The 2015 New Zealand rugby league tour of England was a tour by the New Zealand national rugby league team. The New Zealand national rugby league team played a match against the Leeds Rhinos and competed in a three match test series against England for the Baskerville Shield, losing 2-1.
| 2015 Kiwi tour | |||||
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New Zealand vs Leeds Rhinos in Game 1 of the tour | |||||
| Date | 23 October 2015 – 14 November 2015 | ||||
| Summary |
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| Total |
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| Test match |
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| Opponent |
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| Leeds Rhinos |
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| England |
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| Tour chronology | |||||
| Previous tour | 2007 | ||||
| Next tour | 2018 | ||||
Background
| Official Rankings as of May 2015 | |||
| Rank | Change | Team | Points |
| 1 | New Zealand | 949.00 | |
| 3 | England | 485.00 | |
New Zealand had originally intended to host a tour against France, while Australia was speculated to host a Great Britain Lions tour. However the Australian Rugby League Commission declined to host a tour and as an alternative the Rugby Football League invited the New Zealand Rugby League to tour Great Britain for a three match series.
On 25 February 2015, the three test match venues were confirmed with Hull's KC Stadium hosting game one on 1 November, the London Olympic Stadium hosting the second test on 7 November and the final test match being held at Wigan's DW Stadium on 14 November.
The match against Leeds was the first time a Super League side had played a touring side since 2002, when the Kiwis played matches against Hull F.C. and St. Helens. It was the first time that Leeds played New Zealand since 1992. The match celebrated the 125th anniversary of Headingley. Leeds has defeated New Zealand once in eleven matches between the two teams.
Squad
Training squad
An initial training squad was named on 8 September 2015 and added to as teams were eliminated from the NRL finals. Kieran Foran was among those initially named but he later withdrew due to injury, joining Shaun Johnson, Thomas Leuluai, Manu Vatuvei, Dallin Watene-Zelezniak and Jared Warea-Hargreaves as being unavailable for the tour. Skipper Simon Mannering was also later made unavailable for the test series due to injury.
| Club Team | Players |
|---|---|
Squad named on 8 September | |
| Manly Sea Eagles | Kieran Foran, Peta Hiku |
| New Zealand Warriors | Solomone Kata, Tui Lolohea, Simon Mannering (c), Ben Matulino, Bodene Thompson |
| Parramatta Eels | Manu Mau |
| Penrith Panthers | Lewis Brown, Sam McKendry, Elijah Taylor, Dean Whare |
| Wests Tigers | Manaia Cherrington, Tim Simona, Martin Taupau |
Added on 18 September | |
| South Sydney Rabbitohs | Bryson Goodwin, Issac Luke |
| St George Illawarra Dragons | Jason Nightingale |
Added on 24 September | |
| Canterbury Bulldogs | Curtis Rona, Greg Eastwood |
| Cronulla Sharks | Gerard Beale, Sosaia Feki |
| Wests Tigers | Te Maire Martin |
Added on 1 October | |
| Melbourne Storm | Jesse Bromwich, Tohu Harris, Kevin Proctor |
| Sydney Roosters | Matt McIlwrick, Sio Siua Taukeiaho, Isaac Liu, Roger Tuivasa-Sheck, Shaun Kenny-Dowall, Sam Moa |
Final squad
The final touring squad of 23 players was named on 8 October.
On 10 October, Jason Taumalolo withdrew from the touring 23-man squad due to a knee injury. He was replaced by Manaia Cherrington. Curtis Rona left the tour after the second test match, returning to Australia to be present for the birth of his daughter.
