regaining possession and putting us under pressure."

"Our coach Arthur Folwell told our fullback Tom Kirk to stand up about 10 metres and Paddy Bugden and myself, Paddy was the half-back, to drop back when Norths had possession of the ball. Norths kept kicking and we kept running it back and putting them under pressure. We led 14-0 or 14-7 at half time and finished up winning 35-7".

Norths' captain Frank Hyde still insists: "Everything was against us - the referee was against us, the touch judges were against us, the ball boys were against us. The ball bounced the wrong way every time we went to play it, and even with all that, they only won by the skin of their teeth...34 to 7!"

While the crowd that day was officially posted as 60,992 Newtown's Test centre Len Smith recalled in an interview in the late 1990s that it was closer to 75,000. Smith remained adamant the crowd was as large as the 78,065 at the 1965 Saints v Souths Grand Final.

Smith and team mate Herb Narvo were the star players in 1944 as Newtown headed toward back-to-back titles.

A few days before the Grand Final against Balmain, Smith and Narvo received new instructions - they were called away for military duties. In their absence Newtown lost to Balmain, and Captain Len Smith went to New Guinea.