The 2007 All Golds Tour was a tour by the New Zealand national rugby league team, the Kiwis, of Great Britain and France. Conducted as part of the celebrations of a century of rugby league in New Zealand, it was a re-creation of the original New Zealand rugby league tour of Great Britain in 1907. The Kiwis played four test matches, winning one against France, but losing the series against Great Britain 3–0, failing to win the Baskerville Shield. A special game was played between the "All Golds" and the "Northern Union", a New Zealand vs Great Britain veterans game for internationally retired players. The tour also involved a reception with HM Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace for the squad.[1]

History

In 1905 New Zealand's rugby union team toured Great Britain and witnessed the growing popularity of the professional Northern Union rugby code. With this popularity in mind, and sensing a financial opportunity, Albert Henry Baskerville recruited a group of players for a professional tour, and wrote to the Northern Rugby Football Union asking if they were willing to host a New Zealand touring party. This team toured Australia and then Great Britain in 1907, and was known colloquially as the All Golds, or Professional All Blacks.

Squad

NameAustraliaGBGBGBFranceGamesTriesGoalsFGsPointsClub
Louis AndersonBEBESRSR4*1004 New Zealand Warriors
Roy Asotasi (C)PRPRPRPRPR50000 South Sydney Rabbitohs
Luke CovellWG10000 Cronulla Sharks
Greg EastwoodBEBE2*0000 Brisbane Broncos
David FaiumuBEBEBE30000 North Queensland Cowboys
Dene HalatauHKHKHKHKHK50000 Wests Tigers
Shontayne HapeBECEWG32008 Bradford Bulls
Lance HohaiaFEFEBE30102 New Zealand Warriors
Krisnan InuFB10000 Parramatta Eels
Shaun Kenny-DowallWG1*1004 Sydney Roosters
Epalahame LauakiBEBE2*0000 New Zealand Warriors
Thomas LeuluaiHBHBBE3*1004 Wigan Warriors
Jeff LimaBEBEBE30000 Melbourne Storm
Simon ManneringSRSRSRLKLK50000 New Zealand Warriors
Steve MataiCE10000 Manly Warringah Sea Eagles
Fuifui MoimoiPRPRBEBEBE50000 Parramatta Eels
Sam PerrettFBFBFBFB4*0000 Sydney Roosters
Frank PritchardSRSRSR30000 Penrith Panthers
Sam RapiraBEBEPRPRPR50000 New Zealand Warriors
Ben RobertsFEFEFE30306 Bulldogs
Jeremy James SmithHBHBHB30000 South Sydney Rabbitohs
Jeremy Jon Oscar SmithLKLKLKSRSR50306 Melbourne Storm
Chase StanleyWGWG2*2008 St George Illawarra Dragons
Clinton ToopiCECECE3*0000 Leeds Rhinos
Taniela TuiakiWGWGWGWG41004 Wests Tigers
Tame TupouWG1*0000 Bradford Bulls
Paul WhatuiraCECECECECE530012 Wests Tigers

*Also played in All Golds match.

Australian representative

Dally Messenger, 1907 The one Australian All Black

To celebrate the inclusion of Australia's Dally Messenger in the original All Golds tour, New Zealand Warriors captain and Queensland front rower Steve Price was invited to join the New Zealand team for the match against the Northern Union.[2] The Australian test prop said it was "mind-blowing" to be invited on the tour.[3][4]

Andrew Johns had initially been invited,[5] but due to a career-ending neck injury, he was unable to play with the squad.[6] Australian captain Darren Lockyer was then set to take Johns' place until he too was ruled out after suffering a season-ending knee injury.[7][8] Trent Barrett was also linked with the stand-off role in the side.

All Blacks and former Kiwi Test players

The NZRL expressed interest in including recently retired New Zealand rugby league stars Nigel Vagana, Ruben Wiki, and Stacey Jones in test matches. All three came out of international retirement to play in the match against the Northern Union.

