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1996 Great Britain Lions tour

1996 Great Britain Lions tour
Date25 September 1996 – 1 November 1996
ManagerPhil Lowe
Coach(es)Phil Larder
Tour captain(s)Andy Farrell
Top point scorer(s)Bobbie Goulding (63)
Top try scorer(s)Karle Hammond (5)
Summary
P W D L
Total
10 4 1 5
Test match
5 2 0 3
Opponent
P W D L
 Papua New Guinea
1 1 0 0
 Fiji
1 1 0 0
 New Zealand
3 0 0 3
Tour chronology
Previous tour1992
Next tour2019

The 1996 Great Britain Lions tour was a rugby league tour by the Great Britain team which took place from September to November 1996. The tour included games in Papua New Guinea, Fiji and New Zealand, however due to the ongoing Super League war and with the Australian team under the control of the Australian Rugby League, the team did not play any matches in Australia. The tour was generally considered as a disaster, with Great Britain failing to win any games in New Zealand, and several players being sent home early from the tour in order to cut costs.

Touring squad

[edit]

Great Britain coach Phil Larder selected a 32-man squad to take on the tour. A notable omission from the squad was Martin Offiah, who took part in the previous three Great Britain tours, but had told Larder he did not have the enthusiasm for another six-week tour.[1] Several changes were made to the initial squad selected, as Gary Connolly, Lee Jackson and Jason Robinson were informed they would not be allowed to play due to their contracts with the ARL.[2] There were also a number of other withdrawals, with John Bentley returning to rugby union, and Shaun Edwards, Paul Newlove and Steve McNamara all ruled out due to injury.[3]

Former Wigan second row forward Denis Betts, who was playing with the New Zealand-based Auckland Warriors in the Australian Rugby League premiership, made history with his selection. The 25 test veteran became the first player selected to tour while playing in the Australian premiership and not in the English premiership.

Larder's assistant coaches on the tour were Clive Griffiths and Gary Hetherington and the tour manager was Phil Lowe. Andy Farrell was appointed as the tour captain, with Denis Betts named as vice-captain.

Prior to the Second Test against New Zealand, 11 players in the squad were sent home early from the tour as a cost-cutting measure.[4][a]

Name Club Position Appearances Tests Tries Goals DGs Points
Denis Betts (vc) Auckland Warriors Second-row 6 5 3 0 0 12
David Bradbury Oldham Second-row 4 0 2 0 0 8
Paul Broadbent Sheffield Eagles Prop 6 5 0 0 0 0
Mick Cassidy Wigan Warriors Second-row 5 1 2 0 0 8
Jason Critchley Keighley Cougars Wing 3 0 1 0 0 4
Keiron Cunningham St Helens Hooker 6 5 2 0 0 8
Bernard Dwyer Bradford Bulls Prop 4 1 1 0 0 4
Andy Farrell (c) Wigan Warriors Loose forward 6 5 1 0 0 4
Bobbie Goulding St Helens Scrum-half 6 5 4 23 1 63
Karle Hammond St Helens Stand-off 6 2 5 0 0 20
Neil Harmon Leeds Rhinos Prop 4 0 0 0 0 0
Iestyn Harris Warrington Wolves Stand-off 6 5 0 3 0 6
Joey Hayes St Helens Wing 3 1 2 0 0 8
Alan Hunte St Helens Wing 6 5 4 0 0 16
Chris Joynt St Helens Second-row 6 4 0 0 0 0
James Lowes Bradford Bulls Hooker 4 0 2 0 0 8
Barrie-Jon Mather Western Reds Centre 5 2 1 0 0 4
Nathan McAvoy Salford Red Devils Wing 1 0 0 0 0 0
Brian McDermott Bradford Bulls Prop 4 1 0 0 0 0
Steve Molloy Featherstone Rovers Prop 6 2 0 0 0 0
Adrian Morley Leeds Rhinos Second-row 6 2 1 0 0 4
Terry O'Connor Wigan Warriors Prop 6 4 0 0 0 0
Rowland Phillips Workington Town Loose forward 4 1 0 0 0 0
Daryl Powell Keighley Cougars Centre 7 5 3 0 0 12
Steve Prescott St Helens Fullback 4 0 1 17 0 38
Kris Radlinski Wigan Warriors Fullback 6 5 2 0 0 8
Jon Roper Warrington Wolves Wing 3 0 0 0 0 0
Paul Sculthorpe Warrington Wolves Loose forward 6 5 0 0 0 0
Keith Senior Sheffield Eagles Centre 6 2 3 0 0 12
Tony Smith Castleford Tigers Scrum-half 5 2 4 0 0 16
Stuart Spruce Bradford Bulls Fullback 6 5 3 0 0 12
Anthony Sullivan St Helens Wing 6 4 3 0 0 12
Tulsen Tollett London Broncos Stand-off 5 0 1 0 0 4

