1998 New Zealand rugby league tour of Great Britain

The 1998 New Zealand rugby league tour of Great Britain was a tour by the New Zealand national rugby league team. The New Zealand national rugby league team defeated Great Britain 2–0 in the three match test series.

Background

New Zealand arrived in Great Britain for the first time since the 1995 World Cup, having already lost a test series 1–2 with Australia. It was the first full tour of Great Britain by a New Zealand side since 1993.

Many of the squad, including coach Frank Endacott, had been involved in the Auckland Warriors' 1998 season, where they had finished 15th out of 20 clubs. In addition to this the Auckland Rugby League were looking to sell the club during the tour.

Squad

The squad included two sets of brothers; the Iros, Kevin and Tony and the Pauls, Robbie and Henry.[1]

NameTest1Test2Test3GamesTriesGoalsFGsPointsClub
Richie BarnettFBFBFB32008Sydney Roosters
Nathan CaylessBEBEBE30000Parramatta Eels
Syd EruHKHKHK30000Auckland Warriors
Daryl HalliganWGWGWG3014028Canterbury Bulldogs
Sean HoppeWGWGWG31004Auckland Warriors
Kevin IroCECECE30000Auckland Warriors
Tony IroBEBE20000Adelaide Rams
Stacey JonesHBHBHB31015Auckland Warriors
Stephen KearneySRSRSR31004Auckland Warriors
Jarrod McCrackenSRSRSR30000Parramatta Eels
Henry PaulBEBEBE32008Wigan Warriors
Robbie PaulFEFEFE330012Bradford Bulls
Quentin Pongia (c)PRPRPR30000Auckland Warriors
Tony PuletuaBEBEBE31004Penrith Panthers
Craig SmithBE10000Illawarra Steelers
Logan SwannLKLKLK30000Auckland Warriors
Joe VaganaPRPRPR31004Auckland Warriors
Ruben WikiCECECE31004Canberra Raiders

Fixtures

They won the first two test matches 22–16 and 36–16 before being held to a 23-all draw in the third and final test match. Australian referee Bill Harrigan controlled all three Test matches.

In the second test match Great Britain were ahead 16–8 at halftime before letting in 28 points in the second half to lose the match and the series.[2][3]

DateOpponentVenueResultScoreAttendanceReport
31 October 1998Great BritainAlfred McAlpine Stadium, HuddersfieldWon22–1618,500[4]
7 November 1998Great BritainReebok Stadium, BoltonWin36–1627,486[5]
14 November 1998Great BritainVicarage Road, WatfordDraw23–2313,217[6]

Aftermath

New Zealand next competed against Great Britain in the 1999 Tri-Nations but did not tour Great Britain again until the 2000 World Cup. The next full tour was conducted in 2002 which saw a drawn test series 1-all.

The Auckland Warriors were sold to a consortium that included majority investor the Tainui tribe as well as Graham Lowe and Malcolm Boyle.[7] Kiwi coach Frank Endacott was replaced as Warriors coach and several Kiwis left the club included Stephen Kearney, Quentin Pongia, and Kevin Iro. Endacott's next coaching assignment would be the 1999 ANZAC Test on 23 April.

References
  1. Family power struggle is force behind fearsome Paul brothers Analysis of the relationship between Bradford and New Zealand rugby league siblings reveals plenty about their talents The Independent, 10 November 1998
  2. Brits Face Kiwi Rout; Great Britain 16 New Zealand 36 The Mirror, 9 November 1998
  3. "Rugby League: Kiwis tours build up special magic". The New Zealand Herald.
  7. Endacott seeks a new warrior class The coach of New Zealand's rugby league Test side is totally focused on a series victory The Independent, 30 October 1998
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