Several current and former All Blacks (New Zealand rugby union players) were also considered for the match against the Northern Union. Players who grew up playing rugby league such as Carlos Spencer, Piri Weepu and Ma'a Nonu were approached by the NZRL however none were available due to rugby union commitments.[9] Jonah Lomu was also considered but was effectively ruled out due to media and personal appearance commitments at the 2007 Rugby World Cup.[10]

Coach

Brisbane Broncos' Australian coach Wayne Bennett accepted the invitation from the New Zealand Rugby League to join the All Golds for their commemorative match against the Northern Union in England in October.[11] The former Queensland and Australia coach stated "This is a great honour and it's unique in the game."[12]

Fixtures

The New Zealand side played a total of five matches while on their European tour and one test in New Zealand before leaving.

The third Test: New Zealand against Great Britain on 10 November
Date Opponent Venue City Res. Score Attend. Rep.
13 October AustraliaWestpacWellingtonLost0–5816,681[13]
21 OctoberNorthern UnionHalliwell JonesWarringtonWon25–186,800[14]
27 October Great BritainGalpharmHuddersfieldLost14–2016,522[15]
3 November Great BritainKingstonKingston upon HullLost0–4420,324[16]
10 November Great BritainJJB StadiumWiganLost22–2821,235[17]
17 November FranceJean-BouinParisWon22–146,781[18]

New Zealand vs Australia

There was a pre-tour test between Australia and New Zealand in Wellington.

13 October 2007
New Zealand  0 – 58  Australia
Tries:








Goals:		 [19]
 Tries:
Greg Inglis (3)
Israel Folau (2)
Greg Bird
Jarryd Hayne
Willie Mason
Steve Price
Cameron Smith
Brett Stewart
Goals:
Cameron Smith (6/10)
Kurt Gidley (1/1)
Westpac Stadium, Wellington
Attendance: 16,681
Referee: Steve Ganson United Kingdom
Player of the Match: Greg Inglis

All Golds v Northern Union

This was an exhibition match played under 1907 scoring rules with tries worth 3 points and goals / field goals worth 2 points each.[20]

21 October 2007
Northern Union 18 – 25 All Golds
Tries:
Danny McGuire (2)
Jon Clarke
Kirk Yeaman

Goals:
Jamie Rooney (3/4)		 [21]
 Tries:
Ali Lauitiiti (2)
Greg Eastwood
Louis Anderson
Clinton Toopi
Goals:
Stacey Jones (5/5)
Halliwell Jones Stadium, Warrington
Attendance: 6,800
Referee: Ashley Klein Australia
Player of the Match: Sam Burgess

Baskerville Shield

Venues

The three Baskerville Shield tests took place at the following venues.

Huddersfield Kingston upon Hull Wigan
Galpharm Stadium KC Stadium JJB Stadium
Capacity: 24,500 Capacity: 25,400 Capacity: 25,133

1st Test

27 October 2007
Great Britain  20 – 14  New Zealand
Tries:
Sam Burgess
Maurie Fa'asavalu
Gareth Raynor
Goals:
Rob Burrow (4/4)		 [22]
 Tries:
Shontayne Hape (2)
Paul Whatuira

Goals:
Lance Hohaia (1/3)
Galpharm Stadium, Huddersfield
Attendance: 16,522
Referee: Tony Archer Australia
Player of the Match: Rob Burrow

2nd Test

3rd Test

France vs New Zealand

17 November 2007
France  14 – 22  New Zealand
Tries:
Éric Anselme
Cyril Stacul


Goals:
Maxime Grésèque (3/3)		 [25]
 Tries:
Louis Anderson
Shaun Kenny-Dowall
Thomas Leuluai
Paul Whatuira
Goals:
Ben Roberts (3/4)
Stade Jean-Bouin, Paris
Attendance: 6,781
Referee: Ashley Klein Australia