Papua New Guinea

[edit]
25 September 1996 PNG President's XIII 8 – 34 Great Britain Rebiamul Oval, Mount Hagen[6]
Tries:
Itam, Tiki
Goals: 		[7]
Tries:
Senior, Bradbury, Hammond, Lowes, Smith (2)
Goals:
Prescott (5)
Attendance: 2,059
Referee: Anthony Kuni (Port Moresby)
28 September 1996
Papua New Guinea  30 – 32  Great Britain
Tries:
Ben Biri (2)
Robert Sio
David Gomia
Stanley Gene
Adrian Lam
Goals:
Elias Paiyo (3) 		[8]
 Tries:
Kris Radlinski (2)
Anthony Sullivan
Bobbie Goulding
Keiron Cunningham

Goals:
Bobbie Goulding (6)
Lae Oval, Lae[9][10]
Attendance: 10,000
Referee: Steve Clark Australia
Papua New Guinea
Great Britain
FB 1 Robert Sio
RW 2 James Kops
RC 3 Marcus Bai
LC 4 Robert Tela
LW 5 David Gomia
FE 6 Stanley Gene
HB 7 Adrian Lam (c)
PR 8 Ben Biri
HK 9 Elias Paiyo
PR 10 Raymond Kahl
SR 11 Nande Yer
SR 12 David Westley
LF 13 Bruce Mamando
Substitutions:
IC 14 Simon Kundi
IC 15 Ruben Ruing
IC 16 Max Tiri
IC 17 Obert Batia
Coach:
FB 1 Stuart Spruce
RW 2 Joey Hayes
RC 3 Kris Radlinski
LC 4 Alan Hunte
LW 5 Anthony Sullivan
SO 6 Iestyn Harris
SH 7 Bobbie Goulding
PR 8 Paul Broadbent
HK 9 Keiron Cunningham
PR 10 Terry O'Connor
SR 11 Denis Betts
SR 12 Chris Joynt
LK 13 Andy Farrell (c)
Substitutions:
IC 14 Tony Smith
IC 15 Rowland Phillips
IC 16 Daryl Powell
IC 17 Paul Sculthorpe
Coach:Bob Bennett
England Phil Larder

Fiji

[edit]
2 October 1996 Fiji President's XIII 16 – 42 Great Britain Churchill Park, Lautoka[11]
Tries:
Navale, Baravilala, Koroi
Goals:
Takaladau (2) 		[12]
Tries:
Hammond (3), Hayes, Senior, Critchley, Tollett, Cassidy
Goals:
Prescott (5)
Attendance: 2,000
Referee: T Nunu (Fiji)
5 October 1996
Fiji  4 – 72  Great Britain
Tries:
Samuela Marayawa







