The Great Britain womenâÂÂs rugby league tour of Australia in 1996 was the first such tour by a female British or English rugby league team. Seven matches were played during the three-week tour, including three Test matches. These were the first rugby league internationals played by Great Britain or England women. For the host nation, Australia, this tour followed on from a visit by the New Zealand womenâÂÂs rugby league team during the previous year, 1995.
The tour was successful for the team, with Great Britain winning six of the seven matches. The first Test match was narrowly won by Australia, but Great Britain rallied to win the second and third Test matches by small margins to claim a series victory.
At the time, the Great Britain team received little support or recognition for their achievement. The Great Britain players had to self-fund the tour and their Australian counterparts were reportedly asked to contribute between and to play against Great Britain and for a proposed tour of New Zealand. It was not until 2022 that the Great Britain players were given caps and heritage numbers by the Rugby Football League. In the same year, three of the team, Brenda Dobek, Lisa McIntosh and Sally Milburn, were the first to be inducted into the Women's Hall of Fame. In 2024 it was announced that the 1996 Lionesses were to be the first team to be inducted into the Hall of Fame and were described as "the last senior British team to complete an Ashes series victory over Australia".
The team was coached by Ian Harris with Jackie Sheldon as assistant coach. Nikki Carter was tour manager. Paula Clark served as the teamâÂÂs physiotherapist. The team was captained by Lisa McIntosh with vice-captain Brenda Dobek.
A photo of the 1996 touring team is included with the Dobek interview on the Women in Rugby League website.
Despite comprehensive victories to Great Britain in both tour games leading into the First Test Match, their inaugural meeting with Australia was tightly contested. <br /> Great Britain scored the first try in the opening ten minutes, Sally Milburn touching down after a great pass from Allison Kitchin. The try was converted by Karen Burrows. The first half continued with the Great Britain dominating the attack, however, Alison Smith scored an unconverted try for Australia just prior to the break. <br />
AustraliaâÂÂs attack was more effective in the second stanza. Fiona Huntington scored a try near the sideline within a few minutes of the resumption. Katrina Fanning then scored from a short run to the try-line, âÂÂhitting and spinning on the line to get the ball down.â With this try converted by Alison Smith, Australia lead 14âÂÂ6. <br /> Allison Kitchen made a break for Great Britain, running down the left edge. Australian second-rower Danielle Meskell made an impressive covering tackle, however, the Lionesses spread the ball to the right wing for Jill Adams to score. <br /> The âÂÂdeceptively quickâ British five-eighth, Brenda Dobek, instigated the next try, popping a pass to captain Lisa McIntosh, who found in support Chantelle Patrick, who scored in the corner. This unconverted try levelled the scores at 14âÂÂall with about five minutes to play. <br /> In injury time, Australia was awarded a penalty for a swinging arm in the tackle. From about 25 metres out and to the right of the posts, Alison Smith kicked a penalty goal to win the match for Australia. <br /> The Canberra Times recognised Alison Smith and Danielle Meskell as the best players for Australia, and for Great Britain, hooker Michelle Land and the halves-pairing of Mandy Green and Brenda Dobek. Great Britain's team award for their best player in the match went to Brenda Dobek.
The third and deciding Test was again a tussle between evenly matched teams. Great Britain had established a 12âÂÂ4 lead at halftime, but Australia scored an early second half try. <br />
The score was 20âÂÂ18 in Great BritainâÂÂs favour towards the end of the match. The last three minutes saw Great Britain under pressure, defending their line against AustraliaâÂÂs attack. The defence held, to secure Great Britain a series victory. <br />
Great BritainâÂÂs player of the match, Brenda Dobek, was also named player of the series. SydneyâÂÂs Daily Telegraph cited Danielle Meskell as AustraliaâÂÂs standout player.
Statistics for the Great Britain team drawn from a document supplied by the teamâÂÂs coach. Point scorers for the First and Third Test verified by the contemporary match reports in the Canberra Times and Daily Telegraph. <br /> Coverage of womenâÂÂs rugby league in Australian newspapers in 1996 was limited, and the tour coincided with the 1996 Olympic Games. The Rugby League Week, a magazine dedicated to the sport in Australia included an advanced mention of the Third TestâÂÂs location (Redfern Oval) and published only the result of the First Test. <br /> Access to 1996 editions of Australian newspapers and the Rugby League Week is offline, through microfilm and actual copies held in the State Library of New South Wales.