The Invincibles was a nickname given to the 1924–25 New Zealand national team which toured the United Kingdom, Ireland, France and Canada. The team was captained by Cliff Porter, and numbered among its top players George Nēpia and brothers Cyril and Maurice Brownlie. During the test against England Cyril Brownlie was sent off by the Welsh referee Albert Freethy, the first player to be sent off from a test.
| 1924–25 New Zealand rugby union tour of Britain, Ireland and France | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 The Invincibles, as they were nicknamed after winning all 32 of their games overseas [1] | |||||
| Manager | S.S. Dean | ||||
| Tour captain(s) | Cliff Porter | ||||
| Top point scorer(s) | Mark Nicholls (131) [2] | ||||
| Top try scorer(s) | Bert Cooke (28) [2] | ||||
| Summary |
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| Total |
| ||||
| Test match |
| ||||
| Opponent |
| ||||
 Ireland |
| ||||
 Wales |
| ||||
 England |
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 France |
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| Tour chronology | |||||
| Previous tour | 1924 NS Wales | ||||
| Next tour | 1925 NS Wales | ||||
Between September 1924 and February 1925, the team played 32 games including four test matches, one each against Ireland, England, Wales, and France. They won all 32 games, scoring 838 points and only having 116 points scored against them.
Cliff Porter was tour captain, but played only 17 of the 32 games due to injury, including just one test (against France). During the remaining games, tour vice-captain Johnstone Richardson (Jock) took over the captaincy.
Touring party
editManagementedit
Full-backseditThree-quartersedit
Five-eighthsedit | Half-backseditWing forwardseditForwardsedit
|
Match summary
editComplete list of matches played by the All Blacks in the British Isles, France and Canada:[3] Test matches
The test-matches
editIreland
edit| 1 November 1924 |
| Ireland | 0–6 |  New Zealand |
| Try: Snowy Svenson Pen: Nicholls |
| Lansdowne Road Attendance: 25,000 Referee: A.E. Freethy (Wales) |
Ireland: 15.William Crawford, 14.Henry Stephenson, 13.George Stephenson, 12.James Gardiner, 11.Tom Hewitt, 10.Frank Hewitt, 9.John McDowell, 8.James Clinch, 7.Robert Crichton, 6.Norman Brand, 5.William Collis, 4.Alex Spain, 3.Dick Collopy, 2.Thomas McClelland, 1.Jim McVicker
New Zealand: 15.George Nēpia, 14.Snowy Svenson, 13.Frederick Lucas, 12.Bert Cooke, 11.Augustine Hart, 10.Mark Nicholls, 9.Bill Dalley, 8.Les Cupples, 7.Son White, 6.Jock Richardson (c), 5.Read Masters, 4.Maurice Brownlie, 3.Bull Irvine, 2.Quentin Donald, 1.James Parker
Wales
edit| 29 November 1924 |
| Wales | 0–19 | New Zealand |
| Try: Irvine (2) M Brownlie Svenson Con: Nicholls Pen: Nicholls |
| St Helens Attendance: 50,000 Referee: Col. J.S. Brunton (England) |
Wales: Tom Johnson (Cardiff), Ernie Finch (Llanelli), Albert Jenkins (Llanelli), Albert Stock (Newport), Rowe Harding (Swansea), Jack Wetter (Newport) capt., Eddie Williams (Neath), Bobby Delahay (Cardiff), Dai Parker (Swansea), Jack Gore, (Blaina), Charlie Pugh (Maesteg), Steve Morris (Cross Keys), Cliff Williams (Llanelli), Douglas Marsden-Jones (London Welsh), Dai Hiddlestone (Neath)
New Zealand: G Nēpia, J Steel, AE Cooke, KS Svenson, NP McGregor, MF Nicholls, J Mill, JH Parker, WR Irvine, Q Donald, RR Masters, LF Cupples, CJ Brownlie, MJ Brownlie, J Richardson (capt.)
England
edit| 3 January 1925 |
| England | 11–17 | New Zealand |
| Try: Cove-Smith, Kittermaster Con: Conway Pen: Corbett | Try: Steel, Svenson MJ Brownlie, Parker, Con: Nicholls Pen: Nicholls |
| Twickenham Stadium, London Attendance: 60,000 Referee: Albert Freethy (Wales) |
England:15.Jim Brough, 14.Richard Hamilton-Wickes, 13.Vivian Davies, 12.Leonard Corbett, 11.John Gibbs, 10.Harold Kittermaster, 9.Arthur Young, 8.Tom Voyce, 7.Geoffrey Conway, 6.Freddie Blakiston, 5.Ron Cove-Smith, 4.Wavell Wakefield (cap.), 3.Ronald Hillard, 2.Sam Tucker, 1.Reg Edwards
New Zealand:15.George Nēpia, 14.John Steel, 13.Bert Cooke, 12.Mark Nicholls, 11.Snowy Svenson, 10.Neil McGregor, 9.Jimmy Mill, 8.Jock Richardson (cap.), 7.Son White, 6.Cyril Brownlie 
, 5.Read Masters, 4.Maurice Brownlie, 3.Bull Irvine, 2.Quentin Donald, 1.James Parker,
France
edit| 18 January 1925 |
| France | 6–30 | New Zealand |
| Try: Cassayeet Ribere | Try: Cooke (2), Irivine, Porter, Richardson, Steel, Svenson, White Con: Nicholls (3) |
| Stade des Ponts Jumeaux, Toulouse Attendance: 30,000 Referee: H.E.B. Wilkins (England) |
| Team details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
France: 15.Chilo, 14.Jauregui, 13.Ballette, 12.Ballarin, 11.Hallet, 10.du Manoir, 9.Piteu, 8.Boubee, 7.Ribere, 6.Bioussa, 5.Cassayeet (capt), 4.Laurent, 3.Maury, 2.Marcet, 1.Montade |
Bibliography
edit- Chester, R., Palenski, R., and McMillan, N. (1998) The Encyclopedia of New Zealand Rugby. Auckland: Hodder Moa Beckett.
References
edit- ^ The 1924 Invincibles All Black team on NZ History website
- ^ a b Match centre - In Australia, the British Isles, France and Canada on AllBlacks.com
- ^ 90 years on Invincibles remain larger than life part of All Blacks history by James Mortimer on All Blacks website, 9 Dec 2014
