1912 Australia rugby union tour of Canada and the United States

March 2014 April 2026 Australia 1912 Otto Bohrsmann Ward Prentice 16 11 0 5 1 1 0 0 USA 1 1 0 0 The 1912 Australia rugby union tour of Canada and the United States was a collection of friendly rugby union games undertaken by the Australia national rugby union team (now "Wallabies") against various invitational teams from Canada and the U.S., and also against the US national team. The Australian team was tagged the "Kangaroo Waratahs".Fagan Sean 2013-01-19 THE ‘KANGAROO WARATAHS’ 1912 USA TOUR https://saintsandheathens.com/2013/01/19/wallabies-rugby-tour/ 2026-08-31 — saintsandheathens.com — en The squad's leadership Dr. Otto Martin Bohrsmann (1869–1944) was tour manager. He was a Sydney physician who served as New South Wales Rugby Union treasurer for a number of yearsBohrmann Obit and the Newtown District Rugby Union Club.Fagan Sean 2012-10-01 NEWTOWN’S LUCKY CHARM https://saintsandheathens.com/2012/10/01/newtown-rugby/ 2026-08-31 — saintsandheathens.com — en Howell attributes the team's poor performance to a lack of discipline stemming from weakly imposed tour management.Howell p68 Bohrsmann's name would later be given to the landmark Mona Road, Darling Point, Sydney property Otto, which he bought in 1925 and which was retained by his descendants until 2010. His sister Altona would give her name to another Sydney landmark, a Point Piper home which in 2007 set the mark as Australia's most expensive home when it sold for A$50million.Title Deeds Sydney Morning Herald December 2010 Billy Hill was the secretary of the New South Wales Rugby Union, he toured with the squad as Assistant Manager and refereed some of the matches. At this time team coaches were frowned upon, with the team captain expected to fulfill these duties.June 2020 Ward Prentice had toured with the 1908 Wallabies and had played both Tests of that tour. He had made three further Test appearances for Australia in 1910. He was a rugged on-field leader and the 1912 tour marked his swan-song in international rugby, appearing in fifteen of the sixteen matches. After World War I he had a brief first-grade rugby league career Sydney in 1920.June 2020 Tom Richards had also toured with the 1908 Wallabies and had played 1st grade rugby all over the world, making district representative sides in Queensland, New South Wales, South Africa and England. He was a leader in the forwards and a natural selection as tour vice-captain. He would later see active service with the AIF, landing on day one of the Gallipoli Campaign on 25 April 1915 and he would be awarded the Military Cross for conspicuous gallantry on the Western Front.June 2020 Tour itinerary The squad travelled by ship from Sydney to the US on the SS Moana with a number of the touring party confined to their cabins with sea-sickness for the first four days.Howell p52 Howell attributes the team's poor performance record to a focus placed on socialising. The squad was billeted out in college fraternity houses in California where the hospitality played havoc with team discipline. Howell quotes squad member Bob Adamson who spoke of the tour: "We were never in bed. That was the trouble. I've never had such a time in my life" Tour statistics The tour took in 16 games with only 11 won by the Wallabies, including the sole Test of the tour played against the US All three matches played in Canada were lost by the Wallabies as well as one of the two matches against Stanford University and one of the three matches played against UC Berkeley.Howell p50 The team played in the light-blue jersey of New South Wales with a Waratah emblem and the word Australia on the chest.June 2020 Touring party The second match of the 1912 New South Wales v Queensland interstate series acted as a selection trial for the tour and the Blues won the match 12–3 in Sydney. The selectors chose only six Queenslanders in the squad including Tom Richards, Jimmy Flynn, Lou Meibusch, Copper Kent, Peter Cunningham and Bob Willocks. Willocks withdrew from the touring squad before departure and his place was taken by fellow Queenslander William Murphy. Flynn