Aftermath

Great Britain's scrum half back, Rob Burrow was awarded the George Smith Medal as player of the series which he finished as top points scorer with 26 from two tries and nine goals.[26] Coach Gary Kemble was fired after the tour losses, with Roy Asotasi and David Kidwell leading a public campaign to replace him.[27] Kemble was replaced by Stephen Kearney as head coach and Wayne Bennett assistant coach, a combination which took the Kiwis to win the 2008 World Cup. The All Golds played another match, against the New Zealand Māori in New Plymouth, in 2008 as part of the lead up to the Rugby League World Cup.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Malkin, Bonnie; agencies (2007-10-16). "The Queen reveals she's a Jonny Wilkinson fan". telegraph.co.uk. UK: Telegraph Media Group Limited. Archived from the original on 2012-11-13. Retrieved 2010-01-07.
  2. ↑ "No deadline on All Golds player". tvnz.co.nz. 2007-05-05. Archived from the original on 2011-05-17. Retrieved 2007-07-29.
  3. ↑ "Prop Price given All Golds berth". BBC. 2007-07-28. Archived from the original on 2012-03-02. Retrieved 2007-07-29.
  4. ↑ "Price accepts invitation". Newstalk ZB. 2007-07-29. Archived from the original on 2007-09-29. Retrieved 2007-07-29.
  5. ↑ "Legend Johns to represent Kiwis". BBC. 2007-03-01. Archived from the original on 2007-03-03. Retrieved 2007-07-29.
  6. ↑ "Neck injury forces Johns to quit". BBC. 2007-04-10. Archived from the original on 2007-09-14. Retrieved 2007-07-29.
  7. ↑ "Lockyer to star in All Golds game". BBC. 2007-07-08. Archived from the original on 2007-08-24. Retrieved 2007-07-29.
  8. ↑ "Lockyer faces long injury lay-off". BBC. 2007-07-14. Archived from the original on 2007-08-21. Retrieved 2007-07-29.
  9. ↑ "Snubbed All Blacks get All Golds invite". Sydney Morning Herald. 2007-07-24. Archived from the original on 2007-09-30. Retrieved 2007-07-29.
  10. ↑ "NZRL wants Lomu to switch codes for centenary match". Stuff.co.nz. 2007-07-22. Archived from the original on 2007-09-30. Retrieved 2007-07-29.
  11. ↑ "Darren Lockyer and Wayne Bennett confirmer for NZ All Golds". RLeague.com. 2007-07-22. Archived from the original on 2007-10-01. Retrieved 2007-07-29.
  12. ↑ "Bennett, Lockyer join All Golds". press.co.nz. 2007-07-09. Archived from the original on 2007-09-30. Retrieved 2007-07-29.
  13. ↑ Shawn Dollin. "New Zealand vs Australia 2007". Archived from the original on 2012-02-14. Retrieved 2009-08-22.
  14. ↑ BBC SPORT | Rugby League | Northern Union 18-25 All Golds Archived October 21, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  15. ↑ Great Britain vs New Zealand 2007 Series - Game 1 Archived January 5, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  16. ↑ Great Britain vs New Zealand 2007 Series - Game 2 Archived January 22, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  17. ↑ Great Britain vs New Zealand 2007 Series - Game 3 Archived August 23, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  18. ↑ France vs New Zealand 2007 Archived October 8, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
  19. ↑ New Zealand vs Australia test
  20. ↑ Steve Price & Ben Blaschke (2011). Steve Price - Be Your Best. New Zealand: ReadHowYouWant.com. ISBN 9781459627789.
  21. ↑ Northern Union vs All Golds
  22. ↑ "1st Test - Great Britain vs New Zealand". Archived from the original on 2016-05-31. Retrieved 2017-06-04.
  23. ↑ "2nd Test - Great Britain vs New Zealand". Archived from the original on 2017-12-11. Retrieved 2017-06-04.
  24. ↑ "3rd Test - Great Britain vs New Zealand". Archived from the original on 2016-02-12. Retrieved 2017-06-04.
  25. ↑ France vs New Zealand
  26. ↑ Burke, David (12 November 2007). "Rob Burrow walks tall for Great Britain". The Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group. Retrieved 20 August 2014.
  27. ↑ New Zealand Herald. "Rugby League: Kiwis tours build up special magic". nzherald.co.nz.
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