The opponents for Great Britain’s first rugby league tour for more than a decade have been revealed by the Rugby Football League – with the Lions scheduled to play Tests against New Zealand, Papua New Guinea and Tonga in the southern hemisphere this autumn.
It emerged last year that the RFL was reintroducing the Great Britain team for a tour in late 2019, 12 years since the Lions last played a recognised Test. This autumn a squad led by the England coach, Wayne Bennett, will travel to Papua New Guinea to play the Kumuls for the first time since 1996, before a first-ever meeting with Tonga, who reached the semi-finals of the last World Cup in 2017.
Those two games precede a two-Test series against New Zealand – Great Britain’s last opponents back in 2007. “The return of the famous Great Britain jersey is something people have been talking about for a long time, so this is an exciting announcement for us,” the RFL’s chief executive, Ralph Rimmer, said.
“It’s 12 years since Great Britain last played a Test, and 13 since they last travelled to the southern hemisphere, for the Tri-Nations series of 2006.
“While the development of the England performance unit has been a priority and a success for the RFL, across men’s, women’s and wheelchair rugby league – and will continue to be as we build towards the 2021 Rugby League World Cup – there is such history and tradition around that Great Britain shirt. We’ll be committed to respecting and honouring that tradition as we build up to the tour through 2019.”
The RFL has also confirmed that Bennett, who has been England coach since 2016, will lead the Lions on the tour of the southern hemisphere – with details of the composition of the squad and the selection process to be revealed by the sport’s governing body in the weeks ahead.
“It’s an honour to be involved in the revival of the Great Britain team as head coach,” Bennett said. “I’ve coached against them in the past with Australia, and wherever you’re from in the world of rugby league that Great Britain jersey is a famous one and I’m sure the current generation of players will be excited by the prospect of wearing it and representing their country in New Zealand and Papua New Guinea.
“It’s an exciting prospect for international rugby league, and good to have that Great Britain tradition back.”