Goals 		[13]
 Tries:
Bobbie Goulding (3)
Stuart Spruce (2)
Alan Hunte (2)
Daryl Powell (2)
Anthony Sullivan
Andy Farrell
Keith Senior
Mick Cassidy
Goals:
Bobbie Goulding (10)
Prince Charles Park, Nadi[14][15]
Attendance: 5,000
Referee: Jim Stokes New Zealand
Fiji
Great Britain
FB 1 Waisale Sovatabua
RW 2 P. Baravilula
RC 3 Manoa Thompson
LC 4 Joe Tamani
LW 5 S. Tulevu
FE 6 I. Ratudina
HB 7 Kaleveti Naisoro
PR 8 Pio Nakubuwai (c)
HK 9 M. Kaidroki
PR 10 Malakai Kaunivalu
SR 11 Josaia Dakuitoga
SR 12 Ian Saigatu
LF 13 Livai Nalagilagi
Substitutions:
IC 14 Vula Dakuitoga
IC 15 Samuela Marayawa
IC 16 Waisale Vatubua
IC 17 Ulaiasi Wainidroa
Coach:
FB 1 Stuart Spruce
RW 2 Alan Hunte
RC 3 Kris Radlinski
LC 4 Daryl Powell
LW 5 Anthony Sullivan
SO 6 Iestyn Harris
SH 7 Bobbie Goulding
PR 8 Paul Broadbent
HK 9 Keiron Cunningham
PR 10 Brian McDermott
SR 11 Denis Betts
SR 12 Paul Sculthorpe
LK 13 Andy Farrell (c)
Substitutions:
IC 14 Tony Smith
IC 15 Keith Senior
IC 16 Steve Molloy
IC 17 Mick Cassidy
Coach:
England Phil Larder

New Zealand

[edit]
See also: 1996 New Zealand rugby league season
10 October 1996 Lion Red Cup XIII 22 – 22 Great Britain Carlaw Park, Auckland[16]
Tries:
Barlow, Hughes, Malietoa-Brown
Goals:
Lythe (5) 		[17]
Tries:
Sullivan, Spruce, Cunningham, Powell,
Goals:
Harris (3)
Attendance: 3,000
Referee: G Wallace (Auckland)
15 October 1996 New Zealand XIII 30 – 22 Great Britain Fraser Park, Wellington[18]
Tries:
Endacott (2), Ropati, Okesene, Taewa, A. Swann
Goals:
Murray (2) Whittaker 		[19]
Tries:
Hayes, Mather, Smith, Hammond
Goals:
Prescott (3)
Attendance: 2,000
Referee: Denis Hale (Auckland)

First Test

[edit]
18 October 1996
New Zealand  17 – 12  Great Britain
Tries:
John Timu (2)

Goals:
Matthew Ridge (4)
Field Goals:
Matthew Ridge 		[20]
 Tries:
Alan Hunte
Denis Betts
Goals:
Bobbie Goulding (2)
Ericsson Stadium, Auckland[21]
Attendance: 7,400
Referee: Bill Harrigan Australia
New Zealand
Great Britain
FB 1 Matthew Ridge (c)
RW 2 Sean Hoppe
RC 3 Richie Blackmore
LC 4 John Timu
LW 5 Richie Barnett
FE 6 Gene Ngamu
HB 7 Stacey Jones
PR 8 Grant Young
HK 9 Syd Eru
PR 10 Quentin Pongia
SR 11 Tony Iro
SR 12 Stephen Kearney
LF 13 Tyran Smith
Substitutions:
IC 14 Marc Ellis
IC 15 Joe Vagana
IC 16 Ruben Wiki
IC 17 Logan Swann
Coach:
New Zealand Frank Endacott
FB 1 Stuart Spruce
RW 2 Alan Hunte
RC 3 Kris Radlinski
LC 4 Daryl Powell
LW 5 Anthony Sullivan
SO 6 Iestyn Harris
SH 7 Bobbie Goulding
PR 8 Paul Broadbent
HK 9 Keiron Cunningham
PR 10 Terry O'Connor
SR 11 Denis Betts
SR 12 Paul Sculthorpe
LK 13 Andy Farrell (c)
Substitutions:
IC 14 Tony Smith
IC 15 Chris Joynt
IC 16 Keith Senior
IC 17 Adrian Morley
Coach:
England Phil Larder
22 October 1996 Māori  40 – 28 Great Britain Lowe Walker Stadium, Whangārei[22]
Tries:
Stevens, Nikau, Murray (2), Ramsey, Gardiner, Walker
Goals:
Howell (6) 		[23]
Tries:
Dwyer, Smith, Bradbury, Prescott, Lowes
Goals:
Prescott (4)
Attendance: 6,000
Referee: G Allcock (Auckland)

