1888–89 New Zealand Native football team

A wholly private endeavour, the tour was not under the auspices of any official rugby authority; it was organised by New Zealand international player Joseph Warbrick, promoted by public servant Thomas Eyton, and managed by James Scott, a publican.

Officials of the strictly amateur Rugby Football Union (RFU) had become increasingly concerned at the behaviour of the New Zealanders, regarding them as unsportsmanlike, and tensions reached a nadir in the aftermath of the England match, during which the RFU secretary George Rowland Hill, refereeing the game, awarded some controversial tries to England, prompting three of the Natives to temporarily leave the field in protest.

The New Zealanders left England without an official send-off, and travelled to Australia where they toured Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland.

[7][a] Some Māori players who initially agreed to play later pulled out when the eligibility criteria were relaxed to allow squad members who were only part-Māori.

"They are not unlike Europeans," a Scottish reporter wrote in November 1888; "that is their resemblance is great when one remembers that they were a savage tribe no further back than a generation".

[24] A report in the Auckland Star had this to say of the game: The New Zealanders expected to meet a mere exhibition 15 of scratch players, whereas Mr Rowland Hill had carefully collected the best possible team available.

[26] Yorkshire and Lancashire dominated the county championship until many of their respective member clubs split from the RFU in 1895 over the issue of "broken time" payments.

[33] The Irish press were surprised by the loss and strongly criticised their team, but Ireland did go on to defeat Wales two tries to nil in the 1889 Home Nations Championship.

[38] At the start of the match the home crowd were fairly hostile towards the Welsh team due to fans of both Swansea and Llanelli feeling slighted by the lack of selection of their players.

The match was played in Swansea, and the lack of local players may have contributed to a poor crowd, with gate receipts of only £120 recorded.

Biggs, aged 18 years and 49 days, became the youngest Welsh international player – a record he held until the debut of Tom Prydie in 2010.

[40] Despite the heckles aimed primarily at Biggs, Charlie Arthur and George Thomas, the Welsh team produced an excellent effort, especially from the forwards.

The tourists trailed even further after George Thomas scored a breakaway try frrm the half-way line, which went some way to silence the heckles from the crowd.

The system was deemed a failure and was particularly unpopular with star Welsh player Arthur Gould, whose formidable ability as a back allowed his club team Newport to retain the additional forward.

[44] After the unexpected loss, Yorkshire were determined to make amends and a strong side was selected for the county, including Fred Bonsor, Richard Lockwood and John Willie Sutcliffe, all of whom would appear for England against the Natives later that season.

Ellison scored a converted try late in the match, but this didn't prevent the Natives suffering their largest defeat of the tour: 16–4 to the Yorkshiremen.

[48] After a victory over Spen Valley District, the team travelled west to play Somersetshire, Devonshire, Taunton, and Gloucestershire, and won all five games.

The match against Oxford University was postponed due to heavy frost, and so the team had a seven-day break from playing – their longest of the tour.

Later in the half England scored two tries through Harry Bedford, but both were disputed by the Natives, who claimed that one of their players had grounded the ball in-goal.

[57] The RFU, at Hill's instigation, promptly demanded an apology from the Natives' captain of the day, Edward McCausland, who had led the team as Joe Warbrick was injured.

[60] The RFU threatened to bar any of their affiliated players – in other words, the entire rugby playing population of England – from facing the Natives if they did not apologise.

[62][26] Some of the Natives, including Joe Warbrick, accused the RFU and the English press of hypocrisy, claiming that they were quick to criticise the New Zealanders for rough play, yet tolerant of similar behaviour from their own players.

[70] Although the side had employed Jack Lawlor to coach them in Victorian Rules during their tour of the British Isles, the heavy schedule and high injury count had left little time and energy for such training.

[71] The side played eleven Victorian Rules matches in total, including three in New South Wales, but won only three of them, all against relatively weak opposition.

[74] Another two victories followed, before the team played two further Victorian Rules matches against the Northumberland club in Maitland and a representative Northern Districts side in Newcastle.

[83][72] Following the side's return to New Zealand, the Otago Rugby Football Union demanded that the team's management explain the accusations levelled at them in Queensland.

The matter was brought before the Otago Union, who passed the following resolution: That, having heard all available evidence regarding the charges against certain members of the Native Team, and having received an explicit denial of charges from the accused members and a satisfactory explanation from the management, we are of opinion that there are no facts before us justifying the allegations ...[85]It is unlikely, given the attitude of the Otago Rugby Union to the Natives before their departure, that they would have dismissed the allegations if incriminating evidence had existed.

The Natives' play was praised by The Press: "... the wearers of the black passed with remarkable accuracy and quickness between their legs, over their shoulders, under their arms and with their feet".

[87] The report published in The Press said of the Natives' performance: The play showed on Saturday afternoon was a fine exhibition of what several months of combination and practice will do ...it must be admitted they were far and away too good for our local men.

Sutcliffe, Andrew Stoddart, Richard "Dicky" Evison Lockwood, William Martin Scott, Fernand "Fred" Bonsor capt., Frank Evershed, Donald "Don" Jowett, Charles Anderton, Harry James Wilkinson, Harry Bedford, William Yiend, John W. Cave, Frederick Lowrie, Arthur Robinson New Zealand Natives: Billy Warbrick, Edward McCausland, Tabby Wynyard, Charles Madigan, William Elliot, David Gage, Patrick Keogh, George Wynyard, Teo Rene, Harry Lee, Thomas Ellison, George Williams, W Anderson, Dick Taiaroa, Richard Maynard Books and journals News Web