1908 Auckland Rugby League season

Rugby season for the unofficial Auckland Rugby League

The 1908 season for Auckland consisted of four representative matches played in an effort to grow the game in Auckland and New Zealand. The team was chosen prior to the formation of the Auckland Rugby League so were an ‘unofficial’ Auckland team though they were very strong nonetheless and many of the players went on to represent Auckland and New Zealand in the ensuing years. Several of the players were also strongly involved in the establishment of club sides and the growth of the game in Auckland for many years to come such as Albert Asher, Charles Dunning, William Wynyard, and Ronald MacDonald.

Origins of Auckland Rugby League
1908  | Succeeded by

1909

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## The games

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The four matches were against Wellington and Taranaki with games being played in Auckland, Wellington and New Plymouth. They resulted in 3 wins and a draw. Prior to the last match of the season against Taranaki at Victoria Park the promoters of the proposed Auckland League stated clearly their intentions. They said that it was not their intention to pay players for home matches. If any profits accrued from their last match it would be “banked to form the nucleus of a ground fund. It will be the policy of the league to provide players with uniforms, free brake trips to grounds, and payment for loss of wages when away from Auckland on tour”. They went on to say that the tour had not been profitable. The money they had gained from Wellington's visit in August had been lost while on tour due to travel costs and other expenditure. They hoped to “stimulate a strong local competitions next season” and had secured a ground at Epsom for play.[1]

## Representative matches

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### Auckland v Wellington

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Harold Rowe, the first ever try scorer for Auckland.The Wellington team

The first ever match played by an Auckland side was between them and Wellington at Victoria Park in central Auckland. The Auckland Rugby League had not officially formed at this point with the sport very much in its infancy in New Zealand. The match featured 19 players out of the 26 who were current or future New Zealand representatives. Bill Tyler scored the first ever points for Auckland with a goal from a mark which had been taken by Harold Rowe. Tyler's kicking was crucial in Auckland's win with a conversion, 2 penalties, and 2 goals from marks. Rowe scored the first ever try for Auckland to give them a 5–3 lead after Conrad Byrne had scored for Wellington earlier to give them their first ever points.

| 22 August  | Auckland  | 16–14  | Wellington  | Victoria Park  |

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|  | Try: Harold Rowe, William Wynyard
Con: William Tyler
Pen: William Tyler 2
Drop: William Tyler 2  | [2] | Try: Conrad Byrne, James Barber, Dan Twohill, P McGill
Con: George Spencer | Attendance: 7000
Referee: Mr. J. (Tiffy) Lang
Team details

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FB | 1 | Charles Dillamore
WG | 2 | Harold Rowe
CE | 3 | William Wynyard
WG | 4 | P Redwood
FE | 5 | Bill Tyler
FE | 6 | Sid Riley
HB | 7 | Richard Wynyard
PR | 8 | Bill Mackrell
HK | 9 | Charles Dunning
PR | 10 | William Trevarthen
SR | 11 | Ronald MacDonald
SR | 12 | Frederick Gladding
LF | 13 | Matt Hooper
Emergency:
EM | 14 |
Coach:

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FB | 1 | George Spencer
WG | 2 | Bert King
CE | 3 | Instone
WG | 4 | Dan Twohill
FE | 5 | Albert House
FE | 6 | James Barber
HB | 7 | Arthur Kelly
PR | 8 | P McGill
HK | 9 | Charlie Pearce
PR | 10 | Conrad Byrne
SR | 11 | John Spencer
SR | 12 | Daniel Gilchrist
LF | 13 | Adam Lile
Emergency:
EM | 14 | ?
Coach:

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### Auckland v Wellington

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| 12 September  | Wellington  | 13–13  | Auckland  | Petone Recreation Ground  |

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| 3:00  | Try: Edward Tyne, Dan Twohill, John Spencer
Con: George Spencer 2  | [3] | Try: Harold Rowe, Albert Asher, Matt Hooper
Con: William Tyler 2  | Attendance: 3000
Referee: L Isherwood

### Auckland v Taranaki

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Auckland Team

This match was originally supposed to be played on the recreation ground but after pressure from the rugby union it was moved to the Tukapa Cricket Field adjacent to Western Park. There were further issues with seating as the advertised seats for spectators did not arrive at the ground. Taranaki won the match by 5 points to 3 and it was suggested that Auckland had deliberately thrown the match to stir up interest in the return match. Though the closeness of the game back in Auckland would suggest this might not have been the case.

