1967–68 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain and France

The 1967–68 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain and France was the twelfth Kangaroo Tour, and saw the Australian national rugby league team travel to Europe and play twenty-one matches against British and French club and representative rugby league teams, in addition to three Test matches against Great Britain and three Tests against the French. It followed the tour of 1963-64 and the next was staged in 1973.

1967–68 Kangaroo tour of Great Britain and France
ManagerJack Drewes
Harry Schmidt
Coach(es)Reg Gasnier
Tour captain(s)Reg Gasnier
Johnny Raper
Top point scorer(s)Graeme Langlands 101
Top try scorer(s)Brian Moore 10
Top test point scorer(s)Graeme Langlands 31
Top test try scorer(s)Johnny Greaves 3
Graeme Langlands 3
Summary
P W D L
Total
27 16 02 09
Test match
06 02 01 03
Opponent
P W D L
 Great Britain
3 2 0 1
 France
3 0 1 2
Tour chronology
Previous tour1963-64
Next tour1973

The 1967–68 Kangaroo tour became infamously known as the "Bowler Hat Tour". Legend had it that a Kangaroos forward had walked through the West Yorkshire town of Ilkley one night wearing nothing but a bowler hat. Although Johnny Raper often jokingly claimed it was him, in 1988 on Brisbane television, Dennis Manteit claimed that he was in fact the man in the bowler hat. At the time, Kangaroo touring teams were housed in the Ilkley Moors Hotel located approximately 25 km west of Leeds in an effort to not only keep down costs but also to keep players out of trouble by being located in a small town rather than a larger city.

The squad's leadership

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The team was captain-coached by Reg Gasnier making his third and ultimately final Kangaroo Tour. Gasnier broke his leg during the first test at Headingley that saw him sit out the remainder of the English leg. He returned to the field in France but in a minor game against Les Espoirs in Avignon, he suffered a further break. This would ultimately cause him to announce his retirement from playing at the age of just 28. He later told in an interview that he never regretted his decision to retire, explaining that he had been playing rugby league virtually non-stop including juniors, junior representative games, the Sydney premiership, interstate games and international tours since the early 1950s, and felt it was about time that he started devoting more time to his family.[1]

Having led the team in four tour matches in England, Johnny Raper was appointed captain for the Third Test Match against Great Britain. Raper captained the side in each of the three Test Matches in France.

Peter Gallagher led the team in three successive matches in England, culminating in the Second Test Match against Great Britain. He also was captain against Barrow, Bradford Northern and France B.

Noel Kelly captained the Kangaroos in five matches, against Cumbria, Oldham, Widnes, Swinton and Pyrenees. Graeme Langlands led the team in two matches (Castleford and Catalans). Elton Rasmussen was captain in one match, against St Helens.

The Kangaroo tourists were co-managed by Jack Drewes (NSW) and Harry Schmidt (Queensland).[2] Alf Richards accompanied the team as masseur.

Touring squad

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Match details - listing surnames of both teams and the point scorers - were included in E.E. Christensen's Official Rugby League Yearbook, as was a summary of the players' point-scoring, along with each player's age, height and weight.[3]
The Rugby League News published a summary of the Kanagroos' point scorers.

Noel Gallagher, Peter Gallagher, John Gleeson, Dennis Manteit and John McDonald were selected from Queensland clubs. Tony Branson and Allan Thomson were selected from clubs in New South Wales Country areas. The balance of the squad had played for Sydney based clubs during the 1967 season.

