1981 National Soccer League


The National Soccer League 1981 season was the fifth season of the Australian National Soccer League. The league was known as the Philips Soccer League in a sponsorship arrangement with Dutch electronics company Philips. The champions were Sydney Slickers, winning their third title.

Changes from 1980

The league increased from 14 to 16 teams prior to the 1981 season. Despite finishing second last—ordinarily a relegation position—in 1980, West Adelaide were retained for 1981. Wooden-spooner St George were the only team to be relegated, with three new teams being introduced - Preston Makedonia Sydney Olympic and Wollongong City.
Prior to the season commencing, in what was described as "Australianisation" of the national league, nicknames were imposed on the clubs, some of which were not popular with the teams themselves. Marconi President, Tony Labbozzetta expressed his dislike of the enforced nickname Leopards, suggesting "Call us Datsun", referring to a naming rights deal the club had made with the Japanese carmaker. Along with the new nicknames, new macho logos were introduced. John Clark, a marketing executive at the Australian Soccer Federation, claimed that "we are not trying to take ethnicism out of soccer" and that they were trying to appeal to boys "not following in their fathers' footsteps, boys now into space invaders, Buck Rogers in the 25th century, who aren't following soccer."
The league consisted of a double round-robin format, played between February and September. The league was required to finish by the end of September due to Australia's hosting of the 1981 FIFA World Youth Championship in October. Unlike the 1980 season, a post-season finals series was not held and the league championship was awarded to the team at the top of the table. The final series was reintroduced the following year.

Teams

Team
Other names		CityStadium
Adelaide Giants
Adelaide City		AdelaideOlympic Sports Field
Hindmarsh Stadium
Adelaide Hawks
West Adelaide		AdelaideHindmarsh Stadium
Blacktown Demons
Blacktown City		SydneyGabbie Stadium
Brisbane Gladiators
Brisbane City		BrisbaneSpencer Park
Ballymore
Brisbane LionsBrisbaneRichlands Stadium
Canberra Arrows
Canberra City		CanberraBruce Stadium
Footscray Eagles
Footscray JUST		MelbourneSchintler Reserve
Heidelberg WarriorsMelbourneOlympic Park
Leichhardt Strikers
APIA Leichhardt		SydneyLambert Park
Marconi-Datsun Leopards
Marconi Stallions		SydneyMarconi Stadium
Newcastle KB RaidersNewcastleInternational Sports Centre
Preston Rams
Preston Makedonia		MelbourneConnor Reserve
South Melbourne Gunners
South Melbourne Hellas		MelbourneMiddle Park
Sydney OlympiansSydney OlympicSydneyPratten Park
Sydney Slickers
Sydney City		SydneySydney Athletic Field
St George Stadium
Wollongong Wolves
Wollongong City		WollongongWollongong Showground

League table

Results

Individual awards