Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. (also give it a birl) to give something a try, to make an attempt; cite 1984 ref. to sexual intercourse.

1920		Western Argus (Kalgoorlie, WA) 15 June 1/4: There are many other two-up phrases such as ‘Give them a burl’ (a good spin).
1924		(con. WWI) A.G. Pretty Gloss. of Sl. [...] in the A.I.F. 1921–1924 (rev. t/s) n.p.: birl. To ‘give it a birl’, a fair trail [sic]; sometimes a suggestion that a certain proceeding has gone far enough.
1947		D. Davin For the Rest of Our Lives 227: So while it was still ugly and they weren’t worrying I thought I’d give it a burl.
1959		G. Slatter Gun in My Hand 181: Might as well give it a birl.
1959		M. Brown ‘Wheelbarrow and the Whirlwind’ in Drake-Brockman West Coast Stories 136: Enough talk—we’ll give it a burl.
1968		D. O’Grady A Bottle of Sandwiches 40: Can’t say I’ve ever been there. Give it a burl?
1983		J. Byrell (con. 1959) Up the Cross 93: ‘I was wondering if you’d give it [i.e. the cultivation of cannabis] a burl’.
1984		Benjamin & Pearl Limericks Down Under 39: A dirty old man of Tarcutta / Was an unregenerate rutter; / He’d pester a girl / To give him a burl — / His devotion to rutting was utter.
1988		McGill Dict. of Kiwi Sl. 50/1: give it a birl/burl make an attempt; from causing the coin to spin in the game of two-up; also give it a go and give it a pop.
1990		J. Blackman Aussie Sl. Dict. 17: When you test drive a car you are buying, you generally take it for a burl around the block!
2000		Ozwords Apr. 2: It is also in First World War Australian military contexts that many Australian idioms are first recorded: his blood’s worth bottling, give it a burl, hop in for one’s chop, come a gutser, rough as bags.
2003		McGill Reed Dict. of N.Z. Sl. [as cit. 1988].

2. to stop doing something [? misreading].

1919

W.H. Downing Digger Dialects 14: burl — ‘To give it a burl’ — to cease.

(Aus.) to go out joy-riding in the family car, esp. when one falls foul of the police.

1924		Bunbury Herald (Aus.) 25 July 7/6: A burl along the roadway indicated its capability of attaining 25 miles per hour on a level stretch.
1986		R. Beckett Dinkum Aussie Dict. 28: Go for a burl: To take the family car out illegally for a high speed run involving the forces of law and order at some stage. After one has been for a burl one’s father ‘beats the shit’ out of one.