The following article is an extract from 'The British & Irish Lions: The Official History 2025 Tour edition'.
1930
THE NEARLY MEN
The 1930 Tour of New Zealand came almost exactly midway between the two great European wars. Times were fitfully peaceful, with Germany not yet aware of resurgent nationalism and the imminent appearance of Adolf Hitler. King George V was on the English throne. It was a time of growing economic depression and uncertainty for the working man but, as ever, the British upper- and middle-classes were reasonably cushioned from its effects.
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It must be remembered that, at the time, rugby union was almost entirely in the hands of the middle-class in England, Scotland and Ireland. It was not the same in Wales and therefore, at this time, more working-class Welshmen like Dai Parker of Swansea were included in the team. Dai was a character who possessed a marvellous native wit and a physique which overcame and eliminated any pretensions by the varsity and posher elements to be superior; elements which were present in all Lions teams before the war. These men from different social backgrounds had begun to emerge; they had used life as their university and they were no less skilled in the arts of rugby or in debates on important issues than their well-educated counterparts. They may have had something to learn about social graces, as many of them, before touring, had lived extremely confined lives. Some of them had barely moved out of the valleys or the towns in which they lived. As ever, they were quick to learn. These were the men that the 1896 Lions tourist, Rev. Walter Carey, was talking about when he made his statement about rugby being a game for 'gentlemen of all classes'.
It had been six years since the last Lions had toured and there had been a gap of 22 years since the Lions had last visited Australasia. The planning for the Tour began early, and on 18 April 1929, the secretary of the RFU, Sydney Coopper, sent the following letter to 28 players:
Tour of a Rugby Union British team to New Zealand and Australia in 1930
Dear Sir,
You have been provisionally selected to take part in the above Tour. The final selection will not, however, be made until two or three months before the Team sails.
The Team will leave England about the second week in April 1930, and arrive back about the second week in October. Each player should be in possession of about £50 to £75 for incidental expenses.
We hope that the team eventually chosen will represent the full playing strength of the Home Unions, in order that we may give New Zealand and Australia a true idea of our standard of play, and we hope you will make every effort to take part in the Tour.
Will you please inform the Secretary of the Rugby Football Union, Twickenham, whether you would be able to take part in the Tour.
Yours faithfully
SF Coopper
The early selection may have seemed a sound idea at the time, trying to give everyone a chance to plan their lives to allow them to embark on a near six-month-long Tour, but only nine of the original squad eventually made it to New Zealand.
The 1930 originals were made up of nine English, seven Scottish, six Irish and six Welsh players, all of whom were capped. By the time the party set sail for New Zealand in April 1930, the split was 16 English, seven Welsh, five Irish and only one Scottish player. The first draft of players was as follows (players in bold made the Tour):
Full-backs: Ken Sellar (United Services/England), Tom Brown (Bristol/England)
Three-quarters: Jim Ganly (Monkstown/Ireland), Carl Aarvold (Headingley/England), Bill Simmers (Glasgow Academicals/Scotland), Phil MacPherson (Edinburgh Academicals/Scotland), Ian Smith (London Scottish/Scotland), Tony Novis (Army/Blackheath/England), Harry Bowcott (Cambridge University/Wales)
Half-backs: James Nelson (Glasgow Academicals/Scotland), Wick Powell (London Welsh/Wales), Harry Greenlees (Leicester/Scotland), Frank Williams (Cardiff/Wales), Mark Sugden (Dublin University/Ireland)
Forwards: Ivor Jones (Llanelli/Wales), Dai Parker (Swansea/Wales), Tom Arthur (Neath/Wales), Standish Cagney (London Irish/Ireland), George Beamish (RAF/Leicester/Ireland), Mike Dunne (Lansdowne/Ireland), Charles Payne (North of Ireland/Ireland), Hugh MacKintosh (Glasgow University/Scotland), John Paterson (Birkenhead Park/Scotland), Henry Rew (Exeter/England), Charles Gummer (Plymouth Albion/England), Eric Coley (Northampton/England), Wavell Wakefield (Harlequins/England), Sam Martindale (Kendal/England)
The idea was for the great English forward Wakefield to lead the team. He had won four Grand Slams and captained England to back-to-back clean sweeps of the Five Nations Championship. He was unavailable for the 1924 Lions Tour and was eventually forced to consign to the dustbin any hopes of touring in 1930 because of a groin injury picked up in January that year. The Cambridge University and Wales outside-half Harry Bowcott initially made himself unavailable, but then had a change of heart when the Irish three-quarter Morgan Crowe broke his collarbone playing for Lansdowne the week before departing. Crowe had been called up to replace one of the original squad.
