Men's rugby league Ashes (original series)

Last updated

The Ashes
Tournament information
Sport Rugby league
Established 1908–09
Defunct 2003
Participants
Tournament statistics
Flag of Australia (converted).svg  Australia wins20
Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  Great Britain wins19

The Ashes series, similar to the cricket series of the same name, was a best-of-three series of test matches between Australia and Great Britain national rugby league football teams. [1] [2] It had been contested 39 times from 1908 until 2003 largely with hosting rights alternating between the two countries. Since 1973, Australia has won a record thirteen consecutive Ashes series. [3]

Contents

In 2023, the modern Ashes series was founded with the inaugural edition to take place in 2025, which would also include a women's series. [a] The series will continue as a best-of-three test match series between Australia and this time England national rugby league football teams. [4]

This came after two failed revivals, one in 2020 which was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and another in 2022 (set for 2024) as part of a potential Australian tour of Great Britain. [5]

History

The Australia squad of the 1908-09 Ashes StateLibQld 2 135267 Australian Rugby League (Kangaroos) who toured to England in 1908-09.jpg
The Australia squad of the 1908–09 Ashes
The Great Britain squad of the 1910 Ashes Touring squad of the 1910 Great Britain Lions tour of Australia and New Zealand.jpg
The Great Britain squad of the 1910 Ashes

Several sports and events adopted cricket's Ashes concept and by the beginning of the 20th century it was an "accepted principle" that a series had to have at least three matches to be a true test of which side was the best. [2]

On 27 September 1908, the first touring Australian rugby league side arrived in England, and played their first ever Test against the England side in December in London. Two further Tests were played. The Australians suggested that the series should be called "The Ashes" and the name stuck.

The format used is that three matches are played, with the winning team being decided on the basis of most matches won. If one team has already won two matches the series is already won, however the final game is usually still played. In the 1929–30 Ashes series both the teams won one game and one game was drawn; it was therefore decided to hold a further match to determine the outcome.

The British side has not always been termed Great Britain; in the past the titles "Northern Union XIII", "England" and "The Lions" have also been used. Similarly, the first two tours to Britain (1911–12 and 1921–22), included New Zealand players so were styled "Australasia", though when playing at home they always played as Australia.

Since 1964 the Harry Sunderland Medal is awarded to the best Australian player in a home Ashes series. Since Great Britain's win in Australia in 1970, the series has been very one sided with Australia having won 13 consecutive ashes, 5 of those (1979, 1982, 1984, 1986 and 2003) being 3–0 series whitewashes while the 1988 series had already been won by Australia in the first two tests before the Lions won a famous third test in Sydney 26–12 for their first test win over Australia since the second test of the 1978 Kangaroo tour, a streak of 15 wins for the Kangaroos.

The performance gap between the two teams became wider during the mid-late 1970s and Great Britain struggled to compete with Australia. The 1982 Kangaroos became the first side to go through a tour of Great Britain and France undefeated (something never achieved on a Lions tour, though they came close in 1954 losing just 2 games). This earned the team the nickname "The Invincibles". The 1986 Kangaroos repeated this feat and would be known as "The Unbeatables".

The final Ashes series was contested in 2003. The event is scheduled to return in 2025 - with talks taking place over the series being staged in England, having initially been set to be in Australia. [6]

Trophy

In 1928, the City Tattersalls Club in Sydney, Australia donated a trophy to be the prize, the "Ashes Cup". [2] The Cup's inscription reads: [2]

INTERNATIONAL
RUGBY LEAGUE FOOTBALL
Australia v England
(THE ASHES)
Presented by
CITY TATTERSALLS CLUB

The Cup was first presented in 1928 to The Lions, after they defeated Australia 2–1 in the series. [2] Following the 1933–34 series, in which England retained the Cup for the third time since first being presented with it, the Cup disappeared in the United Kingdom and was not found until October 1945. [7] The trophy had been on display at a function in Ilkley, Yorkshire and afterwards was returned to the manager of the Griffin Hotel, Leeds - where the English Rugby League management met - but this was not made clear to the English authorities and instead in laid overlooked in a box for 12 years. [7] During the period it was missing, Great Britain had won each series and the Cup's disappearance was not widely known. [2] The Australian team first won the Cup in 1950. [2]

In preparation for the Legends of League exhibition at the National Museum of Australia in 2008, marking a Centenary of Rugby League in Australia, the Ashes Cup underwent preservation work. [8]

