British and Irish Lions – Wikipedia

The British and Irish Lions (short Lions ) are a rugby union team consisting of players who are eligible to play for the national teams of England, Ireland, Scotland or Wales (the so-called Home Nations). Every four years, the Lions take a tour of several weeks, which alternately lead through Australia, New Zealand or South Africa, the three major rugbynations of the southern hemisphere. A tour usually includes several test matches against the respective national teams and games against regional selection teams.

Common teams of the then united Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland have been doing tours into the southern hemisphere since 1888. The first trip was a purely commercial company without official support for the associations. The six tours that followed (before the South Africa Tour 1910) received increasing support from the associations, even if only one squad included players from all four nations. A committee with representatives of all Home Nations has selected the players involved since 1910. In 1950 the team consisted exclusively of players who had already had international experience.

In the first half of the 20th century, the Lions usually failed to win a series consisting of several test matches. In 1955 a kind of golden age began when they completed the test match series in South Africa with a respectable 2: 2. The Lions reached their peak in the 1970s when they won the series against New Zealand and South Africa. After the professionalization of rugby union in 1995, the Lions remained, but the tours have become significantly shorter due to the lower availability of the players.

The Lions form a team that is composed of players who are also entitled to play for one of the four Home Nations (England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales) and usually belong to one of these national teams. They usually tour every four years through one of the three leading rugbynations in the southern hemisphere. It is alternately Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. Before the Second World War there were also tours to Argentina. The last tour so far took place in 2021 and led to South Africa. The next one should lead to Australia in 2025. ^[3]

A committee consisting of representatives of the four participating associations (Irish Rugby Football Union, Scottish Rugby Union, Welsh Rugby Union and the English Rugby Football Union) is responsible for organizing the tour and will determine the coaching staff several months before it starts. The head coach then puts together the team squad in consultation with the committee. ^[4] Games against regional selection teams and clubs are played on tour in the middle of the week, and international matches (test matches) against the national team of the host country are on the program at the weekend. There are always at least three test matches; The goal of the Lions during a tour is to achieve more victories in Test Matches than the host and thus win the series. “Home games” of the Lions are very rare and serve as a tour of a tour before departure into the actual target country. A tour usually takes place in June or July if the MID-Year International is held elsewhere. The activities of the home-nation national teams are greatly reduced during this time and are at most limited to operations of the reserves or newcomers.

The Lions games during the week have more of the character of show fights and primarily serve to better coordinate the squad from four national teams, especially in terms of tactical terms, and thus to determine the best possible list for the test matches. However, there is also a balance between the players who are used during the week and those who are offered for the test matches. Tensions in this regard are not unusual. ^[5] The number of players who are taken on tour is also often discussed. For example, at New Zealand Tour in 2005, Scottish media particularly criticized that Scotland was clearly underrepresented with only three players in the originally 44 -strong squad. The question was also raised whether a prescribed quota should be introduced for each nation. However, this is unlikely. ^[6]

Nickname [ Edit | Edit the source text ]

The first teams were called British Isles on. On their tour by New Zealand and Australia in 1950, the team officially took its name British Lions at. This was first used in 1924 by British and South African journalists as a nickname and referred to the lion, which was depicted on the jersey. At that time, the lion had temporarily replaced the four -part badge, on which the symbols of the four participating associations are depicted. ^[7]

When the team emerged towards the end of the 19th century, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was still a single state. The team continued to exist after the founding of the Irish Free State in 1922, but was still as British Isles or British Lions known. Over the decades, the Irish increasingly found these names inappropriate because they did not feel represented. In 2001 there was therefore the official renaming into British and Irish Lions . Most fans still briefly refer to the team as The Lions .

Anthem [ Edit | Edit the source text ]

Since the Lions do not represent a nation, they have no national license plates such as flag or national anthem. The British national anthem was on the tour in 1989 to Australia God Save the Queen played that is associated with England in sports. This in particular displeased the players from the Republic of Ireland, but also occasionally met with criticism in Wales and Scotland. ^[8] As a result, it was foregoing to have a hymn played at all. ^[9] For the tour in 2005 to New Zealand, Lions management commissioned the musician Neil Myers to compose a song tailored to the team. It said The Power of Four And should be sung before the games instead of a national anthem. The premiere took place on May 23, 2005 at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff before the opening game against Argentina, sung by the Welsh opera singer Katherine Jenkins. ^[ten] In players, fans and media, the song met with rejection; It is “to shudder” and uninspently. ^[11] Since then it has no use.

