The 1920 Great Britain Lions tour was the third British national rugby league team or 'Lions' tour of Australasia, where it was winter and matches were played against the Australian and New Zealand national sides, as well as several local teams. In Australia, the three-Test match series was won by the hosts. In New Zealand another three-Test series was played and won by the visitors. The tour was a success and brought in a handsome profit.[2]
The opening match of the tour on 5 June took place between rounds 5 and 6 of the fifteen-round 1920 NSWRFL season, and saw a Metropolis (Sydney) team host the tourists at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
As the preliminary match to the New South Wales versus Britain game on 12 June, Sydney University's first intervarsity match against Queensland University under rugby league rules was played before a crowd of 60,000.[5][6] Sydney won 26–14.
North Ipswich Reserve, Ipswich Attendance: 5,000 Referee: H. Francis
First test
The first test of the 1920 Ashes series was played on the 26th of June at the Brisbane Exhibition Ground before a crowd of 32,000. It was refereed by local whistleblower Laurie Kearney.[14]Albert Johnston was selected to captain Australia in the opening Test of the series in the absence of champion centre Herb Gilbert. Despite a last minute reshuffling of the team which saw Johnston move to halfback.[7]
Albert Johnston lost the Australian captaincy on Herb Gilbert's return and played at five-eighth in the second Ashes Test.[7] The match was played on the 3rd of July at the Sydney Cricket Ground and attracted 67,739 spectators, then a record attendance for any sport at the SCG.[18]
Australian halfback Duncan Thompson starred in the match,[19] which was won by the hosts 21–8.[16] With this Australia secured the Ashes for the first time on home soil.
The British also played two matches against a Newcastle rugby league team that featured Dan "Laddo" Davies.[23] The first game was on the 25th of August and the tourists won 17–10. The second was on the 28th which they also won 24–3.[24]
The British team played a three-Test series against New Zealand just as it did against Australia. Karl Ifwerson captained the Kiwis against the tourists.[26]
After losing their first game to Auckland, the tourists won all three Tests.[27]
In the Test at Wellington, the British were behind on the scoreboard 10–0, but made it 10–6 before Douglas Clark forced his way over the line for the match-winning try which Ben Gronow converted, giving the visitors an 11–10 victory.[28]
The second Test was played in Christchurch on Saturday, 7 August, and was won by the tourists 19 points to 3.[29]
Both the game against Auckland and the final Test versus the Lions attracted nearly 40,000 spectators to Auckland's Domain ground – the biggest ever New Zealand sporting crowds to that time.
Tuesday 3 August the touring England side played a mid week match against a King Country XIII in Taumarunui in front of a 4000 strong Crowd at Taumarunui Domain. England won easily 47–3. Wagstaffe scored twice in the first half for the visitors along with one a piece for Stockwell and Milne. Doran got one back for King Country. The halftime score was 16–3. In the 2nd spell, Stockwell scored 2 tries and Wagstaffe, Bowers, Doyle and Johnston one each. The final score was 47–3.[30]
References
^ abSaxton, Irvin (ed.). History of Rugby League: No.25 1919–1920. League Publications. p. 14.
^New South Wales Rugby Football League. (1920). "Programme - Queensland University v. Sydney University". The Rugby League News. 1 (7 (12 June 1920)). Sydney: N.S.W. Rugby Football League. nla.obj-626757719. Retrieved 14 Nov 2020 – via Trove.
^ abcWhiticker, Alan. "Albert Johnston". rugbyleagueproject.org. Shawn Dollin, Andrew Ferguson and Bill Bates. Retrieved 19 August 2014.
^"Representative Referees". brlrefs.com. Brisbane Rugby League Referees Association. Archived from the original on 2014-08-22. Retrieved 20 August 2014.
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