- Source: 1955 British Lions tour to South Africa
In 1955 the British Lions rugby union team toured Southern and Eastern Africa. The Lions drew the test series against South Africa, each team winning two of the four matches. They won the first test by a single point and the third by three points and lost the second and fourth matches by wider margins. As well as South Africa, the tour included a match against South West Africa (later to become Namibia), two games against Rhodesia (later to become Zimbabwe) and one versus East Africa.
Overall the tourists played twenty-five matches winning nineteen, losing five and drawing one. The Lions lost their opening fixture against Western Transvaal and were also beaten by Eastern Province and Border later in the tour. They drew with Eastern Transvaal.
It was the Lions' second tour after World War II and the first to South Africa after that war.
The touring party was captained by Robin Thompson of Ireland. The manager was Jack A. E. Siggins and the assistant manager was D. E. Davies.
Jack Siggins had the honour of being invited, by the Rugby Football Union of East Africa (RFUEA), officially to open the newly constructed RFUEA Ground at Ngong Road in Nairobi just prior to the Lions last match of that tour against East Africa.
Squad
= Management
=Manager: J. A. E. Siggins (Ireland)
Assistant Manager: D. E. Davies
= Backs
=Doug Baker (Old Merchant Taylors and England)
Jeff Butterfield (Northampton and England)
Angus Cameron (Glasgow HSFP and Scotland)
Phil Davies (Harlequins and England)
Gareth Griffiths (Cardiff and Wales)
Dickie Jeeps (Northampton) [1]
Trevor Lloyd (Maesteg and Wales)
Cliff Morgan (Cardiff and Wales)
Haydn Morris (Cardiff and Wales)
Tony O'Reilly (Old Belvedere and Ireland)
Cecil Pedlow (Queen's University RFC and Ireland)
Pat Quinn (New Brighton and England)
Arthur Smith (Cambridge University and Scotland)
Frank Sykes (Northampton and England)
Alun Thomas (Llanelli and Wales)
Johnny Williams (Old Millhillians and England)
= Forwards
=Tom Elliot (Gala and Scotland)
Jim Greenwood (Dunfermline and Scotland)
Reg Higgins (Liverpool and England)
Hugh McLeod (Hawick and Scotland)
Bryn Meredith (Newport and Wales)
Courtney Meredith (Neath and Wales)
Ernie Michie (Aberdeen University and Scotland)
Tom Reid (Garryowen and Ireland)
Russell Robins (Pontypridd and Wales)
Robin Roe (Lansdowne and Ireland)
Clem Thomas (Swansea and Wales)
Robin Thompson (Instonians and Ireland) (Captain)
Rhys Williams (Llanelli and Wales)
Billy Williams (Swansea and Wales)
Dyson Wilson (Metropolitan Police and England)
1 Dickie Jeeps later played for England but was uncapped at the time of the 1955 tour.
= The Idi Amin myth
=There is a frequently repeated urban legend that Idi Amin (later to become the infamous military dictator of Uganda) was selected as a replacement by East Africa for their match against the 1955 British Lions. The story is entirely unfounded, he does not appear on the team photograph or on the official team list and replacements were not allowed in international rugby until 13 years after this event is supposed to have taken place.
Results
Scores and results list Lions' points tally first.
Bibliography
Thomas, Clem; Thomas, Greg (2001). The History of The British and Irish Lions. Mainstream Books. pp. 100–117. ISBN 1-84018-498-1.
Notes
Kata Kunci Pencarian:
- 1955 British Lions tour to South Africa
- 1997 British Lions tour to South Africa
- 2021 British & Irish Lions tour to South Africa
- 1974 British Lions tour to South Africa
- 2009 British & Irish Lions tour to South Africa
- 1980 British Lions tour to South Africa
- 1968 British Lions tour to South Africa
- 1938 British Lions tour to South Africa
- History of rugby union matches between South Africa and the British & Irish Lions
- 1924 British Lions tour to South Africa