Player Position Age Weight
st.lb (kg)
Club Tests
on
Tour
Games Tries Goals FG Points
Tony Branson Five-eighth 20 12.12 (82)   Nowra 5 17 3 0 0 9
Ron Coote Lock, Second-row 22 13.7 (86)   South Sydney 5 18 7 0 0 21
Noel Gallagher Hooker 22 14.7 (92)   Bundaberg 2 14 0 0 0 0
Peter Gallagher (vc) Prop 30 15.10 (100)   Brisbane Brothers 6 16 1 0 0 3
Reg Gasnier (ca/co) Centre 28 12.12 (82)   St George 2 6 1 0 0 3
John Gleeson Five-eighth, Halfback 24 11.12 (75)   Brisbane Brothers 3 11 2 0 1 8
Kevin Goldspink Second-row 24 15.0 (95)   Canterbury 0 13 2 0 0 6
Johnny Greaves Wing, Centre 24 13.7 (86)   Canterbury 5 14 6 0 0 18
Les Hanigan Wing, Centre 22 11.4 (72)   Manly-Warringah 0 11 6 0 0 18
Ken Irvine Wing 27 11.12 (75)   North Sydney 1 14 8 5 0 34
Les Johns Fullback 25 11.12 (75)   Canterbury 6 16 2 4 3 20
Kevin Junee Halfback 23 11.8 (73)   Eastern Suburbs 0 10 4 0 1 14
Noel Kelly Prop, Hooker 30 14.2 (90)   Western Suburbs 5 17 0 0 0 0
Johnny King Wing 24 12.6 (79)   St George 6 18 9 0 0 27
Graeme Langlands Fullback, Centre 25 13.0 (83)   St George 6 19 5 43 0 101
Ron Lynch Lock, Second-row 27 14.6 (92)   Parramatta 4 15 2 0 0 6
Dennis Manteit Prop, Second-row 24 14.7 (92)   Brisbane Brothers 3 14 4 0 0 12
John McDonald Wing, Centre 23 12.10 (81)   Toowoomba Valleys 5 17 5 13 0 41
Brian Moore Centre 23 14.12 (94)   Newtown 0 11 10 0 0 30
Johnny Raper (vc) Lock 28 13.9 (87)   St George 5 12 0 0 0 0
Elton Rasmussen Prop, Second-row 29 15.4 (97)   St George 6 18 0 0 0 0
Ron Saddler Wing, Centre 25 13.6 (85)   Eastern Suburbs 0 11 0 0 0 0
John Sattler Prop 24 14.8 (93)   South Sydney 0 9 0 0 0 0
Billy Smith Halfback 24 11.7 (73)   St George 5 15 3 0 3 15
Allan Thomson Second-row 24 14.3 (90)   Lakes United 1 14 2 0 0 6
Elwyn Walters Hooker 23 13.11 (88)   South Sydney 0 8 2 0 0 6

Great Britain

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The Ashes series against Great Britain saw an aggregate crowd of 53,353 attending the Test series. The largest attendance of the tour came during the Kangaroos 6-12 loss to Wigan in front of 22,770 fans at Central Park on 13 October.

Test Venues

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The three Ashes series tests took place at the following venues.

Leeds London Swinton
Headingley White City Stadium Station Road
Capacity: 30,000 Capacity: 50,000 Capacity: 40,000
     
Saturday, 30 September Warrington   7 – 16   Australia Wilderspool, Warrington
[1]

Attendance: 11,642

Wednesday, 4 October Yorkshire   15 – 14   Australia Belle Vue, Wakefield
[2]

Attendance: 19,370
Referee: D. Brown

Saturday, 7 October Hull Kingston Rovers   27 – 15   Australia Craven Park, Hull
[3]

Attendance: 11,252

Wednesday, 11 October Lancashire   2 – 14   Australia The Willows, Salford
[4]

Attendance: 9,369
Referee: R. Appleyard

Friday, 13 October Wigan   12 – 6   Australia Central Park, Wigan
[5]

Attendance: 22,770

Monday, 16 October Rochdale Hornets   2 – 25   Australia Athletic Grounds, Rochdale
[6]

Attendance: 2,676

The Ashes series

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First Test

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The first Ashes series test was played at Headingley, Leeds. Kangaroos captain-coach Reg Gasnier suffered a broken leg which would keep him out of the rest of the English leg of the tour while lock forward Johnny Raper would play most of the game with a fractured cheek bone.[4]