Game clothing [ Edit | Edit the source text ]

The Lions have been wearing a red jersey with a four -part emblem that represents the four associations since 1950. There are also white pants and blue socks with a green top. In this way, the game colors of all four Home Nations are included (red for Wales, white for England, blue for Scotland and green for Ireland). Before 1950, the game clothing went through several significant redesigns. ^[twelfth]

In 1888, Arthur Shrewsbury, the organizer of the first tour, asked “something that would be a good material and would still conquer in the storm here” ( something that would be good material and yet take them by storm out here ) . The result was a red-white-blue striped jersey with white pants and dark socks. The colors were kept for the South Africa tours in 1891 and 1896, but this time as a red and white streaked jersey with dark blue pants and socks. For the Australian tour in 1899, the team returned to red and white blue jerseys, but with wide blue stripes and red and white thin strips. The pants remained blue, as did the socks, which were added to a white color accent. During the South Africa tour in 1903, they wore red and white striped jerseys. The only changes were somewhat wider red than white stripes (vice versa to 1896) and the white color accent on the socks of 1899 were partially preserved. ^[13] The same jersey was wore on the Australian tour in 1904 as five years earlier. In 1908, when the Scottish and Irish associations made no players available, the Anglo Welsh selection on the tour to Australia and New Zealand carried red jerseys with a wide white strip. ^[twelfth] The blue pants were kept, but the socks were red with a white color accent for the first time.

In 1910 the Scots took part in the South African tour again. As a result, players competed in dark blue jerseys with white pants and the red socks from 1908. ^[13] The jerseys also adorned a large lion. In 1924 the selection toured again through South Africa and kept the blue jerseys, whereby this time the pants matched the color. The tour of 1924 is the first in which the team was referred to as Lions. The irony is that on this tour she replaced the coat of arms with the individual lion with the forerunner of the badge with the symbols of the four associations represented, which is still worn today. The lion was missing on the jerseys, but when they arrived in South Africa, the players carried the lion motif on their ties, whereupon the press and the public called the team as Lions. ^[14]

The same jerseys and badges were used in the 1927 Argentina tour in 1927, while the three stylized lions returned as a jersey in 1930. ^[twelfth] On this New Zealandtour, the guest jersey now kept in blue provided some controversy. In rugby it is common for the home team to meet the guests when the colors are too similar. The New Zealand team, which at this point already All Blacks was known, was a black jersey that fit badly to the dark blue of the Lions. After a long hesitation and many discussions, the New Zealand Association approved a change for the test matches, and the all Blacks played in white for the first time. During this tour, some players around the Irish second series striker George Beamish expressed their resentment that although the blue of Scotland, the white of England and the red of Wales were represented, not the green of Ireland. Thereupon the socks were added to a green color accent, which has been an integral part of the game clothing since then. ^[15] On the Argentina tour in 1936, the four-part coat of arms returned to the jersey and has been an integral part since then. ^[twelfth]

The introduction of the red jersey on the tour in 1950 was accompanied by the desire to avoid the controversy from 1930. Together with the white pants and the green-blue socks, this resulted in the playing clothing that is still common today. ^[16] The only changes in the jersey were in 1993 when the logo of the trica supplier was added to a prominent place. Umbro had asked in 1989 to “bring the brand into its own as much as possible”, but this had no influence on the jersey design. Since then, Nike, Adidas and Canterbury have been represented on the jerseys with larger logos, together with the sponsors Scottish Provident (1997), NTL (2001), Zurich (2005), HSBC (2009 and 2013), ^{[15] [17]} Standard Life Investments (2017) and Vodafone (2021). ^[18]

Development of the game clothing

Unofficial predecessor tours [ Edit | Edit the source text ]

The first tour took place in 1888 when 22 players traveled to Australia and New Zealand. Most of them were English, but Welsh and Scots were also represented. Since the tour was organized privately, the Rugby Football Union (the English Association) refused the official patronage, ^[19] However, she approved that there was no violation of the strict amateur rules. ^[20] The team played 35 games against provincial elections as well as city and student teams, with 27 victories. Test matches were not yet part of the tour. ^[21] On the other hand, 19 additional games were found after the Victorian Rules (today’s Australian Football), although the team had no experience with this set of rules before the tour. ^[22] The tour was overshadowed by the death of team captain Robert Seddon, who drowned while rowing in the Hunter River. ^[23]

