Mt Albert had a proud tradition in Auckland and had previously won two Bartercard Cup competitions as a stand-alone club.

The Bartercard franchise wore a yellow jersey with a blue V, while the Premier League side wore royal blue jerseys with a white V. In 2008 the Bartercard Cup was discontinued and the Auckland franchise in the New South Wales Cup was renamed the Auckland Vulcans.

The team was composed of Auckland Rugby League talent and Warriors players not taking part in first grade action.

After several good early performances including upsetting a Dragons team with a lot of first grade talent, the Lions season started to slide with a six match losing streak that was broken in Round 13 with a 10–8 victory over the Manly Sea Eagles at Mt Smart Stadium.

Unbeaten after eight rounds they racked up some big scores including thrashings of the Counties Manukau Jetz (62-0), Waicoa Bay Stallions (64-4), Central Falcons (84-0) and Northern Storm (70-8).