and Meisbusch were still aged 18 years at the start of the tour.Football: Rugby Union: For America: Australian Team Chosen, The Sydney Morning Herald (Tuesday, 13 August 1912), p.12.Footballers for America: The Rugby Tour: Additional Players Selected, The (Sydney) Daily Telegraph, (Tuesday, 20 August 1912), p.7.Rugby Union Topics: Team for America Completed, The Referee, (Wednesday, 21 August 1912), p.12.Booth, E.E. "Australian Team for America: A Critical Review", The Sydney Mail, (Wednesday, 4 September 1912), p.29.Australian Rugby Team (Touring America), 1912, The Daily Telegraph, (Wednesday, 18 September 1912), p.15.The Australian team was tagged the "Kangaroo Waratahs" by the Los Angeles Times. Management right|thumb|170px|Tom Richards right|thumb|170px|Danny Carroll Manager: Dr. Otto Bohrsmann Assistant: W.W Hill Captain: Ward Prentice Vice-Captain: Tom Richards Full backs Alf Dunbar (Newtown, NSW) Larry Dwyer (Warratahs-Orange, Western Districts, NSW) Three-quarters Bob Adamson (Sydney University, NSW) Daniel Carroll (St. George, NSW) Jimmy Flynn (Brothers, Queensland) Hubert Jones (Newcastle, NSW) Lou Meibusch (Past Grammar-Toowoomba, Queensland) Half backs Ward Prentice (West Suburbs, NSW) William Tasker (Newtown, NSW) Arthur Walker (Eastern Suburbs, NSW) Forwards Jimmy Clarken (Glebe, NSW) Peter Cunningham (Eastern Suburbs, Queensland) Ted Fahey (Eastern Suburbs, NSW) Harold George (Eastern Suburbs, NSW) Tom Griffen (Glebe, NSW) Ralph Hill (Newtown) Allan Kent (Past Grammar-Toowoomba, Queensland) William Murphy (Brothers, Queensland) George Pugh (Newtown, NSW) Tom Richards (Natives-Charters Towers, Queensland) William Watson (Newtown, NSW) Match summary Complete list of matches played by the Wallabies in the Canada and the United States:Football, Australian Rugby Team in America, The Sydney Morning Herald, (Tuesday, 10 December 1912), p.12. #ffff99 silver Test matches thumb|right|250px|Australia v. United States (dark jersey) test, played on 16 November # Date Rival City Venue Score 1 5 Oct Barbarians San Francisco St. Ignatius Field 29–8 2 6 Oct Santa Clara Broncos Santa Clara Golden Gate Stadium 20–8 3 12 Oct Stanford Indians Palo Alto Stanford Park 6–0 4 16 Oct Stanford Indians Palo Alto Stanford Park 12–13 5 19 Oct Olympic Club San Francisco St. Ignatius Field 20–0 6 26 Oct California Golden Bears Berkeley California Field 18–0 7 27 Oct Saint Mary's Gaels San Francisco St. Ignatius Field 27–0 8 30 Oct California Golden Bears Berkeley California Field 5–6 9 2 Nov California Golden Bears Berkeley California Field 23–3 10 5 Nov Nevada Wolf Pack Reno University Ground 57–6 11 10 Nov Santa Clara Broncos Santa Clara Golden Gate Stadium 19–8 12 13 Nov USC Trojans Los Angeles Boyard Field 41–0 13 16 Nov USA Berkeley California Field 12–8 14 20 Nov Vancouver Vancouver Stanley Park 3–6 15 23 Nov British Columbia RU Vancouver Stanley Park 0–15 16 27 Nov Victoria Victoria Oak Bay Ground 11–13 Balance Pl W D L Ps Pc 16 11 0 5 303 94 Match details United States USA 8–12 AUS Report Harrigan Erb Erb Carroll, Meibusch, Richards Prentince California Field, Berkeley 10,000 L.S. Reading (England) Team details _usarugby1900 000066 000066 000066 999999 999999 United States _collar _skybluetop 86D1FD 86D1FD 86D1FD 000055 000055 Australia Benjamin Erb FB Alex Dunbar Stirling Peart W Dan CarrollChester Allen C Larry Dwyer Charlie Austin C Ward Prentice (c) Ralph Noble W Lou Meibusch Phillip Harrigan FH Bob Adamson Laird Morris SH Alfred Walker James Arrell P Harold W. George Augustus Sanborn H Tom Griffin Joseph McKim P Bill Watson Karl Schaupp L George Pugh Warren Smith L Ted Fahey Deke Gard F Rusty Richards William King F Copper Kent Chris Momson N8 William Murphy Bibliography Howell, Max (2005) Born to Lead – Wallaby Test Captains, Celebrity Books, Auckland NZ The Newcastle Herald, Tuesday 2 March 1982, page 16 (re H.A. Jones) References collapsed Category:Australia national rugby union team tours Category:Australia national rugby union team tours of Canada Category:Rugby union tours of the United States 1912 tour Category:1912 in Canadian rugby union Australia Category:Barbarian F.C. matches