1910 British Lions tour to Argentina

1910 Combined Brtitish
Tour to Argentina
Date 26 May  – 17 June
Coach(es) R.V. Stanley
Tour captain(s) England John Raphael
Test series winners British and Irish Lions (1–0)
Top test point scorer(s) England Harold Monks (10)

The 1910 British Lions tour to Argentina is a retrospective term applied to the tour of Argentina made by a side made up of 16 English players and 3 Scots. The organisers of the tour named the team the "English Rugby Union team",[1] but the host country advertised the touring team as the Combined British. The 1910 team has been termed as one of the three "lost lions" tours,[2] and is detailed on the British and Irish Lions official website. For Argentina, this tour marked the start of international rugby union and the test against the Combined British on 12 June 1910 was the first Test in the Argentine national team's history.[3]

History

In 1910, a British side toured South Africa for the fourth time, being the eighth outing of a British touring side at this point. The South African tour was, however, the first official tour, in that it had the official sanction of the four home unions. Concurrently, RV Stanley, more famously known as Major Stanley of Oxford, later an England selector, organised a side to tour Argentina. John Raphael, the England fullback, was selected as the captain of this team, branded by Stanley as the England Rugby Union team. The hosts referred to the team as the Combined British, perhaps more appropriate given the squad included three Scots.

The Combined British played six matches, winning them all, including a victory over Argentina in their first ever test on 12 June 1910.[3]

Teams

Combined British

Of those representing the Combined British, only four had played international rugby previously. They were:

Other members of the team were:

Results

2 June 1910
Argentina B 5–39 Combined British XV
12 June 1910
Argentina  3–28 United Kingdom Combined British XV
Match report
Polo Ground of Flores, Buenos Aires
17 June 1910
Argentinos Nativos[4] 10–41 Combined British XV


References

  1. ↑ 1910 South Africa & Argentina at BritishLions.org.uk
  2. ↑ David Walmsley (Author), Robby Elson (Editor), The Lions: The Complete History of the British and Irish Rugby Union Team, Genesis Publications (2005) ISBN 0-904351-96-3
  3. 1 2 Argentina and the 'Lions' in the past, Thursday December 02 2004, Planet Rugby By Paul Dobson
  4. ↑ At those time, a lot of British player in Argentina was of English or British origin. The "Nativos", was a selection formed instead by Argentinian born player. Was usual every year, to play a match between "Nativos" or "Argentinos" and "Extranieros" (foreigner) this tradition was abandoned only in the 50's.
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