2nd Test

[edit]
25 October 1996
New Zealand  18 – 15  Great Britain
Tries:
Ruben Wiki (2)
Gene Ngamu
Goals:
Matthew Ridge (3) 		[24]
 Tries:
Alan Hunte
Denis Betts
Goals:
Bobbie Goulding (3)
Field Goal:
Bobbie Goulding
New Zealand
Great Britain
FB 1 Matthew Ridge (c)
RW 2 Sean Hoppe
RC 3 Ruben Wiki
LC 4 John Timu
LW 5 Richie Barnett
FE 6 Gene Ngamu
HB 7 Stacey Jones
PR 8 Grant Young
HK 9 Syd Eru
PR 10 Quentin Pongia
SR 11 Tony Iro
SR 12 Stephen Kearney
LF 13 Tyran Smith
Substitutions:
IC 14 Marc Ellis
IC 15 Joe Vagana
IC 16 Richie Blackmore
IC 17 Logan Swann
Coach:
New Zealand Frank Endacott
FB 1 Stuart Spruce
RW 2 Alan Hunte
RC 3 Kris Radlinski
LC 4 Daryl Powell
LW 5 Anthony Sullivan
SO 6 Iestyn Harris
SH 7 Bobbie Goulding
PR 8 Paul Broadbent
HK 9 Keiron Cunningham
PR 10 Terry O'Connor
SR 11 Denis Betts
SR 12 Paul Sculthorpe
LK 13 Andy Farrell (c)
Substitutions:
IC 14 Barrie-Jon Mather
IC 15 Karle Hammond
IC 16 Steve Molloy
IC 17 Chris Joynt
Coach:
England Phil Larder

3rd Test

[edit]
1 November 1996
New Zealand  32 – 12  Great Britain
Tries:
Sean Hoppe (2)
Marc Ellis
Ruben Wiki
Gene Ngamu
Matthew Ridge
Goals:
Matthew Ridge (4) 		[26]
 Tries:
Denis Betts
Adrian Morley



Goals:
Bobbie Goulding (2)
Lancaster Park, Christchurch[27]
Attendance: 9,000
Referee: Steve Clark Australia
New Zealand
Great Britain
FB 1 Matthew Ridge (c)
RW 2 Sean Hoppe
RC 3 Ruben Wiki
LC 4 John Timu
LW 5 Marc Ellis
FE 6 Gene Ngamu
HB 7 Stacey Jones
PR 8 Grant Young
HK 9 Syd Eru
PR 10 Quentin Pongia
SR 11 Tony Iro
SR 12 Stephen Kearney
LF 13 Tyran Smith
Substitutions:
IC 14 Anthony Swann
IC 15 Joe Vagana
IC 16 Richie Blackmore
IC 17 Logan Swann
Coach:
New Zealand Frank Endacott
FB 1 Stuart Spruce
RW 2 Alan Hunte
RC 3 Kris Radlinski
LC 4 Daryl Powell
LW 5 Barrie-Jon Mather
SO 6 Karle Hammond
SH 7 Bobbie Goulding
PR 8 Paul Broadbent
HK 9 Keiron Cunningham
PR 10 Terry O'Connor
SR 11 Denis Betts
SR 12 Paul Sculthorpe
LK 13 Andy Farrell (c)
Substitutions:
IC 14 Iestyn Harris
IC 15 Adrian Morley
IC 16 Chris Joynt
IC 17 Bernard Dwyer
Coach:
England Phil Larder

Aftermath

[edit]

The tour was considered a huge failure. It was only the second time in tour history that the Lions had suffered a 3–0 whitewash in a Test series against New Zealand (the other being in 1984), and the 12–32 loss in the Third Test was the widest margin of defeat suffered by Great Britain in a Test against New Zealand.[28] Financially, the tour made a loss of £296,000.[29]

The lack of success was attributed to the large number of key players who were unavailable for the tour, and the blow to morale caused by sending some of the squad home early. Fatigue was also an issue - due to the British rugby league season switching from winter to summer the previous year, some players had taken part in over 60 games within the space of 14 months.[30] New Zealand Rugby League president Graham Carden was blamed for the tour's financial losses, having failed to adequately promote the Test series, resulting in poor attendances. He was eventually forced to stand down the following year.[31]