Saturday 21 October
Great Britain   16 – 11   Australia
Tries:
Roger Millward
Chris Young
Goals:
Roger Millward (3)
Bill Holliday (1)
Drop Goals:
Tommy Bishop
[5]
Tries:
Graeme Langlands

Goals:
Graeme Langlands (4)
Headingley, Leeds
Attendance: 22,293
Referee: Fred Lindop  
 
 
 
 
 
 
Great Britain
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Australia
FB 1   Arthur Keegan
RW 2   Chris Young
CE 3   Ian Brooke
CE 4   Malcolm Price
LW 5   Bill Burgess
SO 6   Roger Millward
SH 7   Tommy Bishop
PR 8   Bill Holliday (c)
HK 9   Peter Flanagan
PR 10   Cliff Watson
SR 11   John Mantle
SR 12   Bob Irving
LF 13   Dave Robinson
Substitutions:
IC 14
IC 15
Coach:
FB 2   Les Johns
RW 8   John McDonald
CE 1   Graeme Langlands
CE 7   Reg Gasnier (c)
LW 4   Johnny King
FE 11   John Gleeson
HB 13   Billy Smith
PR 23   Dennis Manteit
HK 22   Noel Kelly
PR 21   Peter Gallagher
SR 17   Ron Lynch
SR 19   Elton Rasmussen
LK 15   Johnny Raper
Substitutions:
IC
IC
Coach:
  Reg Gasnier

Tuesday, 24 October St. Helens   8 – 4   Australia Knowsley Road, St. Helens
[7]

Attendance: 17,275

Saturday, 28 October Wakefield Trinity   7 – 33   Australia Belle Vue, Wakefield
[8]

Attendance: 10,056

Second Test

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The second test at London's White City Stadium saw the Australian's tie the series at one game all with a 17-11 win in front of 17,445 fans.[6]

Friday 3 November
Great Britain   11 – 17   Australia
Tries:
Tommy Bishop


Goals:
Neil Fox (3)
Field Goals:
Tommy Bishop
[7]
Tries:
Ron Coote
Johnny King
Graeme Langlands
Goals:
Graeme Langlands (4)
White City Stadium, London
Attendance: 17,445
Referee: Fred Lindop  
 
 
 
 
 
 
Great Britain
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Australia
FB 1   Arthur Keegan
RW 2   Chris Young
CE 3   Ian Brooke
CE 4   Neil Fox
LW 5   Bill Francis
SO 6   Roger Millward
SH 7   Tommy Bishop
PR 8   Bill Holliday (c)
HK 9   Peter Flanagan
PR 10   Cliff Watson
SR 11   John Mantle
SR 12   Bob Irving
LF 13   Frank Foster
Substitutions:
IC 14
IC 15
Coach:
FB 2   Les Johns
RW 6   Johnny Greaves
CE 1   Graeme Langlands
CE 8   John McDonald
LW 4   Johnny King
FE 12   Tony Branson
HB 11   John Gleeson
PR 22   Noel Kelly
HK 25   Noel Gallagher
PR 21   Peter Gallagher (c)
SR 17   Ron Lynch
SR 19   Elton Rasmussen
LK 16   Ron Coote
Substitutions:
IC 14
IC 15
Coach:
  Reg Gasnier

Thursday, 9 November Castleford   22 – 3   Australia Wheldon Road, Castleford
[9]

Attendance: 6,137

Saturday, 11 November Oldham   8 – 18   Australia Watersheddings, Oldham
[10]

Attendance: 3,174

Monday, 13 November Widnes   11 – 33   Australia Naughton Park, Widnes
[11]

Attendance: 9,828

Thursday, 16 November Barrow   10 – 10   Australia Craven Park, Barrow
[12]

Attendance: 8,418

Saturday, 18 November Cumberland   17 – 15   Australia Derwent Park, Workington
[13]

