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| 1908 British Lions tour to New Zealand and Australia | |
|---|---|
 The Anglo-Welsh touring party after arriving in Wellington in 1908. Manager George Harnett is seated in the centre, with captain Arthur Harding holding a rugby ball to Harnett's right | |
| Date | 23 May – 2 September |
| Coach(es) | George Harnett |
| Tour captain(s) |  Arthur 'Boxer' Harding |
| Test series winners |  New Zealand (2–0) |
| Top test point scorer(s) | Reggie Gibbs (3) Jack Jones (3) |
| 1908 British Lions tour to New Zealand and Australia | |||||
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| Summary |
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| Total |
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| Test match |
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| Opponent |
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| New Zealand |
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The 1908 British Isles tour to New Zealand and Australia was the seventh tour by a British Isles team and the fourth to New Zealand and Australia. The tour is often referred to as the Anglo-Welsh Tour as only English and Welsh players were selected due to the Irish and Scottish Rugby Unions not participating. It is retrospectively classed as one of the British Lions tours, as the Lions naming convention was not adopted until 1950.
Led by Arthur 'Boxer' Harding and managed by George Harnett[1] the tour took in 26 matches, 9 in Australia and 17 in New Zealand. Of the 26 games, 23 were against club or invitational teams and three were test matches against the All Blacks. The Lions lost two and drew one match against the All Blacks.
The tour was not received well in Wales, as the Welsh players selected were chosen exclusively from those players from a well-educated and professional-class background. The selection was in fact addressed by the Welsh Rugby Union who stated that when a British Isles team was mooted for a South Africa tour in 1910, that the players should be chosen '...irrespective of the social position of the players.'[2]
Regarding the Lions uniform, 1908 brought a change of format and a change of colours. With the Scottish and Irish unions declining to be involved, red jerseys with a thick white band reflected the combination of England and Wales. Shorts were dark blue with red socks.[3]
- ^ Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume LVI, Issue LVI, 1 December 1908, Page 4 Papers Past website
- ^ Fields of Praise, The Official History of the Welsh Rugby Union 1881–1981, David Smith, Gareth Williams; University of Wales Press (1980), p. 175 ISBN 0-7083-0766-3
- ^ Lions change their stripes on Lions website, 17 April 2005