Great Britain did not tour in the Southern Hemisphere again for over 20 years until 2019.[32]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ Keith Senior was initially one of 12 players to be sent home, but was later recalled to the squad.[5]

References

[edit]

General

Specific

  1. ^ Hadfield, Dave (14 August 1996). "Larder picks enthusiasm over Offiah". The Independent. Archived from the original on 1 May 2022. Retrieved 3 August 2014.
  2. ^ Hadfield, Dave (21 August 1996). "Larder looks to Roper and Hunte". The Independent. Archived from the original on 1 May 2022. Retrieved 3 August 2014.
  3. ^ Irvine, Christopher (21 September 1996). "Larder's strange faces in unfamiliar places". The Times. London. ProQuest 318624430.
  4. ^ Hadfield, Dave (23 October 1996). "Discarded dozen head home". The Independent. Retrieved 11 May 2024.
  5. ^ Hadfield, Dave (24 October 1996). "Senior's tour is revived by Larder". The Independent. Retrieved 11 May 2024.
  6. ^ "1996 Tour Match: PNG Presidents Select XIII 8 Great Britain Select XIII 34". wigan.rlfans.com. Retrieved 10 July 2014.
  7. ^ PNG President's XIII vs Great Britain
  8. ^ Report Papua New Guinea vs Great Britain
  9. ^ "1996 Test Match: Papua New Guinea 30 Great Britain 32". wigan.rlfans.com. Retrieved 10 July 2014.
  10. ^ Hadfield, Dave (30 September 1996). "Farrell leads Lions out of Kumul fire". The Independent. Archived from the original on 1 May 2022. Retrieved 11 July 2014.
  11. ^ "1996 Tour Match: Fiji Presidents Select XIII 16 Great Britain 42". wigan.rlfans.com. Retrieved 10 July 2014.
  12. ^ Fiji President's XIII vs Great Britain
  13. ^ Fiji vs Great Britain
  14. ^ "1996 Test Match: Fiji 4 Great Britain 72". wigan.rlfans.com. Retrieved 10 July 2014.
  15. ^ Hadfield, Dave (7 October 1996). "Rugby League: Lions ready for tougher tasks in NZ". The Independent. Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 11 July 2014.
  16. ^ "1996 Tour Match: Lions Red Cup XIII 22 Great Britain 22". wigan.rlfans.com. Retrieved 12 July 2014.
  17. ^ Lion Red Cup XIII vs Great Britain
  18. ^ "1996 Tour Match: New Zealand Select XIII 30 Great Britain 22". wigan.rlfans.com. Retrieved 12 July 2014.
  19. ^ New Zealand XIII vs Great Britain
  20. ^ 1st Test - New Zealand vs Great Britain
  21. ^ "1996 First Test: New Zealand 17 Great Britain 12". wigan.rlfans.com. Retrieved 12 July 2014.
  22. ^ "1996 Tour Match: New Zealand Maoris 40 Great Britain 28". wigan.rlfans.com. Retrieved 12 July 2014.
  23. ^ Māori vs Great Britain
  24. ^ 2nd Test - New Zealand vs Great Britain
  25. ^ "1996 Second Test: New Zealand 18 Great Britain 15". wigan.rlfans.com. Retrieved 12 July 2014.
  26. ^ 3rd Test - New Zealand vs Great Britain
  27. ^ "1996 Third Test: New Zealand 32 Great Britain 12". wigan.rlfans.com. Retrieved 12 July 2014.
  28. ^ Fletcher, Raymond; Howes, David, eds. (1997). Rothmans Rugby League Yearbook 1997. London: Headline Publishing Group. p. 300. ISBN 978-0-7472-7764-4.
  29. ^ "Dead Loss". The Mirror. London. 1 February 1997 – via The Free Library.
  30. ^ Hadfield, Dave (3 November 1996). "Blame and the lame". The Independent. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
  31. ^ Hadfield, Dave (4 February 1997). "Rugby League : Carden ousted as president". The Independent. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
  32. ^ "Great Britain to visit southern hemisphere next year in first Lions tour since 1996". BBC Sport. 11 November 2018. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
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