Attendance: 7,545
Referee: J. Hebblethwaite

Wednesday, 22 November Swinton   9 – 12   Australia Station Road, Swinton
[14]

Attendance: 5,640

Saturday, 25 November Leeds   4 – 7   Australia Headingley, Leeds
[15]

Attendance: 5,522

Wednesday, 29 November Halifax   2 – 22   Australia Thrum Hall, Halifax
[16]

Attendance: 5,285

Saturday, 2 December Bradford Northern   3 – 7   Australia Odsal, Bradford
[17]

Attendance: 14,173

Third Test

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The Kangaroos retained The Ashes with a hard-fought 11-3 win on a frozen ground at Station Road in Swinton. It would be the 10th and last time Station Road would host an Ashes Test and the 18th and last test match played at the ground.[8]

Saturday 9 December
Great Britain   3 – 11   Australia
Tries:
Malcolm Price


Goals:
[9]
Tries:
Tony Branson
Ron Coote
Johnny King
Goals:
Graeme Langlands (1)
Station Road, Swinton
Attendance: 13,615
Referee: Fred Lindop  
Player of the Match: Johnny Raper  
 
 
 
 
 
 
Great Britain
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Australia
FB 1   Arthur Keegan
RW 2   Chris Young
CE 3   Ian Brooke
CE 4   Malcolm Price
LW 5   Gary Jordan
SO 6   Roger Millward
SH 7   Tommy Bishop
PR 8   Bill Holliday (c)
HK 9   Peter Flanagan
PR 10   Cliff Watson
SR 11   Bob Irving
SR 12   Bob Valentine
LF 13   Dave Robinson
Substitutions:
IC 14   Alan Burwell
IC 15   Charlie Renilson
Coach:
FB 2   Les Johns
LW 4   Johnny King
CE 6   Johnny Greaves
CE 1   Graeme Langlands
RW 8   John McDonald
FE 11   John Gleeson
HB 13   Billy Smith
PR 21   Peter Gallagher
HK 22   Noel Kelly
PR 23   Dennis Manteit
SR 19   Elton Rasmussen
SR 16   Ron Coote
LF 15   Johnny Raper (c)
Substitutions:
IC 12   Tony Branson
IC 15
Coach:
  Reg Gasnier

According to stand-in Kangaroos captain and man of the match Johnny Raper, the Kangaroos had a psychological advantage in the third test after he heard Lions halves Roger Millward and Tommy Bishop say after walking around the Station Road ground pre-match that they did not want to play on the frozen ground. The Kangaroos, used to playing on hard Australian grounds, were in their element against a timid Lions outfit.

France

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During the game against Les Espoirs in Avignon, Kangaroos captain coach Reg Gasnier re-broke the leg he had broken during the first Ashes Test at Headingley. Ultimately this would prove to be Gasnier's last game of top grade football and he subsequently announced his retirement from playing at the age of 28.

Date Opponent Score Ground Referee Crowd Report
17 December 1967 France 7 – 7 Stade Vélodrome, Marseille G. Jameau (FRA) 5,193
21 December 1967 Les Espoirs (Colts) 7 – 17 Parc des Sports, Avignon 1,116
24 December 1967 France 10 – 3 Stade Albert Domec, Carcassonne A. Breysse (FRA) 4,193
21 December 1967 XIII Catalan 7 – 37 Stade Jean-Laffon, Perpignan 3,000
31 December 1967 France XIII 6 – 13 Stade Municipal d'Albi, Albi 2,949
4 January 1968 South West France 0 – 15 Stade Jules Ribet, Saint-Gaudens 1,205
7 January 1968 France 16 – 13 Stade des Minimes, Toulouse G. Jameau (FRA) 5,000