| Name | Club | Position(s) | Games | Tries | Goals | FGs | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gerard Beale | Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks | Centre | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Adam Blair (c) | Brisbane Broncos | Prop, Second-row | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jesse Bromwich | Melbourne Storm | Prop | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Lewis Brown | Penrith Panthers | Second-row | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Manaia Cherrington | Wests Tigers | Hooker | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Alex Glenn | Brisbane Broncos | Second-row | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tohu Harris | Melbourne Storm | Second-row | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Peta Hiku | Manly Sea Eagles | Fullback | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jordan Kahu | Brisbane Broncos | Fullback, Wing, Centre | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 11 |
| Shaun Kenny-Dowall | Sydney Roosters | Wing, Centre | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Isaac Liu | Sydney Roosters | Lock | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Tuimoala Lolohea | New Zealand Warriors | Fullback, Wing, Five-eighth | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 |
| Issac Luke (c) | South Sydney Rabbitohs | Hooker | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 8 |
| Ben Matulino | New Zealand Warriors | Prop | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sam Moa | Sydney Roosters | Prop | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Jason Nightingale | St. George Illawarra Dragons | Wing | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| Kodi Nikorima | Brisbane Broncos | Fullback, Halfback, Hooker | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Kevin Proctor | Melbourne Storm | Second-row | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Curtis Rona | Canterbury Bulldogs | Wing | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sio Siua Taukeiaho | Sydney Roosters | Second-row | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Martin Taupau | Wests Tigers | Lock | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Roger Tuivasa-Sheck | Sydney Roosters | Fullback | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 12 |
| Dean Whare | Penrith Panthers | Centre | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
Tour summary
New Zealand played four matches on tour, including three test matches against England.
Kiwis vs Rhinos: Headingley 125th anniversary match
Gerard Beale was originally named to play but was replaced by Lewis Brown.
The match was shown on Premier Sports and Sky Sport 2
23 October 2015 |
| Leeds Rhinos | 16–34 | New Zealand |
|---|---|---|
| Tries: Moon (2) 28' c, 55' c Briscoe 73' Goal: Lilley (2/3) 29', 56' | Tries: Nightingale 37' c Kahu 40' Bromwich 63' c Whare 66' Tuivasa-Sheck (2) 69', 80' Nikorima 78' c Goal: Luke (1/2) 38' Lolohea (2/5) 63', 78' |
Headingley Rugby Stadium, Leeds Attendance: 20,158 Referee: Richard Silverwood |
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Baskerville Shield
Ahead of New Zealand's Baskerville Shield series against England, their opponents had played a warm-up test match against France on 24 October.
All futures were shown on BBC Sport in the UK, and Sky Sport 2 in New Zealand.
Venues
| Hull | London | Wigan |
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| KC Stadium | Olympic Park | DW Stadium |
| Capacity: 25,400 | Capacity: 66,000 | Capacity: 25,138 |
Test 1
1 November 2015 |
| England | 26–12 | New Zealand |
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| Try: Hodgson 21' c Ferres (2) 36' c, 59' c O'Loughlin 77' c Goal: Widdop (5/5) 21', 36', 46', 59', 77' | Try: Harris 7' Moa 17' c Goal: Luke (2/3) 17', 27' |
KC Stadium, Kingston-upon-Hull Attendance: 23,526 Referee: Ben Thaler |
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Alex Glenn and Lewis Brown were named as 18th and 19th man respectively for the Kiwis.
Test 2
7 November 2015 |
| England | 2–9 | New Zealand |
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| Goal: Widdop (1/1) 8' | Try: Kenny-Dowall 43' c Goal: Luke (1/2) 14' Kahu (1/1) 43' Drop Goal: Kahu (1/1) 77' |
Olympic Park, London Attendance: 44,393 Referee: Gerard Sutton |
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Stephen Kearney originally named Tuimoala Lolohea at halfback before selecting Kodi Nikorima to start the match.
Test 3
14 November 2015 |
| England | 20–14 | New Zealand |
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| Try: Whitehead (2) 27' c, 63' c O'Loughlin 72' c Goal: Widdop (4/4) 5', 27', 63', 72' | Try: Nightingale 36' c Tuivasa-Sheck 75' Kahu 79' Goal: Luke (1/3) 36' |
DW Stadium, Wigan Attendance: 24,741 Referee: Ben Thaler |
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With the win, England retained the Baskerville Shield. Isaac Liu and Gerard Beale were 18th and 19th man respectively for New Zealand.
Aftermath
England's captain, Sean O'Loughlin was awarded the George Smith Medal as player of the series.
England's retained the Baskerville Shield, 8 years after it was last contested during the 2007 All Golds Tour.
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