The 1980 National Soccer League season was the fourth season of the National Soccer League in Australia. The champions were Sydney City SC, their second title after winning the 1977 season (as Eastern Suburbs).
Teams
Fourteen teams competed in the league.
Stadiums and locations
- Note: Table lists in alphabetical order.
| Team | Location | Stadium | Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adelaide City | Adelaide (Norwood) | Olympic Sports Field | 8,000 |
| APIA Leichhardt | Sydney (Leichhardt) | Lambert Park | 7,000 |
| Blacktown City | Sydney (Seven Hills) | Gabbie Stadium | 5,000 |
| Brisbane City | Brisbane (Newmarket) | Spencer Park | 5,000 |
| Brisbane Lions | Brisbane (Inala) | Lions Stadium | 5,000 |
| Canberra City | Canberra | Canberra Stadium | 25,011 |
| Footscray JUST | Melbourne (Footscray) | Schintler Reserve | ? |
| Heidelberg United | Melbourne (Brunswick) | Olympic Village | 12,000 |
| Marconi Fairfield | Sydney (Bossley Park) | Marconi Stadium | 9,000 |
| Newcastle KB United | Newcastle | Newcastle International Sports Centre | 30,000 |
| South Melbourne | Melbourne (Middle Park) | Middle Park | 18,000 |
| St George-Budapest | Sydney (Mortdale) | St George Stadium | 12,000 |
| Sydney City | Sydney (Bondi) | ES Marks Athletics Field | 8,000 |
| West Adelaide | Adelaide (City of Adelaide) | Hindmarsh Stadium | 16,500 |
League table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sydney City (C) | 26 | 16 | 5 | 5 | 51 | 26 | +25 | 37 | Qualification to Finals series[a] |
| 2 | Heidelberg United | 26 | 15 | 6 | 5 | 55 | 33 | +22 | 36 | |
| 3 | South Melbourne | 26 | 15 | 5 | 6 | 42 | 21 | +21 | 35 | |
| 4 | Marconi Fairfield | 26 | 14 | 6 | 6 | 53 | 32 | +21 | 34 | |
| 5 | Adelaide City | 26 | 13 | 4 | 9 | 40 | 27 | +13 | 30 | |
| 6 | Newcastle KB United | 26 | 12 | 6 | 8 | 32 | 31 | +1 | 30 | |
| 7 | Brisbane Lions | 26 | 7 | 11 | 8 | 28 | 32 | −4 | 25 | |
| 8 | APIA Leichhardt | 26 | 8 | 7 | 11 | 27 | 35 | −8 | 23 | |
| 9 | Footscray JUST | 26 | 7 | 9 | 10 | 32 | 41 | −9 | 23 | |
| 10 | Canberra City | 26 | 7 | 7 | 12 | 34 | 33 | +1 | 21 | |
| 11 | Blacktown City | 26 | 9 | 3 | 14 | 34 | 55 | −21 | 21 | |
| 12 | Brisbane City | 26 | 4 | 10 | 12 | 29 | 36 | −7 | 18 | |
| 13 | West Adelaide | 26 | 7 | 3 | 16 | 24 | 46 | −22 | 17 | |
| 14 | St George-Budapest (R) | 26 | 5 | 4 | 17 | 32 | 65 | −33 | 14 | Relegated to the 1981 NSW State League |
Updated to match(es) played on unknown. Source: rsssf.com
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated
Notes:
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated
Notes:
- ^ The Finals series was not considered the championship for the 1980 National Soccer League.
Results
Finals series
The Finals series was not considered the championship for the 1980 National Soccer League.