Results

YearHostsWinnerResultRunners-up
1908–09 Great BritainGreat Britain2–0
(1 tied)		Australia
1910 AustraliaGreat Britain2–0Australasia [b]
1911–12 Great BritainAustralasia [b] 2–0
(1 tied)		Great Britain
1914 AustraliaGreat Britain2–1Australia
1920 AustraliaAustralia2–1Great Britain
1921–22 Great BritainGreat Britain2–1Australasia [b]
1924AustraliaGreat Britain2–1Australia
1928AustraliaGreat Britain2–1Australia
1929–30 Great BritainGreat Britain2–1
(1 tied)		Australia
1932 AustraliaGreat Britain2–1 [9] Australia
1933–34 Great BritainGreat Britain3–0Australia
1936 AustraliaGreat Britain2–1Australia
1937 Great BritainGreat Britain2–1Australia
1946 AustraliaGreat Britain2–0
(1 tied)		Australia
1948 Great BritainGreat Britain3–0Australia
1950 AustraliaAustralia2–1Great Britain
1952 Great BritainGreat Britain2–1Australia
1954 AustraliaAustralia2–1Great Britain
1956 Great BritainGreat Britain2–1Australia
1958 AustraliaGreat Britain2–1Australia
1959–60 Great BritainGreat Britain2–1Australia
1962AustraliaGreat Britain2–1Australia
1963–64 Great BritainAustralia2–1Great Britain
1966AustraliaAustralia2–1Great Britain
1967–68 Great BritainAustralia2–1Great Britain
1970 AustraliaGreat Britain2–1Australia
1973 Great BritainAustralia2–1Great Britain
1974 AustraliaAustralia2–1Great Britain
1978 Great BritainAustralia2–1Great Britain
1979 AustraliaAustralia3–0Great Britain
1982 Great BritainAustralia3–0Great Britain
1984 AustraliaAustralia3–0Great Britain
1986 Great BritainAustralia3–0Great Britain
1988 AustraliaAustralia2–1Great Britain
1990 Great BritainAustralia2–1Great Britain
1992 AustraliaAustralia2–1Great Britain
1994 Great BritainAustralia2–1Great Britain
2001 Great BritainAustralia2–1Great Britain
2003 Great BritainAustralia3–0Great Britain

Records and statistics

PlayedWon by
Australia		Won by
Great Britain		Drawn
All series3920 (51.3%)19 (48.7%)0 (0.0%)
Series in Australia199 (47.4%)10 (52.6%)0 (0.0%)
Series in Great Britain2011 (55.0%)9 (45.0%)0 (0.0%)
All Tests11859 (50.0%)54 (45.8%)5 (4.2%)
Tests in Australia5728 (49.1%)27 (47.4%)2 (3.5%)
Tests in Great Britain6131 (50.8%)27 (44.3%)3 (4.9%)

Highest attendance

Lowest attendance

Highest attended Ashes series

Lowest attended Ashes series

Highest score

Biggest win

Most tries in an Ashes test

Most goals in an Ashes test

Most points in an Ashes test

Most points in an Ashes series

Most points in all Ashes tests

Tries in each test of an Ashes series

Most games as captain

Most games as coach

Clean Sweeps

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ There had been previous women's Ashes test series, but this was never an established regular competition.
  2. 1 2 3 The Australasia rugby league team competed in the 1910, 1911–12, 1921–22 Ashes series instead of the Australia national team. The side was made up of mostly Australian players but bolstered by a number of players from New Zealand. Despite this, all appeance and scoring statistics towards the Australian national team.

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References

  1. ↑ Hickey, Julia (2006). Understanding Rugby League. UK: Coachwise. p. 13. ISBN   978-1-905540-10-5 . Retrieved 20 February 2011.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Sean Fagan (15 September 2009). "Rugby league's fight for The Ashes". rl1908.com. Archived from the original on 23 September 2009. Retrieved 23 September 2009.
  3. ↑ McCann, Liam (2006). Rugby: Facts, Figures and Fun. UK: AAPPL Artists' and Photographers' Press. p. 80. ISBN   9781904332541.
  4. ↑ "Southern hemisphere to host 2026 World Cup". BBC Sport. 3 August 2023. Retrieved 10 August 2023.
  5. ↑ "Ashes to Ashes: Meninga eyes iconic series return for first time in 20 years". The Age . 16 October 2022. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
  6. ↑ https://www.loverugbyleague.com/post/australia-to-tour-england-in-2025-ashes-as-huge-venue-choice-revealed
  7. 1 2 "RL "Ashes" Cup". The Telegraph . 26 October 1945. p. 8 (CITY FINAL) – via National Library of Australia.
  8. ↑ NMA (22 February 2008). "League of Legends: 100 years of Rugby League in Australia: Conservation slideshow". National Museum of Australia. Retrieved 23 September 2009.
  9. ↑ "League "Ashes." England's triumph". The Sydney Morning Herald . No. 29,496. 18 July 1932. p. 6.

Further reading

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