an unbeaten run of 18 games, the most in the club's history. However they were deducted 37 premiership points for a gross salary cap breaches, the most points deducted in premiership history. That left the club with just four competition points attained from the two byes earlier in the season. Four more competition points followed since the salary cap scandal, all from wins in the last two rounds of the season. The New Zealand Warriors won the club's first Minor Premiership in its 8-year history and also made it to their first Grand Final. The Warriors were not in first place almost during the entire season, only taking top spot on the ladder at the conclusion of Round 26. John Hopoate ran 3,976 metres with the ball in 2002, more than any other player in the competition. At the end of the season NRL referees' coach Peter Louis resigned from his position. Bulldogs salary cap breach In mid-2002, the Canterbury club were found guilty of serious and systemic breaches of the salary cap. NRL Chief Executive David Gallop described the violation as "exceptional in both its size and its deliberate and ongoing nature". The club received a $500,000 fine, and was stripped of 37 of its 41 competition points accumulated up to Round 23. The latter action was particularly harmful, as the club were poised to take the Minor Premiership and had won 17 consecutive matches (the second highest in Australian club rugby league history at the time). The deduction of the 37 competition points meant that the Canterbury side would win the wooden spoon, as the South Sydney Rabbitohs had already accumulated 12 competition points by the end of Round 24. The deduction of Canterbury's points also enabled the Canberra Raiders to make the finals with a points differential of -170, the poorest such record of any finalist in the competition's history, and the Raiders only won one game outside of Canberra for the entire season. It also enabled the New Zealand Warriors to secure their first minor premiership in the club's history. Bold – Home game X – Bye Opponent for round listed above margin Ladder The Warriors received A$100,000 prize money for finishing the regular season as minor premiers. Finals series To decide the grand finalists from the top eight finishing teams, the NRL adopts the McIntyre final eight system. Coincidentally, the finalists for 2002 were almost