| Semi-finals | Preliminary final | Grand final | |||||||||||
| 1 | Sydney City | 2 | 1 | Sydney City | 0 | ||||||||
| 2 | Heidelberg United | 0 | 2 | Heidelberg United | 4 | ||||||||
| 2 | Heidelberg United | 4 | |||||||||||
| 3 | South Melbourne | 1 | |||||||||||
| 3 | South Melbourne | 4 | |||||||||||
| 4 | Marconi Fairfield | 3 | |||||||||||
Semi-finals
| 11 October 1980 Qualifying final | Sydney City | 2–0 | Heidelberg United | Sydney |
| Report | Stadium: Sydney Sports Ground Attendance: 3,457 Referee: Tony Boskovic |
| 12 October 1980 Elimination final | South Melbourne | 4–3 | Marconi Fairfield | Melbourne |
|
Report | Stadium: Middle Park Soccer Stadium Attendance: 4,500 Referee: Chris Bambridge |
Preliminary final
| 18 October 1980 | Heidelberg United | 4–1 | South Melbourne | Melbourne |
| Report |
|
Stadium: Olympic Park Attendance: 7,700 Referee: Tim Davies |
Grand final
Season statistics
Top scorers
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals[1] |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Gary Cole
|
Heidelberg United | 21 |
| 2 | Mark Jankovics
|
Marconi Fairfield | 16 |
| 3 | Jamie Paton
|
Heidelberg United | 15 |
| 4 | Ken Boden
|
Sydney City | 13 |
| Eddie Krncevic
|
Marconi Fairfield | ||
| 6 | John Nyskohus
|
Adelaide City | 12 |
| 7 | Dennis Duarte
|
St George-Budapest | 11 |
| 8 | Murray Barnes
|
Sydney City | 10 |
| Branko Buljevic
|
South Melbourne | ||
| Phil O'Connor
|
APIA Leichhardt |
Hat-tricks
| Player | For | Against | Result | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gary Cole
|
Heidelberg United | West Adelaide | 4–2 (H)[2] | 16 March 1980 |
| Eddie Krncevic
|
Marconi Fairfield | Blacktown City | 9–0 (H)[2] | |
| Mark Jankovics
| ||||
| Gary Cole
|
Heidelberg United | APIA Leichhardt | 5–0 (A)[3] | 6 April 1980 |
| Murray Barnes
|
Sydney City | West Adelaide | 7–0 (H)[3] | |
| Gary Cole
|
Heidelberg United | Blacktown City | 3–1 (H)[4] | 13 April 1980 |
| John Nyskohus
|
Adelaide City | St George-Budapest | 4–1 (A)[4] | |
| Barry Kelso
|
Brisbane City | Heidelberg United | 7–0 (H)[5] | 27 July 1980 |
| Dennis Duarte
|
St George-Budapest | West Adelaide | 3–1 (H)[6] | 28 September 1980 |
Clean sheets
| Rank | Player | Club | Clean sheets |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Peter Laumets
|
South Melbourne | 12 |
| 2 | Allan Maher
|
Marconi Fairfield | 10 |
| 3 | Peter Marshall
|
Adelaide City | 8 |
| Greg Woodhouse
|
APIA Leichhardt | ||
| 5 |  Dennis Boland
|
Footscray JUST | 7 |
| 6 | Martyn Crook
|
West Adelaide | 6 |
 Tony Scalan
|
Brisbane Lions | ||
| Richard Wilson
|
Canberra City | ||
| 9 | Yakka Banovic
|
Heidelberg United | 5 |
| Phil Dando
|
Newcastle KB United |
Discipline
Player
- Most yellow cards: 7
Paul Ontong (Brisbane Lions)- Warren Turnbull (Blacktown City)
- Most red cards: 2
- Eddie Krncevic (Marconi Fairfield)
Club
- Most yellow cards: 30
- Footscray JUST
- St George-Budapest
- Fewest yellow cards: 13
- Heidelberg United
- Most red cards: 3
- West Adelaide
- Fewest red cards: 0
- Adelaide City
- Brisbane Lions
- Heidelberg United
Awards
Annual awards
| Award | Winner | Club |
|---|---|---|
| National Soccer League Player of the Year | Jim Hermiston
|
Brisbane Lions |
| National Soccer League Under 21 Player of the Year | John Spanos
|
Sydney City |
| National Soccer League Coach of the Year | John Margeritis
|
South Melbourne |
References
General
- Stock, Greg. "1980 National Soccer League Results". OzFootball.net.
Specific
- ^ Stock, Greg. "1980 National Soccer League Top Goalscorers". OzFootball.net.
- ^ a b "SOCCER Drubbing for PSL newcomer". The Canberra Times. Vol. 54, no. 16, 244. Australian Capital Territory, Australia. 17 March 1980. p. 16. Retrieved 29 November 2023 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ a b "WESTFIELD SCOREBOARD". Soccer World. 10 April 1980. p. 4.
- ^ a b "PHILIPS SOCCER LEAGUE Cole takes Heidelberg to top of ladder". The Canberra Times. Vol. 54, no. 16, 272. Australian Capital Territory, Australia. 14 April 1980. p. 18. Retrieved 29 November 2023 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "SOCCER". The Canberra Times. Vol. 54, no. 16, 377. Australian Capital Territory, Australia. 28 July 1980. p. 15. Retrieved 29 November 2023 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "Final effort for 3 top teams". The Canberra Times. Vol. 55, no. 16, 439. Australian Capital Territory, Australia. 28 September 1980. p. 23. Retrieved 29 November 2023 – via National Library of Australia.
