1966 Great Britain Lions tour

1966 Great Britain Lions tour
Date1 June 1966 –
23 August 1966
ManagerWilf Spaven
J. Errock
Tour captain(s)Harry Poole
Top point scorer(s)Ken Gowers (134)
Top try scorer(s)Berwyn Jones (24)
Summary
P W D L
Total
30 21 00 09
Test match
05 03 00 02
Opponent
P W D L
 Australia
3 1 0 2
 New Zealand
2 2 0 0
Tour chronology
Previous tour1962
Next tour1970

The 1966 Great Britain Lions tour was the Great Britain national rugby league team's 13th tour of Australasia and took place from June to August 1966. A total of 30 matches were played against local club and representative sides during the tour, including a three match Test match series against Australia and a two-game series against New Zealand.

Great Britain failed to regain The Ashes against Australia following their home defeat in 1963, but had more success on the New Zealand leg of the tour, winning all eight games.

Touring squad

The 26-man touring squad was announced on 23 March 1966, with Harry Poole named as captain, and Ken Gowers selected as vice-captain.[1] A few days later, Alex Murphy withdrew from the squad due to business commitments, and was replaced by Ian Brooke.[2] Murphy's withdrawal meant that Brian Edgar was the only member of the squad who had toured previously with the Lions.[3]

Results

Australia

1 June 1966
Northern Territory 7 – 17 Great Britain
[4]
4 June 1966
Far North Queensland 7 – 48 Great Britain
[5]
5 June 1966
North Queensland 17 – 15 Great Britain
[6]
8 June 1966
Central Queensland 10 – 5 Great Britain
[7]
11 June 1966
Sydney 14 – 15 Great Britain
[8]
13 June 1966
Newcastle 2 – 5 Great Britain
15 June 1966
NSW North Coast 20 – 52 Great Britain
18 June 1966
New South Wales 18 – 13 Great Britain
19 June 1966
Southern NSW 17 – 8 Great Britain

First Test

25 June 1966
Australia 13 – 17 Great Britain
Tries: Banks
Goals: Barnes (5)
 [9]
 Tries: Burgess, Hardisty, Watson
Goals: Keegan (3)
Drop goals: Bishop
Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney
Attendance: 57,962
Referee: Jack Bradley
26 June 1966
Northern NSW 15 – 13 Great Britain
29 June 1966
Brisbane 19 – 17 Great Britain
2 July 1966
Queensland 29 – 38 Great Britain
3 July 1966
Wide Bay/Burnett 22 – 30 Great Britain
7 July 1966
Ipswich 10 – 44 Great Britain
10 July 1966
Toowoomba 10 – 38 Great Britain

Second Test

16 July 1966
Australia 6 – 4 Great Britain
Goals: Barnes (3)
 [10]
 Goals: Keegan (2)
Lang Park, Brisbane
Attendance: 45,057
Referee: Col Pearce
17 July 1966
Western NSW 11 – 38 Great Britain

Third Test

23 July 1966
Australia 19 – 14 Great Britain
Tries: Irvine (3), King, Lynch
Goals: Johns (2)
 [11]
 Tries: Hardisty (2)
Goals: Gowers (4)
Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney
Attendance: 63,503
Referee: Col Pearce
24 July 1966
Riverina 20 – 34 Great Britain
26 July 1966
Balmain 9 – 8 Great Britain
31 July 1966
Monaro 12 – 33 Great Britain

New Zealand

3 August 1966
Waikato 8 – 47 Great Britain

First Test

6 August 1966
New Zealand 8 – 25 Great Britain
Tries: Christian, Mincham
Goals: Kennedy
 [12]
 Tries: Brooke, Burgess, Clarke, Myler, Watson
Goals: Gowers
Drop goals: Gowers
Carlaw Park, Auckland
Attendance: 14,494
Referee: John Percival
9 August 1966
Wellington 9 – 28 Great Britain
11 August 1966
West Coast 5 – 27 Great Britain
13 August 1966
Canterbury 6 – 53 Great Britain
15 August 1966
Taranaki 17 – 51 Great Britain

Second Test

20 August 1966
New Zealand 14 – 22 Great Britain
Goals: Wiggs (7)
 [13]
 Tries: Brooke (2), Aspinall, Burgess
Goals: Gowers (5)
Carlaw Park, Auckland
Attendance: 10,657
Referee: John Percival
23 August 1966
Auckland 11 – 12 Great Britain

References

  1. ^ Mather, Harold (24 March 1966). "Peculiarities of inclusion and also of omission". The Guardian. p. 15. ProQuest 185199978.
  2. ^ "Brooke to replace Murphy for tour". The Guardian. London. 29 March 1966. p. 4. ProQuest 185043070.
  3. ^ Mather, Harold (7 May 1966). "Tour forwards good, backs speedy". The Rugby League news. Vol. 47, no. 12. Sydney: N.S.W. Rugby Football League – via Trove.
  4. ^ "English League side worried by heat but wins 17-7". The Sydney Morning Herald. 2 June 1966. p. 12.
  5. ^ "English winger shines". The Sun-Herald. 5 June 1966. p. 56.
  6. ^ "English League team beaten". The Sydney Morning Herald. 6 June 1966. p. 16.
  7. ^ "English League team loses another match". The Sydney Morning Herald. 9 June 1966. p. 12.
  8. ^ "England's Warning On Tests". The Sun-Herald. 12 June 1966. p. 44.
  9. ^ "Ashes Series 1966 Series - Game 1". Rugby League Project. Retrieved 22 December 2023.
  10. ^ "Ashes Series 1966 Series - Game 2". Rugby League Project. Retrieved 22 December 2023.
  11. ^ "Ashes Series 1966 Series - Game 3". Rugby League Project. Retrieved 22 December 2023.
  12. ^ "New Zealand vs Great Britain 1966 Series - Game 1". Rugby League Project. Retrieved 22 December 2023.
  13. ^ "New Zealand vs Great Britain 1966 Series - Game 2". Rugby League Project. Retrieved 22 December 2023.