The NRL Grand Final is one of the biggest events on the Australian sporting calendar, and every year is a must watch match for rugby league fans and neutrals alike.
Often pitting two top teams against each other, there have been some herculean clashes to decide the premiership winners, some of which live long in the memory.
There has been no shortage of top deciders during the NRL era, which began in 1998, with some matches going to the wire or seeing remarkable comebacks.
The Sporting News has looked back through the archives, and chosen what we believe to be the top five Grand Finals in the NRL era.
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What are the top five NRL Grand Finals?
5. 2001 Grand Final - Newcastle Knights 30-24 Parramatta Eels: The Andrew Johns show
Whilst this Grand Final pitted first against third, on paper a record breaking Parramatta side should have won this game in a canter.
They were an attacking masterclass who just scored the most points in a regular season, most points in a season overall, and most tries in a season, all records that still stand today.
Yet this Eels side featuring Brett Hodgson, Jamie Lyon and Jason Taylor and who had swept all before them were torn apart by a superb Newcastle Knights performance in the first half, led by Andrew Johns.
He was a magician in the middle of the park, marshalling and orchestrating a perfect first half with his kicking and passing game, helping the Knights led 24-0 at half-time thanks to a double from Billy Peden and tries to Steve Simpson and Ben Kennedy.
Parramatta then also pulled off one of the great fightbacks, coming back from 30-6 down to cut the deficit to 30-24, but the Novocastrians held on to win their second premiership; and Johns won the Clive Churchill Medal for his commanding display.
4. 2016 - Cronulla Sharks 14-12 Melbourne Storm: "You can turn the light out now"
Cronulla's chronic underachievement was so renowned that the late Jack Gibson once remarked "waiting for Cronulla to win a premiership is like leaving the porch lamp on for Harold Holt", in reference to the Prime Minister who infamously disappeared.
It's a tag that hung around their neck for much of their 50 years of existence, with only three losing Grand Finals to show for their efforts; but it all came together in 2016 as they qualified for the Grand Final against minor premiers Melbourne Storm.
Despite this, they produced a top first half performance, putting relentless pressure on the Storm and heading into the break with an 8-0 lead thanks to a smart Ben Barba try from a scrum play.
But a Storm side with Slater, Smith and Cronk are never truly out of the contest, and their brilliant defence provided a platform for them to turn the game on its head with quick tries to Kenny Bromwich and Will Chambers.
Just when it seemed the Sharks would be caught in the net, Andrew Fifita barged and reached his way over the line to put the Sharks in front by two, and they held on in a dramatic final 10 minutes where Chambers infamously failed to recognise a wide open Cronk during a breakaway.
At the final siren, Ray Warren said a line now iconic to fans across the Shire: "you can turn the light out now!"
@nrlcreativeszn 🏆 NRL 2016 GRAND FINAL! CRONULLA SHARKS VS MELBOURNE STORM! — 🦈 After 50 Seasons in Rugby League, The Cronulla Sharks finally get within arms reach for the Title! — ‼️ The Final 5 Minutes were extrodinary! Cooper Cronk was in the open field with 2 minutes to go! — Both sides have another chance at History this weekend in the Prelim Finals! — ##NRL##NRLGRANDFINAL#NRLGF ##CRONULLASHARKS##UPUPCRONULLA##MELBOURNESTORM##MELBOURNE##CRONULLA##BENBARBA##RUGBY##RUGBYLEAGUE ♬ Last Hope (Slowed + Reverb) - Steve Ralph
3. 1999 - Melbourne Storm 20-18 St George Illawarra Dragons: New boys on the block pull off the comeback
Many weren't expecting a Melbourne side in the NRL to pull up many trees both on and off the pitch, so it was something of a surprise when they made it to the Grand Final in just their second year of existence.
It was also the first decider for joint venture St George Illawarra, who managed to qualify for the big dance despite finishing in 6th, and it was the Dragons who raced out to a 14-0 lead in the first half Craig Fitzgibbon pounced on a grubber and Nathan Blacklock scored a famous runaway try.
It looked like it would be their day in front of the biggest ever crowd at a rugby league match, but a botched try from Anthony Mundine early in the second half swung the momentum of the game, and the Storm were able to cut the deficit to six points as the game reached its conclusion.
Then Brett Kimmorley, whose kicking game had been on point for the Storm, sent a bomb up towards Craig Smith, who was collected head-high by Jamie Ainscough; Melbourne were awarded a penalty try and took a two point lead with five minutes to go.
They became the quickest expansion side to ever win an NRL Grand Final, and their comeback from 14 points down remained a record for over two decades.
2. 2015 - North Queensland Cowboys 17-16 Brisbane Broncos: First golden point Grand Final
The first all-Queensland Grand Final was always going to be special, but no one could have predicted the drama that would unfold at the end of this one.
After a first half that had four tries and end to end action, the second half featured only a penalty goal from the Broncos to extend their lead to four, followed by set after set of Cowboys pressure.
Then with the last play of the game, Michael Morgan found a gap and flicked a pass for Kyle Feldt to score in the corner to tie the scores and give Johnathan Thurston the chance to win the game with a tough conversion.
He took an age to compose himself, but his kick was mishit and came off the post, setting up a first ever golden point in the Grand Final.
It wouldn't last long, as Ben Hunt knocked on from the kick off, allowing Thurston the chance to bring the premiership to North Queensland with a field goal.
He did that and then won the Clive Churchill Medal for his efforts, breaking the hearts of Broncos fans and cementing this game into rugby league folklore as the Grand Final with the most dramatic ending.
1. 2023 - Penrith Panthers 26-24 Brisbane Broncos - Comebacks and three peats
"They were gone, they were absolutely gone," Andrew Johns said in the commentary box of the Penrith Panthers, and there probably wasn't a soul on earth who would have argued with him.
Penrith were searching to become the first team to win a three peat of premierships, whilst the Broncos were looking to win a first Grand Final since 2006.
Penrith were on top for much of the first half, but a late lapse in concentration allowed Brisbane to score a try to cut the margin to two points, before Ezra Mam took centre stage and scored three tries in 10 electric minutes, leaving Penrith 24-8 down and needing to pull off the biggest comeback in Grand Final history.
They looked dead and buried with their three peat dreams in tatters. No one told Nathan Cleary, though.
His linebreak help set up a Moses Leota try, before a 40/20 helped camp the Panthers in the Broncos half; Stephen Crichton also produced some big moments, scoring a try in the 67th minute to bring the score back to 24-20.
Penrith had the momentum, and Cleary kept it that way by catching an Adam Reynolds drop out on the full, piling on the pressure.
Then in the 76th minute, he stepped his way past four Brisbane defenders to score a try under the posts, wrapping up the most unbelievable 25 minutes of rugby league from a player and the biggest ever Grand Final comeback.
It cemented Penrith's status as the greatest team in the modern era, and gave Cleary his second Clive Churchill Medal, and it is our pick for the greatest Grand Final in the NRL era.
