# 1924 Great Britain Lions tour

The 1924 Great Britain Lions tour was a tour by the Great Britain national rugby league team of Australia and New Zealand which took place between May and August 1924. The tour involved a schedule of 27 games; 18 in Australia, including a three-test series against Australia for the Ashes and a further nine in New Zealand, including a three-test series against New Zealand.
Captained by Jonty Parkin, the Lions returned home having won 21, and lost six games. They won the Ashes against Australia by two tests to one, but lost two out of three tests against New Zealand.
Despite being classed as Great Britain with the presence of Welsh players, the team actually played the tour listed as England.

## Squad

An initial 20-man squad for the tour was named on 27 February 1924, with six additional players being selected in the following weeks. Wakefield Trinity scrum-half Jonty Parkin was appointed as captain.
| Name | Position | Nationality | Club |
| Ernie Knapman | Fullback | England | Oldham |
| Jim Sullivan | Fullback | Wales | Wigan |
| Billy Bentham | Wing | England | Broughton Rangers |
| Frank Evans | Wing | Wales | Swinton |
| Johnny Ring | Wing | Wales | Wigan |
| Sid Rix | Wing | England | Oldham |
| Jim Bacon | Centre | Wales | Leeds |
| Charlie Carr | Centre | England | Barrow |
| Tommy Howley | Centre | Wales | Wigan |
| Charlie Pollard | Centre | England | Wakefield Trinity |
| Danny Hurcombe | Stand-off | Wales | Wigan |
| Stan Whitty | Stand-off | England | Hull |
| Walter Mooney | Scrum-half | England | Leigh |
| Jonty Parkin (c) | Scrum-half | England | Wakefield Trinity |
| Harold Bowman | Prop forward | England | Hull |
| Bill Burgess | Prop forward | England | Barrow |
| Billy Cunliffe | Prop forward | England | Warrington |
| Joe Thompson | Prop forward | Wales | Leeds |
| Jack Bennett | Hooker | England | Rochdale Hornets |
| Ben Gronow | Hooker | Wales | Huddersfield |
| Albert Brough | Second-row | England | Oldham |
| Joe Darwell | Second-row | England | Leigh |
| Dai Rees | Second-row | Wales | Halifax |
| Bob Sloman | Second-row | England | Oldham |
| Frank Gallagher | Loose forward | England | Batley |
| Jack Price | Loose forward | England | Wigan |
The two team managers were J. H. Dannatt of Hull and E. Osborne of Warrington.

## Schedule and results

The majority of the touring party departed from Tilbury on 11 April 1924. Due to their involvement in the 1924 Challenge Cup final, the nine players selected from Wigan and Oldham travelled overland and joined the ship at Marseille. The team arrived in Melbourne on 20 May.
| Date | Opponents | Score (GB first) | Venue | Attendance |
| 24 May | Victoria | 45–13 | Brunswick Street Oval, Melbourne | 15,000 |
| 26 May | Southern Districts | 31–4 | Fisher Park, Cootamundra | 5,500 |
| 31 May | Newcastle | 43–18 | Newcastle Sports Ground, Newcastle | 9,000 |
| 4 June | New England | 34–17 | Tamworth Oval, Tamworth | 3,500 |
| 7 June | NSW Firsts | 10–5 | Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney | 42,000 |
| 9 June | NSW Firsts | 18–33 | Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney | 48,000 |
| 12 June | Ipswich | 17–0 | North Ipswich Reserve, Ipswich | 2,000 |
| 14 June | Queensland Firsts | 10–25 | Brisbane Exhibition Ground, Brisbane | 35,000 |
| 19 June | Toowoomba | 20–23 | Athletic Oval, Toowoomba | 10,000 |
| 21 June | NSW Firsts | 43–5 | Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney | 26,042 |
| 23 June | Australia | 22–3 | Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney | 50,005 |
| 25 June | Orange | 42–23 | Wade Park, Orange | 5,000 |
| 28 June | Australia | 5–3 | Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney | 33,842 |
| 2 July | North Coast | 28–19 | Oakes Oval, Lismore | 8,000 |
| 5 July | Central Queensland | 34–20 | George Street Ground, Rockhampton | 8,000 |
| 8 July | Maryborough | 22–3 | Maryborough Showgound, Maryborough | 2,500 |
| 12 July | Australia | 11–21 | Brisbane Exhibition Ground, Brisbane | 39,000 |
| 16 July | Universities XIII | 31–23 | Sydney Sports Ground, Sydney | 2,000 |
| 23 July | South Auckland | 28–16 | Steele Park, Hamilton | 3,000 |
| 26 July | Auckland | 24–11 | Carlaw Park, Auckland | 20,000 |
| 28 July | Waikato | 30–12 | Paterson Park, Ngāruawāhia | |
| 30 July | Provincial XIII | 28–13 | Carlaw Park, Auckland | 7,000 |
| 2 August | New Zealand | 8–16 | Carlaw Park, Auckland | 22,000 |
| 6 August | New Zealand | 11–13 | Basin Reserve, Wellington | 6,000 |
| 9 August | New Zealand | 31–18 | Tahuna Park, Dunedin | 14,000 |
| 15 August | West Coast | 65–8 | Victoria Park, Greymouth | 3,000 |
| 16 August | Canterbury | 47–10 | Addington Showgound, Christchurch | 9,000 |
The team departed New Zealand aboard the RMS Tahiti, returning home via America.