| 17 September  | Taranaki  | 5–3  | Auckland  | Tukapa Cricket Field, New Plymouth  |

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|  | Try: Arthur Hardgrave
Con: Arthur Hardgrave | [4] | Try: William Tyler | Attendance: 600
Referee: H Gilboy

### Auckland v Taranaki

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Try scorer for Auckland, Richard WynyardArthur Hardgrave

Auckland won narrowly, outscoring Taranaki by 5 tries to 4 before a crowd of 3,000 at Victoria Park. For Taranaki Arthur Hardgrave kicked 3 goals. Hardgrave played 5 matches for Taranaki, 11 for Auckland, and 8 for New Zealand. He transferred to Auckland in 1912 and joined the Manukau club. He later played for the North Shore Albions in 1913, the Ōtāhuhu Rovers from 1914 to 1916, and Ponsonby United from 1917 to 1920. His son Roy Hardgrave was a New Zealand and Auckland representative and played for Newton Rangers, and Mount Albert, as well as professionally for St Helens, York, and Toulouse. Kiwi, Richard Wynyard scored for Auckland. His brother William Wynyard also represented New Zealand in their 1907-08 tour. Tragically Richard committed suicide in 1915 after becoming depressed at not being able to find work in his profession as a clerk. Samuel Houghton also made his Auckland debut. He had migrated to New Zealand with his family, including Thomas Houghton who played for New Zealand in 1909. Samuel would referee the Auckland Province v Wellington game in 1909 and would also become the Auckland Rugby League secretary.

| 10 October  | Auckland  | 21–18  | Taranaki  | Victoria Park  |

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| 3:00  | Try: Harold Rowe, Richard Wynyard, William Tyler, Ronald MacDonald, S Marshall
Con: William Tyler, S Marshall
Pen: Thomas Houghton | [5] | Try: Gordon Hooker, Ernie Buckland 2, Willie Maclean
Con: Arthur Hardgrave 2
Pen: Arthur Hardgrave (mark)  | Attendance: 3,000

## Auckland representative matches played and scorers

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Matches and Points

Player  | Played  | Tries  | Conv  | Pen  | Marks  | Points
William Tyler | 4 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 22
Richard Wynyard | 4 | 1 | - | - | - | 3
Bill Trevarthen | 4 | - | - | - | - | 0
Ronald MacDonald | 4 | 1 | - | - | - | 3
Matt Hooper | 4 | 1 | - | - | - | 3
Charles Dillimore | 3 | - | - | - | - | 0
Harold Rowe | 3 | 3 | - | - | - | 9
William Wynyard | 3 | 1 | - | - | - | 3
P Redwood | 3 | - | - | - | - | 0
Sid Riley | 3 | - | - | - | - | 0
William Mackrell | 3 | - | - | - | - | 0
Charles Dunning | 3 | - | - | - | - | 0
Fred Gladding | 2 | - | - | - | - | 0
Albert Asher | 2 | 1 | - | - | - | 3
Frank Barclay | 1 | - | - | - | - | 0
Thomas Houghton | 1 | - | - | 1 | - | 2
Alex Stanaway | 1 | - | - | - | - | 0
S Marshall | 1 | 1 | 1 | - | - | 5
Samuel Houghton | 1 | - | - | - | - | 0

## References

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1. ^ "Northern Union Game". The New Zealand Herald. Vol. XLV, no. 13877\. 10 October 1908. p. 9. Retrieved 11 December 2019.
2. ^ "Auckland v Wellington/A Fascinating Exhibition/Auckland Defeats Wellington". Auckland Star. Vol. XXXIX, no. 202\. 22 August 1908. p. 6. Retrieved 11 December 2019.
3. ^ "Wellington v Auckland/A Drawn Game". Vol. XXX, no. 6624\. New Zealand Times. 14 September 1908. p. 2. Retrieved 9 December 2019.
4. ^ "The Northern Union Game/Auckland v Taranaki". Vol. LI, no. 227\. Taranaki Daily News. 18 September 1908. p. 4. Retrieved 11 December 2019.
5. ^ "Auckland v Taranaki". Auckland Star. Vol. XXXIX, no. 244\. 12 October 1908. p. 6. Retrieved 11 December 2019.

## External links

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* Auckland Rugby League Official Site