Group 9 is a rugby league competition based in Wagga Wagga, New South Wales, Australia, and surrounding areas. The competition is played in five grades, with these being Under 17s, Under 19s, Women's League-Tag, Reserve-Grade and First-Grade. Currently a home and away season consisting of sixteen rounds is played. The best four teams then play-off according to the Page–McIntyre system, culminating in the Group 9 Grand final, which is traditionally held at McDonald's Park in Wagga Wagga. History 1920s-1950s: Foundations Group 9 Rugby League was formed at a meeting at the Grand Hotel, Harden, following a four-hour meeting on 26 April 1923, which finished at 12:20 am the following morning. The foundation clubs were Harden, Murrumburrah, Binalong, Young, Wambanumba, Monteagle, Bendick Murrell, Cootamundra, Junee, Wagga Wagga, Gundagai, Tumut, Adelong, West Wyalong, Barmedman, Griffith, Temora, Leeton, Ariah Park and Mildil. Competition in the early years of Group 9 consisted of various challenge type matches, and it was not until 1933 that regular inter-club competition commenced. 1960s-1980s: Murrumbidgee Breakaway and Reformation In 1966, the rebel Murrumbidgee Rugby League broke away from the competition, leading to four years of reshuffled boundaries from 1967 to 1970. New competitions formed were the Murrumbidgee Rugby League, Group 8/9, Group 9/20 and Riverina Zone 3. Temora and West Wyalong joined the Group 20 Rugby League during this period, leading to the 9/20 name, while other Group 9 clubs played in the Group 8/9 competition. In 1970, when the Group 9 and 20 competitions regained control of football in the district, West Wyalong remained in Group 20, while Temora returned and the Wagga Magpies and Kangaroos joined from Group 20. 1990s-present: Absorption of Group 13 and Decline After the Group 13 Rugby League competition collapsed in 1991, the Albury Blues (renamed Greater Southern Rams upon entry due to Tumut already being the Blues), Wagga Brothers, a merged outfit from Adelong and Batlow, and Tumbarumba, joined the competition. However, the competition declined from a peak of 14 clubs in the late 1990s to 9 clubs in 2022. Clubs to leave in this period included Adelong-Batlow (folded), Harden-Murrumburrah (George Tooke Shield), Tumbarumba (folded, then joined Murray Cup) and Cootamundra (George Tooke Shield). Turvey Park and Wagga Magpies also merged in 2005 to form the South City Bulls. Albury Thunder, the successor to Greater Southern Rams and Lavington Panthers, won a threepeat of titles from 2012 to 2014. Group 9's crisis