Despite the lack of support from official institutions, the tradition was that teams from the northern hemisphere visited the south. Three years later, an invitation from the Western Province Union to the British accepted a tour to South Africa. Some saw the 1891 team as an English national team because it received support from the Rugby Football Union. The tour comprised 20 games, including three test matches against the joint selection of British colonies in southern Africa – the state of South Africa did not exist at that time. All games ended with a victory of the British. ^[24] According to the instructions of Sponsor Donald Currie, the British team presented a golden trophy, the Currie Cup, since it showed the best performance of all opponents. Since then, the South African provinces have been playing for this trophy every year. ^{[25] [26]}

Five years later, a selection traveled from the British Islands to South Africa. For the first time ever, Irish also belonged to the team squad; They placed no less than nine of the 21 players. The program included 21 games, including four test matches against South Africa. The balance sheet against the selection teams of the provinces was almost flawless; Only the Western Province team managed to get a tie to the guests. The first three test matches ended with British victories. In the fourth test Match, which took place at the end of the tour in Cape Town, the hosts prevailed 5-0 and celebrated their first victory at the international level. ^[27]

A tour to Australia was planned for 1898, but had to be postponed by one year due to organizational problems. In 1899 the Rugby Football Union was finally able to accept a new invitation from the Australians, while it had to refuse an invitation from the South Africans in the meantime. Players from all four Home Nations were represented for the first time in the 21 man of the British selection. In the 17 games against regional selection teams, the team suffered two defeats. There were also four test matches against the Wallabies, the Australian national team. The guests were subject to match in the first test, but won the three other encounters and were therefore able to win the series 3-1. ^[28]

The British team returned to South Africa in 1903 to play 22 games. However, the tour started very badly, with three defeats in a row against teams from the Western Province. In the further course, the benefits remained under the expectations: two more encounters with the selection teams from Griqualand West and Transvaal also ended with defeats. The test match series against the Springboks, the national team of South Africa, which was scheduled towards the end of the tour, gave an idea of ​​little good. However, contrary to expectations, the British selection kept up well. In the first and third test Match, they each caught a tie to their opponents, while the second test match ended with a 0: 8 defeat. The South Africans thus won the series 1-0. ^{[27] [29]}

Hardly twelve months later, another selection went to Oceania. The Australian part of the tour was extremely successful: all 13 games were won, including three test matches against the Wallabies. ^[30] The second part of the tour in New Zealand comprised six games. In the encounters with provincial teams, three victories, a draw and a defeat resulted. The only test match against the All Blacks, the New Zealand national team, ended with a 3: 9 defeat. Although the British selection in New Zealand had met with hard resistance, the tour was considered a great playful success. ^{[thirty first]}

In 1908 another tour took place in the two oceanic countries, but this time more games were played in New Zealand than in Australia. This decision was probably due to the strength of the New Zealand teams and the rather low resistance of the Australians on the previous tour. The tour team, which only consisted of English and Welsh, won all seven games in Australia, while nine wins and seven defeats resulted against the New Zealand provincial teams. The test match series against the All Blacks was lost with a draw and two defeats. The tour met with little love in Wales, since only players from upscale layers had been selected. The Welsh Rugby Union refused to support the official support and said that the players should be “selected independently of their social position” in the future. ^[32]

Establishment of the British selection [ Edit | Edit the source text ]

The South Africa tour in 1910 is the official start of Lions history, as a body with representatives of all four associations put together the team for the first time. The team, who lived in South Africa, also belonged to the team. He had played clubrugby in England and became Olympic champion with Australia in 1908. Due to several injury -related failures, he offered the British as a substitute player and completed several games for them. ^[33] Named after him, the in 2001 was created Tom Richards Cup that is presented to the winner of a series between the Lions and Australia. In total, the 24 -games was moderately successful. Against the regional selection teams resulted in twelve victories, three draws and six defeats. The test match series in the second half of the tour was lost 1-2. ^[34]

Almost at the same time as the official tour, an unofficial English-Scottish selection traveled to Argentina on the occasion of the Hundred Year of the May Revolution. The Argentinian newspapers described them as British combined , retrospectively, it is considered as a reserve team of the official selection. The team won all six games, including the first test match of the Pumas, the Argentine national team. ^[35] On the part of the Argentinians, Barry Heatlie, who competed against the British for South Africa in 1896 and 1903, played. ^[36]

It took fourteen years to the next tour, which again led to South Africa in 1924 and included 21 games. The British selection made great effort against the provinced teams; Nine victories faced two draws and six defeats. Due to the unusually hard playing fields, the British suffered several injury -related failures and the replacement people had to be used in part in positions with which they were not familiar. The first test match against the springbok ended in a draw, the three were lost. ^[37]

At the invitation of the Argentine Association, the British selection made a tour to Argentina again in 1927. It included nine games, including four test matches against the Pumas. All games were won by the selection, with the 14: 0 victory over the Ca San Isidro that was least clear; In all test matches, the difference was more than 30 points. Despite the great class difference, the Argentine rugby benefited both financially and in terms of sport, because the tour contributed significantly to the popularization of the sport. ^[38]

After a break of over two decades, the British selection traveled back to Oceania in 1930 to play 28 games there. The trip initially led to New Zealand, where 14 of the 17 games against provincial teams could be won. While the guests were able to celebrate a victory against the All Blacks in the first test Match, the two were lost, so the hosts won the series 2-1. Then it went on to Australia. There the British won five of six games against regional selection teams. The only test match against the Wallabies resulted in a narrow defeat. On the way back to Great Britain, the team made a stopover in Ceylon, today’s Sri Lanka, and won a international selection that was not considered as a test match. ^[39]

In 1936 Argentina was the goal of a tour again, for the last time. All ten games were won at a total of only nine counter points. Among them was a game against the Pumas, which despite the approval of the tour through the International Rugby Board (IRB) did not count as a test match. ^[40] In 1938 a tour to South Africa followed with a total of 24 games. The British selection won 16 games against Provinct teams, five lost it. The first two test matches also ended with defeats against the jumping boks, which were able to win the series prematurely. In the third test Match, on the other hand, the British and Irish managed the revenge, making them won an international match on South African soil for the first time since 1910. ^[41]

The first tours under the name Lions [ Edit | Edit the source text ]

After the nickname British Lions (or short Lions ) The team officially appeared under this name in the media for the first time in 1924, the team officially appeared from 1950. The game clothing introduced at the time-red jersey, white pants and blue-green socks-has remained the same to this day. The goal of the first tour after the Second World War was again Oceania, with 23 games in New Zealand and six games in Australia. The Lions won 17 victories against the New Zealand provincial teams and had to give up twice. In the first of four test matches against the All Blacks, they succeeded in 9: 9, while the three other (and thus also the series) was lost. The four games against Australian regional elections showed three victories and one defeat, while both test matches could be won against the wallabies. Once again, the Lions made a stopover in Ceylon on their journey home and won an international match without test match status. ^[42]

The 25 -game tour in 1955 to South Africa was even more successful. The Lions preferred to sprint with the ball at every opportunity instead of struggling with the South Africans in the open crowds. As a result, they achieved 17 wins in the games against Provinct teams and a draw with only three defeats. The four-game test match series showed a tie (two victories and defeats each). On the return trip they made a stopover in Nairobi and won a international match that was not a test match against the selection of East Africa. ^{[43] [44]}

When the Lions traveled to Australia and New Zealand in 1959, a total of 33 games were on the program. With one exception (game against the New South Wales Waratahs), they won all six games on Australian soil. This also included two victories in the test matches against the Wallabies. There were 19 wins and two defeats against the New Zealand provinced teams. In the test match series against the All Blacks, the Lions had to accept three, sometimes very tight defeats, to whom a victory was opposed. The team then traveled back via Canada, where two games against selection teams were on the program in Vancouver and Toronto. ^[45]

After the successes of the 1950s, a rather sobering phase followed. In 1962 the Lions were guests again in South Africa. Although the games against the provinced teams were very successful (15 wins, 3 draws, 2 defeats), but they remained without a chance in the test match series against the springbooks; After a tie in the first encounter, three defeats followed, so that the series was 1: 3 wins in favor of the hosts. The end of the tour was once again a detour to Nairobi, where the Lions defeated the visibly overwhelmed East African selection with 50: 0. ^{[forty six]} The balance of the Oceania tour in 1966 was crossed. In all seven games in Australia, the Lions remained undefeated, including the two test matches against the wallabies. On the other hand, the New Zealand provinced teams made far more resistance and the Lions suffered four defeats and two draws in 21 matches. In the test match series, the All Blacks prevailed in all four games. As already seven years earlier, a detour to Canada concluded. Surprisingly, the Lions lost to the selection of British Columbia, while they prevailed against the Canadian national team. ^[47] During the tour to South Africa in 1968, the Lions won 15 out of 16 encounters with provinced teams (with a defeat against the selection of transvaal), but only achieved a draw in the four games against the Springboks. ^[48]

Blower time of the Lions [ Edit | Edit the source text ]

In the first half of the 1970s, the Lions experienced a kind of renaissance. In 1971 the team undertook a 26-game oceania tour, whereby 24 games took place in New Zealand and were missing encounters with the Wallabies. The Lions narrowly lost the first game in Brisbane against the Queensland Reds, but after that they were undefeated in all other encounters with selection and provincial teams. The first half of the test match series was balanced, each with one victory and a defeat. In the third test match, the Lions prevailed and the draw in fourth meant that they were able to win the series 2-1 victories. To date, this is the only Lions series won in New Zealand. ^[49]

The most famous and most successful Lions team was the one who traveled to South Africa in 1974, led by the Irish second series striker Willie John McBride. The Lions remained unbeaten in 22 games, some of them dominated the provincial teams. They won three of four test matches against the spring boks and only had to give them a draw in the last game. For the first time since 1896, the Lions won a test match series in South Africa. The tour was controversial in two ways, on the one hand because of the internationally increasingly convicted apartheid policy, and on the other hand because of violence on the field. The Lions responsible had come to the conclusion that the South Africans had previously dominated their opponents through their physical aggressiveness. At that time, the referee of the test Matches was provided by the host and substitutes only took place if a doctor found that a player was no longer able to continue playing. There were only a few cameras, which restricted the referee’s intervention options. The Lions decided with the infamous 99 call (Short for 999 , the emergency number in Great Britain and Ireland) “as the first retaliation” (to get their retaliation in first) . The idea behind it was that the referee would certainly not offset all Lions if she “against obvious ruthlessness” (blatant thuggery) “Set to defend”. From the third test Match in Port Elizabeth, one of the most violent in the history of rugby sport, there is a recording in which J. P. R. Williams after such a 99 call Runs over half the place, attacked the second series striker Johannes van Heerden and beats him passed out. ^[50]

Since 1977, the oceania tours no longer lead to Australia and New Zealand at the same time, but only in one of these countries. New Zealand started, where 25 games took place. The balance of this New Zealand tour was ambiguous. There were 20 victories against the provinced teams and only one defeat. On the other hand, the Lions did not succeed in winning the test match series in 1971. Only in the second test Match they went out as the winner, while the three others ended with defeats. At the end of the tour, the Lions made a detour to Suva, where they were welcomed by the Fijian national team and were completely surprising to her with 21:25. ^[51] A team selected from the tour group played on September 10, 1977 on the occasion of Queen Elisabeth II’s silver anniversary of the throne. The Lions won their first “home game”, whose income was paying charitable purposes with 23:14. ^[52]

Apartheid controversy and transition to the professional era [ Edit | Edit the source text ]

In the meantime, the apartheid regime was increasingly under pressure internationally-not least because of the Glenagles agreement signed in 1977, with which the Commonwealth countries had committed to outlawing any sporting contacts with South Africa. Contrary to the express disapproval of the British and Irish government, which had no legal handling, the associations of the Home Nations decided to carry out a tour to South Africa in 1980. The Lions record against the provincial teams was flawless, with 14 victories in just as many games. In the test match series against the Springboks, the Lions kept well with it, but lost the first three matches with only a few points. The victory in the last test Match was only cosmetics of results. ^[53] The tour in 1983 to New Zealand was disappointing. The Lions won twelve out of 14 games against Provinct teams, but in the test match series they could not do anything against the all Blacks and lost all four games. ^[54]

For 1986 a tour to South Africa was expected again, which inevitably led to further controversy, especially since the state of emergency had been imposed in the country. But in December 1985 Danie Craven, the President of the South African Association, announced that the decision to send an official invitation was postponed indefinitely. There was not enough time to plan a replacement tour, so the committee of the four Home Nations organized an anniversary game for the 100th anniversary of the International Rugby Board (IRB, today World Rugby). On April 16, 1986, an official Lions team in Cardiff came against a world selection called The Rest to who belonged to some of the then world’s best players; The world selection prevailed with 15: 7. ^[55]

Australia was the travel destination at the Tour 1989, and a total of twelve games were to be completed. In the nine encounters with regional selection teams, the Lions celebrated as many victories. After the first test match against the Wallabies ended with a clear defeat, the Lions were able to turn the sheet and win the series 2-1 with two other victories. ^[56] For the 200th anniversary of the French Revolution, the Lions competed on October 4, 1989 to play a friendly against the French national team and won in the Princes Paris Paris Parc parc; To date, this is the only game between the Lions and the French. ^[57] The 13 -game tour in 1993 to New Zealand was the last of the amateurarian and was disappointing overall. Six wins were opposed to the provinced teams. The test match series was undecided after two encounters, but was still lost when the all Blacks won the last of the three test matches with 30:12. ^[58]

When the Lions set off for a South Africa tour with eleven games in 1997 (two years after the professionalization of the rugby union sport), they were clearly considered an outsider. But the Lions exceeded all expectations and had to accept a single defeat in the ten games against Province teams. They also won the first two test matches against the Springboks (the world champions from 1995) and lost the third, which unexpectedly won the series 2-1. ^[59] Two years later, the documentary appeared Living with Lions who discussed the training camp and the tour in 1997. ^[60]

Development in the 21st century [ Edit | Edit the source text ]

The first Lions tour in the new millennium led to Australia in 2001 and included ten games. Six victories resulted in the seven games against regional selection teams. Also in the test match series against the Wallabies (the reigning world champions), the Lions initially seemed to assert themselves after winning the first of three games. But with two defeats at the end of the tour, they gave the series 1-2 out of their hands and for the first time ever Australia was able to triumph in a series. ^{[sixty one]}

The Lions Tour 2005 began with a “warm-up game” in Cardiff against Argentina, which ended 25:25 draw. ^[62] The Lions then traveled through New Zealand, where they managed to win all seven games against provinced teams. On the other hand, they not only lost the New Zealand Māori, but were completely unclear in the test match series against the All Blacks and failed with three very clear defeats. The very bad test match results of the Lion led to a sharp criticism of coach Clive Woodward, especially in his selection of players, and prompted experts to question the future of the Lions. ^[63]

South Africa was the destination of the tour in 2009, with the Schotte Ian McGechan fourth time after 1989, 1993 and 1997. In all seven games against Provinct teams, the Lions remained undefeated. The first two test matches against the Springboks, the world champions from 2007, were relatively narrow. Thus, the series was decided prematurely in favor of the hosts. In the final test Match, the Lions returned with a clear victory and shortened the series to 1: 2. ^{[sixty four]}

At the start of the 2013 tour, the Lions in Hong Kong for the first time since 1977 met the Barbarians and conveyed them significantly 58: 9. ^[65] In Australia, the real goal of the tour, they also appeared against the regional teams in a superior manner. Only against the brumbies from Canberra did they have to accept a narrow defeat. In the test match series against the Wallabies, they won the first game just at 23:21, while the second was lost with 15:16. In the decisive third game, the Lions prevailed with 41:16 (synonymous with the clearest test match result in the history of the Lions) and won the series with 2 to 1 victories. ^[66]

The tour in 2017 led the Lions to New Zealand, with the seven games against provincial teams being fiercely competitive. Both against the blues from Auckland and against the Highlanders from Dunedin resulted in narrow defeats, while the encounter with the Hurricanes from Wellington ended. The series against the all Blacks, the reigning world champions, was also very balanced. After the Lions had lost the first test match, they won the second. The hosts conducted Match at halftime in the final test, but the Lions equalized shortly before the end of the game. Thus, a tie resulted in the series. ^{[sixty seven]}

Due to the Covid 19 pandemic, all games of the tour 2021 had to be played in front of empty ranks in South Africa. Warren Gatland trained the Lions for the third time in a row. ^[68] Before the departure, the Lions played against Japan for the first time in Edinburgh and won with 28:10. In the five games against South African provincial teams, the Lions had no trouble, but lost to the reserves of the jumping boks. After they won a victory in the first game of the test match series, the Lions lost the second game. The decision in the third test Match fell two minutes before the end of the game, when the South Africans (the world champions from 2019) were able to use a penalty step, won the game with 19:16 and thus won the series 2-1. ^[69]