First test

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17 December 1967
France   7 – 7   Australia
Tries:
Georges Bonet
Goals
Andre Lacaze (2)
Tries:
Les Johns
Goals
Les Johns (1)
Graeme Langlands (1)
Stade Vélodrome, Marseille
Attendance: 5,193
Referee: Georges Jameau  
France Position Australia
André Lacaze FB Les Johns
Daniel Pellerin WG Johnny King
Guy Andrieu CE Graeme Langlands
Jean-Pierre Lecompte CE Johnny Greaves
Yves Raynaud WG Ken Irvine
Claude Mantoulan SO Tony Branson
Roger Garnung SH Billy Smith
Christian Sabatié PR Dennis Manteit
Yves Bégou HK Noel Kelly
Guy Ribot PR Peter Gallagher
Georges Ailleres (c) SR Elton Rasmussen
Adolphe Alésina SR Ron Coote
Georges Bonet LF Johnny Raper (c)
Jean Capdouze Int. Ron Lynch
Jep Lacoste Coach Reg Gasnier

Legendary Australian winger Ken Irvine broke his leg during this game. It was to be his 33rd and final test appearance for the Kangaroos.

Second Test

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24 December 1967
France   10 – 3   Australia
Tries:

Goals
Jean Capdouze (5)
Tries:
Johnny Greaves
Goals
Stade Albert Domec, Carcassonne
Attendance: 4,193
Referee: Andre Breysse  
France Position Australia
André Lacaze FB Les Johns
Daniel Pellerin WG Johnny King
Guy Andrieu CE Johnny Greaves
Roger Garrigue CE Graeme Langlands
Pierre Surre WG John McDonald
Jean Capdouze SO Tony Branson
Roger Garnung SH Billy Smith
Christian Sabatié PR Peter Gallagher
Yves Bégou HK Noel Gallagher
Pierre Dubié PR Elton Rasmussen
Georges Ailleres (c) SR Ron Lynch
Francis de Nadaï SR Ron Coote
Georges Bonet LF Johnny Raper (c)
Jacques Fabre Int.
Adolphe Alésina Int.
Jep Lacoste Coach Reg Gasnier

Third Test

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7 January 1968
France   16 – 13   Australia
Tries:
Daniel Pellerin
P Surre
Goals
Jean Capdouze (5)
Tries:
Johnny Greaves (2)
Graeme Langlands
Goals
Les Johns (1)
Graeme Langlands (1)
Stade des Minimes, Toulouse
Attendance: 5,000
Referee: Georges Jameau  
France Position Australia
Claude Mantoulan FB Les Johns
Pierre Surre WG Johnny King
Michel Molinier CE Johnny Greaves
Guy Andrieu CE Graeme Langlands
Daniel Pellerin WG John McDonald
Jean Capdouze SO Tony Branson
Roger Garnung SH Billy Smith
Christian Sabatié PR Peter Gallagher
Yves Bégou HK Noel Kelly
Pierre Dubié PR Elton Rasmussen
Francis de Nadaï SR Allan Thomson
Georges Ailleres (c) SR Ron Coote
Georges Bonet LF Johnny Raper (c)
Jep Lacoste Coach Reg Gasnier

References

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  1. ^ Legends of Australian sport: The Inside Story. Australia: University of Queensland Press. 2003. p. 79. ISBN 9780702234101.
  2. ^ New South Wales Rugby Football League. (1920). "Kangaroo Tour Manager". The Rugby League News. 48 (25 (24 June 1967)). Sydney: N.S.W. Rugby Football League. nla.obj-761718637. Retrieved 28 Jan 2021 – via Trove.
  3. ^ E.E.Christensen (1968). "1967-68 Kangaroo Tour Records". E.E. Christensen's Official Rugby League Yearbook. 22. Sydney: E.E.Christensen.
  4. ^ 1967 Ashes series - Game 1
  5. ^ 1st Ashes Test
  6. ^ 1968 Ashes series - Game 2
  7. ^ 2nd Ashes Test
  8. ^ 1967 Ashes series - Game 3
  9. ^ 3rd Ashes Test
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