1956 New Zealand Māori rugby league tour of Australia
# 1956 New Zealand Māori rugby league tour of Australia

The 1956 New Zealand Māori rugby league tour of Australia was the fourth overseas tour by a Māori rugby league team. The previous three tours were also to Australia. There had been tours in both 1908 and 1909 during the code’s formative years. The third tour occurred in 1922.

In the rival code, New Zealand Māori Rugby Union teams had undertaken taken three tours since the conclusion of World War II:— to Fiji in 1948 and 1954, and to Australia in 1949.

In Rugby League, Māori teams had played touring teams in 1946, 1949, 1953, 1954 and 1955.

This Māori tour, which began on August 1, followed a tour by the New Zealand national team which had concluded in early July. Two players, Henry Maxwell and Mauriohooho (Joe) Murray participated in both tours. Simon Yates was on the Māori tour, whilst his brother John Yates had been on the Kiwis tour.

The October 1955 issue of the Rugby League News mentioned the prospect of a Māori tour to Australia. The December 1955 issue included a draft itinerary.

## Leadership

The Māori team was managed by Ernie Asher who had been a player on the 1908 and 1909 tours, and Wilf Davies.

Travers Hardwick coached the team. Hardwick had toured Australia with the New Zealand national team in 1948 and 1952.

The team was captained by Henry Maxwell, with George Turner serving as vice-captain.

## Squad

The Rugby League News published a Team Photo, Player Details (Age, Height and Weight) and Pen Portraits of the tourists.

## Sources

| Acronym | Item | Years | Database App | Notes |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| Direct Online Access |||||
| RLN | Rugby League News | 1920-1973 | Trove | Match Program in Sydney, Team Lists, Team Photos, Articles |
| RLP | Rugby League Project | 1907–present | RLP Website | Tour itinerary. |
| CQH | The Central Queensland Herald | 1930-1956 | Trove | Short match reports. |
| CT | The Canberra Times | 1926-1995 | Trove | Short match reports. |
| Offline Resources |||||
| EECYB | E.E. Christensen's Official Rugby League Year Book | 1946-1978 | Copies at State Library of NSW | Teams and Point Scorers for the two matches in Sydney. 1957 Yearbook covers the 1956 tour. |
| RRLG | Rockhampton Rugby League Gazette | 1951-1968 | Copies at State Library of Qld | Program for matches in Rockhampton. Collection includes club as well as Rockhampton and Central Queensland representative matches. |
| - | Ipswich Versus International Teams | 1913-1975 | Copies at SLQ & NLA | Match Report, Given Names & Club of Ipswich Players |
| - | The Bulimba Cup Era | 1925-1972 | Copies at SLQ & NLA | Clubs of Ipswich, Toowoomba and Brisbane players. This book includes Bulimba Cup match reports and team lists. |
