1951–1952 New Zealand rugby league tour of Great Britain and France facts for kids

The 1951–1952 Kiwi tour of Great Britain and France was a special trip made by the New Zealand national rugby league team. They traveled all the way to Great Britain and France to play a series of exciting rugby league matches. Rugby league is a popular team sport, a bit like rugby union, but with slightly different rules. The New Zealand team is often called the "Kiwi" team, which is a nickname for people from New Zealand. This tour was a big event for the team, allowing them to compete against some of the best players in Europe.

Playing in Great Britain

The Kiwi team played several important matches against the Great Britain national team. These games were called "tests" because they were the most challenging and important matches of the tour.

Great Britain Test Matches

The matches against Great Britain were very close and exciting.

• On 6 October 1951, Great Britain won 21–15 in Bradford.
• On 10 November 1951, Great Britain narrowly won 20–19 in Swinton.
• On 15 December 1951, Great Britain won again, 16–12, in Leeds.

These results show that the Kiwi team played very well, even though they didn't win these particular games.

Match in Wales

The New Zealand team also played one test match against Wales.

• On 7 December 1951, the Kiwis had a strong performance, beating Wales 15–3 in Bradford. This was a great win for the team during their tour.

Games in France

After playing in Great Britain, the Kiwi team traveled to France for more test matches.

• On 23 December 1951, France won 8–3 in Paris.
• On 30 December 1951, France won again, 17–7, in Bordeaux.

These matches were tough for the New Zealand team, showing the strength of the French rugby league players.

The British Empire XIII Match

The very last game of the tour was a unique and special match. It wasn't originally planned, but the New Zealand team really wanted to play a game in London before heading home.

What was the British Empire XIII?

The "British Empire XIII" was a special team made up of top players from both Great Britain and Australia. The "XIII" means there were 13 players on the field, which is the number of players in a rugby league team. This combined team was very strong, featuring some of the best rugby league talent from different parts of the British Empire.

The Match Details

The game was played on 23 January 1952, at a famous stadium called Stamford Bridge in London. About 6,000 fans came to watch this exciting match. The British Empire team played very well and won the game 26–2 against the New Zealand Kiwis. Even though the Kiwis lost, playing in London against such a strong combined team was a memorable way to end their long tour.

Teams for the British Empire XIII Match

Here are the players who were part of the British Empire XIII team: