All but 12 of the National Rugby League's (and its predecessors') 108 seasons had the premiers decided by the outcome of one final game, usually called a grand final. The minor premiership is determined by who finishes first at the end of the season before the finals. The premierships not decided by a grand final were determined by league ladder position. Since 1954 the grand final was officially sanctioned as the only way to determine the premiership, but it had been commonplace for decades before that.