S = victory; U = tie; N = defeat; * counting as a test match

In the past, it was a great honor for a player to be appointed for the Lions – larger than to play for one of the four national teams. It was also a unique experience for the respective opponent. However, the future of the Lions of players, responsible and media is increasingly being questioned, especially after the rather weak performance of the tours to Australia 2013 and New Zealand 2017. Often the tours of the amateurära in the highly professionalized world of international Rugby Union. On the other hand, the Lions embody the old rugby tradition for many, which is why the Lions tours are still carried out unchanged and the test matches should have official status. A minority is of the opinion that the Lions should continue to exist, but similar to other “thrown together” teams such as the Barbarians, more than as a serious team with an international status. With the rise of Argentina to one of the best rugbynations, there are also increasing efforts, tours or at least increasing test matches against the Pumas, the Argentine national team. ^{[70] [71]}

In 2021, the management of the Lions announced that the possibilities of a women’s team of British and Irish Lions would be examined. ^{[72] [seventy three]}

The British and Irish Lions won 54 of their 127 test matches, which corresponds to a profit rate of 42.52%. The statistics of the test matches of the Lions against all nations, arranged alphabetically, is as follows (as of July 31, 2021): ^[74]

Land	Tour	Won	One divorce	Lost	% Siege
Argentina Argentina	3	3	0	0	100
Australia Australia	9	7	0	2	78
New Zealand New Zealand	twelfth	first	first	ten	8
South African South Africa	13	4	first	8	thirty first
In total	37	15	2	20	41

Well -known players [ Edit | Edit the source text ]

Numerous British and Irish Lions players have been included in the World Rugby Hall of Fame. All of these have also played for their respective national team. The tour team from 1888 was also recorded. ^[75]

The following list shows those members of the Hall of Fame who played for the Lions. The year of participation in a Lions tour is in brackets. ^[76]

England Rob Andrew (1989, 1993) Bill Beaumont (1977, 1980) Will Carling (1993) Lawrence Dallaglio (1997, 2001, 2005) Jeremy Guscott (1989, 1993, 1997) Martin Johnson (1993, 1997, 2001) Jason Leonard (1993, 1997, 2001) Robert Seddon (1888) Henry Vassall (1908) Wavell Wakefield (1927) Clive Woodward (1980, 1983; 2005 als Trainer) Ireland Ronnie Dawson (1959) Mike Gibson (1966, 1968, 1971) Tom Kiernan (1962, 1966, 1968) Jack Kyle (1950) Willie John McBride (1962, 1966, 1968, 1971, 1974) South Millar (1959, 1962, 1968) Brian O’Driscoll (2001, 2005, 2009, 2013) Ronan O’GARA (2001, 2005, 2009) Tony O’Reilly (1955, 1959) Fergus Slattery (1971, 1974) Keith Wood (1997, 2001)

Scotland Wales Phil Bennett (1974, 1977) Mervyn Davies (1971, 1974) John Dawes (1971; 1977 as a trainer) Gareth Edwards (1968, 1971, 1974) Ieuan Evans (1989, 1993, 1997) Carwyn James (1971 Als Trainer) Barry John (1968, 1971) Jack Matthews (1950) Cliff Morgan (1955) White Nicholls (1899) Keith Rowlands (1962) Bleddyn Williams (1950) Johnny Williams (1908) J. P. R. Williams (1971, 1974) Shane Williams (2005, 2009, 2013)

Player statistics [ Edit | Edit the source text ]

Below is the most important statistics listed that affect Lions players. The players marked with * are still active and can continue to improve.

(Stand: August 2021)

• Richard Bath: The British & Irish Lions Miscellany . Vision Sports Publishing, London 2008, ISBN 978-1-905326-34-1.
• John Griffiths: British Lions . Crowood Press, Swindon 2008, ISBN 1-85223-541-1.
• Clem Thomas, Greg Thomas: The History of The British and Irish Lions . Mainstream Books, Edinburgh 2001, ISBN 1-84018-498-1.
• John Griffiths: The Phoenix Book of International Rugby Records . Phoenix House, London 1987, ISBN 0-460-07003-7.
• Terry Godwin; Chris Rhys: The Guinness Book of Rugby Facts & Feats . Guinness Superlatives, London 1981, ISBN 0-85112-214-0.