The 1877-78 Home Nations rugby union matches are a series of international friendlies held between the England

England national rugby union team

The England national rugby union team represents England in rugby union. They compete in the annual Six Nations Championship with France, Ireland, Scotland, Italy, and Wales. They have won this championship on 26 occasions, 12 times winning the Grand Slam, making them the most successful team in...

, Ireland

Ireland national rugby union team

The Ireland national rugby union team represents the island of Ireland in rugby union. The team competes annually in the Six Nations Championship and every four years in the Rugby World Cup, where they reached the quarter-final stage in all but two competitions The Ireland national rugby union...

 and Scotland

Scotland national rugby union team

The Scotland national rugby union team represent Scotland in international rugby union. Rugby union in Scotland is administered by the Scottish Rugby Union. The Scotland rugby union team is currently ranked eighth in the IRB World Rankings as of 19 September 2011...

 national rugby union

Rugby union

Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...

 teams.

Results

Scoring system

The matches for this season were decided on goals scored. A goal was awarded for a successful conversion after a try

Try

A try is the major way of scoring points in rugby league and rugby union football. A try is scored by grounding the ball in the opposition's in-goal area...

, for a dropped goal or for a goal from mark

Goal from mark

A goal from mark is a former scoring move in rugby football. It occurred when a player "marked" the ball by making a fair catch and shouting "mark". From this position the player could not be tackled. The player then had the option of a free kick, which can be taken as a place, drop, or tap kick...

. If a game was drawn, any unconverted tries were tallied to give a winner. If there was still no clear winner, the match was declared a draw.

England vs. Scotland

England: HE Kayll, AW Pearson

Alexander William Pearson

Alexander "Alec" William Pearson was a rugby union international who represented England from 1875 to 1878. He was described as late as 1925 as "about as fíne a full back as ever played", and was the first Australian born rugby union international.-Early life and family:Alexander William Pearson...

, A.N. Hornby, L Stokes

Lennard Stokes

Dr. Lennard Stokes was a rugby union international who represented England from 1875 to 1881. He also captained his country on five occasions, notably in the first ever match against Wales...

, WAD Evanson, PLA Price

Petley Price

Petley Price was a rugby union international who represented England on three occasions from 1877 to 1878.-Early life:...

, Edward Kewley

Edward Kewley

Edward Kewley was an English sportsman who played rugby union for England and also played first class cricket for Lancashire...

 capt., FR Adams

Frank Reginald Adams

Frank Adams was a rugby union international who represented England from 1875 to 1879. He also captained his country.-Early life:Frank Adams was born in 1852, the second son of Frank Adams and Ellen Straith...

, FD Fowler, Murray Marshall

Murray Marshall

Murray Marshall was a rugby union international who represented England from 1873 to 1878. He also captained his country.-Early life:Murray Marshall was born 7 October 1852 in Guildford and baptised on 3 November 1852 in the parish of St Peter and St Paul, Godalming. His parents were Murray and...

, JM Biggs, GF Vernon

George Vernon

George Frederick Vernon was a cricketer who played first-class cricket for Middlesex County Cricket Club. He also played one Test match for England during the first-ever Ashes tour in 1882-83.Vernon was the son of George Vernon of 32 Montague Square...

, GT Thomson

George Thomson (rugby)

George Thomas Thomson was a rugby union footballer of the 1870s and '80s who at representative level played for England, and at club level for Halifax, playing in the Forwards, e.g. Front row, Lock, or Back row...

, Edward Temple Gurdon

Edward Temple Gurdon

Edward Temple Gurdon, often known as Temple Gurdon, was a rugby union international who represented England from 1878 to 1886. He also captained his country.-Early life:Temple Gurdon was born on January 25, 1854 in Barnham Broom, Norfolk...

, H Fowler

Scotland: Bill Maclagan

Bill Maclagan

William Edward "Bill" Maclagan was a Scottish international rugby union forward who played club rugby for London Scottish F.C....

, Malcolm Cross

Malcolm Cross

Malcolm Cross was a Scottish rugby union player.He was capped nine times for between 1875-80. He also played for Merchistonians.He was the brother of William Cross who was also capped for Scotland, and who scored the first ever conversion in international rugby.-References:* Bath, Richard The...

, Ninian Finlay

Ninian Finlay

Ninian Jamieson Finlay was a Scottish international rugby players. He was capped nine times for between 1875-81, and is generally considered to be the youngest player ever to be capped for - he was seventeen years and thirty six days old when he was capped against on 8th March, 1875...

, JA Neilson, James Campbell

James Campbell (rugby union)

James Alexander Campbell was a Canadian-born rugby player who represented at international level...

, SH Smith, DR Irvine

Duncan Irvine

Duncan Irvine was a Scottish rugby football player.He was capped three times for between 1878-79. He also played for Edinburgh Academicals.He was the brother of Bulldog Irvine who was also capped for Scotland, including the first ever rugby international....

, G Macleod, LC Uludjo, RW Irvine

Bulldog Irvine

Doctor Robert W. Irvine, nicknamed "Bulldog", was a Scottish rugby football player.-Rugby career:He was capped 13 times for between 1871–80, including the first ever rugby international...

 capt., AG Petrie, JHS Graham, HM Napier, NT Brewis, JE Junor

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Ireland vs. England

Ireland: RB Walkington capt., RN Maiter, FW Kidd, GL Fagan, TG Gordon

Thomas Gisborne Gordon

Thomas Gisborne Gordon, was a rugby football player who played for North of Ireland F.C. and represented Ireland. He has the distinction of being the only one-handed/armed man ever to play international rugby ....

, EWD Crocker, WD Moore, F Schute, HW Murray, W Finlay, JA MacDonald, HG Edwards, HC Kelly, RW Hughes, W Griffiths

England: WJ Penny, AW Pearson

Alexander William Pearson

Alexander "Alec" William Pearson was a rugby union international who represented England from 1875 to 1878. He was described as late as 1925 as "about as fíne a full back as ever played", and was the first Australian born rugby union international.-Early life and family:Alexander William Pearson...

, A.N. Hornby, HJ Enthoven

Henry Enthoven

Henry Enthoven is a former a rugby union international who represented England in 1878.-Rugby union career:Enthoven made his international debut and only appearance for England on 11 March 1878 in the match against Ireland match at Lansdowne Road....

, AH Jackson, JL Bell, HP Gardner, CL Verelst, T Blatherwick

Thomas Blatherwick

Thomas Blatherwick was a rugby union international who represented England in 1878.-Early life:Thomas Blatherwick was born on 25 December 1855 in Quebec...

, Murray Marshall

Murray Marshall

Murray Marshall was a rugby union international who represented England from 1873 to 1878. He also captained his country.-Early life:Murray Marshall was born 7 October 1852 in Guildford and baptised on 3 November 1852 in the parish of St Peter and St Paul, Godalming. His parents were Murray and...

 capt., A Budd, GF Vernon

George Vernon

George Frederick Vernon was a cricketer who played first-class cricket for Middlesex County Cricket Club. He also played one Test match for England during the first-ever Ashes tour in 1882-83.Vernon was the son of George Vernon of 32 Montague Square...

, WH Hunt, EF Dawson, Edward Beadon Turner

Edward Beadon Turner

Edward Beadon Turner was an English medical doctor and medical administrator. Turner was a powerful orator and made himself available to multiple medical committees...

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