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1966 NSW First Division season
| Season |
|---|
| Hakoah |
| APIA Leichhardt |
| 90 (regular season) + 7 (finals) |
| Brian Lincoln |
| John Giacometti (20) |
| 10,500 APIA v. Pan Hellenic (regular season) |
| ← 1965 1967 → |
The 1966 NSW First Division season was the tenth season of soccer in New South Wales under the administration of the NSW Federation of Soccer Clubs since its breakaway from the NSW Soccer Football Association in January 1957. The league once again played 18 rounds in the home and away regular season, beginning in March and ending in August. APIA Leichhardt finished first on the ladder to become regular season premiers for the second time after winning their first in 1964.
The finals series was primarily held throughout September with a four-team playoff series. For the first time a round robin was held between the top four clubs, culminating with a grand final between the top two placed teams. Hakoah defeated APIA Leichhardt in the decider.
The pre-season Ampol Cup was won for a first time by APIA Leichhardt.
Changes from last season:
- The division continued its ten-team league format.
- Polonia-North Side were relegated to NSW Second Division after one season back in the top league.
- Corinthian BESC were reinstated to the top division after one season in NSW Second Division.
| Club | Ground | Year formed | .mw-parser-output .tooltip-dotted{border-bottom:1px dotted;cursor:help}App | Debut | Last season(Finals) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A.P.I.A. | Lambert Park Sydney Sports Ground | 1954 | 10th | 1957 | 3rd (W) |
| Corinthian BESC | No fixed ground | 1957 | 2nd | 1964 | Div. II |
| Cumberland United | Mona Park | 1964 | 3rd | 1964 | 8th |
| Hakoah-Eastern Suburbs | Wentworth Park | 1939 | 10th | 1957 | 6th |
| Pan Hellenic | Wentworth Park | 1957 | 6th | 1961 | 9th |
| Prague | Sydney Athletics Field | 1950 | 10th | 1957 | 5th |
| St George-Budapest | Hurstville Oval | 1957 | 8th | 1959 | 2nd (RU) |
| South Coast United | Woonona Oval | 1958 | 9th | 1958 | 1st (PF) |
| South Sydney-Croatia | Arlington Oval | 1958 | 4th | 1963 | 7th |
| Yugal | Sydney Athletics Field | 1961 | 5th | 1962 | 4th (SF) |
| NSWSF First Division1966 Grand Final winners |
|---|
| Hakoah-Eastern SuburbsThird Title |
With the league expanding to twelve teams next competition, Second Division premiers Polonia-North Side were automatically promoted. It was decided that First Division wooden spooners, Corinthian BESC, would play-off against the second and third placed teams from the Second Division to earn the final two spots in the 1967 NSW First Division season.
The three-team play-off was contested over two matches with Canterbury receiving bye straight to the final match. Melita Eagles defeated Corinthians in the first match, gaining direct entry into First Division, leaving Corinthians with one last chance to remain in the top tier with the next match against the aforementioned Canterbury. However, Canterbury would win the match for final play-off spot, 1–0.
| Match | Team A | Score | Team B | Scorers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spot 1 | Corinthian BESC | 0–3 | Melita Eagles | McDonald 2, Jaros (Melita). |
| Spot 2 | Corinthian BESC | 0–1 | Canterbury | Rinos (C'bury). |
Soccer World reporters awarded stars out of six to players throughout the 18 rounds. The player with the highest stars was Brian Lincoln with 4.27. Only 10 players averaged four points or more. Below left is the list of all ten players and below right is the team of the year:
John Giacometti was the season's top goalscorer for the second year consecutively, with 20 goals. Below is a list of the top ten goalscorers for the season:
| Player | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| John Giacometti | APIA | 20 |
| George Yardley | St. George | 19 |
| Errol Freeme | South Coast | 13 |
| John Keddie | Cumberland | |
| Johnny Watkiss | APIA | |
| Johnny Warren | St. George | 12 |
| John Karyannis | Pan Hellenic | 11 |
| Herbert Ninaus | Hakoah | |
| Jim Harding | Hakoah | 9 |
| Joe Alagich | Yugal | 8 |
| Bill Kerklaan | APIA |
Below is a list of attendances by club:
| Rank | Club | Total attendance | Highest home attendance |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | APIA Leichhardt | 96,200 | 10,500 |
| 2 | Pan Hellenic | 82,200 | 8,100 |
| 3 | St. George-Budapest | 50,100 | 6,100 |
| 4 | Hakoah-Eastern Suburbs | 46,400 | 7,200 |
| 5 | Prague | 45,500 | 8,016 |
| 6 | Yugal | 40,000 | 4,700 |
| 7 | South Sydney-Croatia | 39,000 | 3,500 |
| 8 | South Coast United | 37,000 | 4,700 |
| 9 | Cumberland United | 30,600 | 5,025 |
| 10 | Corinthian BESC | 38,200 | 3,350 |
The season began with the tenth edition of the floodlit pre-season night series (ninth as the Ampol Cup), culminating with the double-header third place playoff and Final on 20 March in front of 8,700 spectators.
The event featured a group stage for the first time in its history, splitting the ten teams from First Division into two groups of five. The point scoring was also unique: 12 points for a win and 5 for draw with each goal scored also worth one point. APIA and Prague progressed from Group 1 as did Hakoah and Yugal from Group 2. The semi-finals, third place play-off and Final were all maintained from previous editions.
| Column 1 | Column 2 | Column 3 | Column 4 | Column 5 | Column 6 | Column 7 | Column 8 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Semi-finals | Finals | ||||||
| Hakoah | 2 | ||||||
| Prague | 0 | ||||||
| Hakoah | 0 | ||||||
| APIA | 1 | ||||||
| APIA | 3 | ||||||
| Yugal | 0 | Third place playoff | |||||
| Prague | 4 | ||||||
| Yugal | 0 |
- 1966 in Australian soccer
- 1966 NSWSF season
- 1966 NSW Federation Cup
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