George Ralph Gibson
Encyclopedia
George Ralph Gibson was an English
international rugby union
forward who played club rugby for Northern
. Gibson played international rugby for England
and was selected to represent the British Isles
on their 1899 tour of Australia
. He was described by Matthew Mullineux
, the British Isles captain, as a "capital worker".
. Gibson was brought into a fairly unexperienced pack to face Wales
at St. Helen's. The game was a one-sided match, with Wales winning by 26-3; afterwards Gibson, along with the other Northern players in the pack, were described as "delinquents" by The Times
. Gibson was not re-selected for any further games of the tournament.
Despite playing only the single game for England, he was offered a place on the British Isles team that was to tour Australia later in 1899. Although not fully representative of the best of British rugby players, the team included a few stand-out stars, including Welsh threequarter Gwyn Nicholls
. Gibson played in all four Test matches against the Australian national team
, which saw Britain recover after losing the First Test to take the series 3-1.
On his return to Britain, Gibson still had no position in the England team, but during the 1899-1900 season, he was invited to join the Barbarains
. The Barbarians were an invitational touring team, who by 1900 had a tradition of touring South Wales. In 1900 Gibson was part of the team that beat Gwyn Nicholl's Cardiff
27-12, Gibson scoring a try
during the game.
Gibson played one final international game when he was selected to play for England in the 1901 Home Nations Championship
. England had already played two games of the series, both losses, and the selectors had responded to each defeat by making several changes to the squad. The lack of consistency failed to produce good results and Gibson's final game, against Scotland
, also ended in English defeat.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
international 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...
forward who played club rugby for Northern
Northern Football Club
Northern Football Club are a rugby union club that was founded in 1875, and are based in Gosforth, Newcastle upon Tyne. Their strip is coloured navy Blue, Red and White...
. Gibson played international rugby for 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...
and was selected to represent the British Isles
British and Irish Lions
The British and Irish Lions is a rugby union team made up of players from England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales...
on their 1899 tour of Australia
1899 British Lions tour to Australia
The 1899 British Isles tour to Australia was the fourth rugby union tour by a British Isles team and the second to Australia; though the first tour in 1888 was a private venture, making the 1899 tour the first official undertaking of Australia...
. He was described by Matthew Mullineux
Matthew Mullineux
Matthew Mullineux MC was an English rugby union scrum-half who, although not capped for England, was selected for two British Lions tours. He gained one cap during the 1896 tour to South Africa and captained the 1899 tour of Australia...
, the British Isles captain, as a "capital worker".
Rugby career
Gibson first came to note as a rugby player whilst a member of Northern Football Club; and in 1899 was selected to represent England in the Home Nations Championship1899 Home Nations Championship
The 1899 Home Nations Championship was the seventeenth series of the rugby union Home Nations Championship. Six matches were played between 5 January and 18 March. It was contested by England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales....
. Gibson was brought into a fairly unexperienced pack to face Wales
Wales national rugby union team
The Wales national rugby union team represent Wales in international rugby union tournaments. They compete annually in the Six Nations Championship with England, France, Ireland, Italy and Scotland. Wales have won the Six Nations and its predecessors 24 times outright, second only to England with...
at St. Helen's. The game was a one-sided match, with Wales winning by 26-3; afterwards Gibson, along with the other Northern players in the pack, were described as "delinquents" by The Times
The Times
The Times is a British daily national newspaper, first published in London in 1785 under the title The Daily Universal Register . The Times and its sister paper The Sunday Times are published by Times Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary since 1981 of News International...
. Gibson was not re-selected for any further games of the tournament.
Despite playing only the single game for England, he was offered a place on the British Isles team that was to tour Australia later in 1899. Although not fully representative of the best of British rugby players, the team included a few stand-out stars, including Welsh threequarter Gwyn Nicholls
Gwyn Nicholls
Erith Gwyn Nicholls was a Welsh rugby union player who gained 24 caps for Wales as a centre. Nicholls was known as the "Prince of Threequarters"....
. Gibson played in all four Test matches against the Australian national team
Australia national rugby union team
The Australian national rugby union team is the representative side of Australia in rugby union. The national team is nicknamed the Wallabies and competes annually with New Zealand and South Africa in the Tri-Nations Series, in which they also contest the Bledisloe Cup with New Zealand and the...
, which saw Britain recover after losing the First Test to take the series 3-1.
On his return to Britain, Gibson still had no position in the England team, but during the 1899-1900 season, he was invited to join the Barbarains
Barbarian F.C.
The Barbarian Football Club, usually referred to as the Barbarians and nicknamed the "Baa-Baas", is an invitational rugby union team based in Britain...
. The Barbarians were an invitational touring team, who by 1900 had a tradition of touring South Wales. In 1900 Gibson was part of the team that beat Gwyn Nicholl's Cardiff
Cardiff RFC
Cardiff Rugby Football Club is a rugby union football club based in Cardiff, the capital city of Wales. The club was founded in 1876 and played their first few matches at Sophia Gardens, but soon relocated to Cardiff Arms Park where they have been based ever since...
27-12, Gibson scoring 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...
during the game.
Gibson played one final international game when he was selected to play for England in the 1901 Home Nations Championship
1901 Home Nations Championship
The 1901 Home Nations Championship was the nineteenth series of the rugby union Home Nations Championship. Six matches were played between 5 January and 16 March...
. England had already played two games of the series, both losses, and the selectors had responded to each defeat by making several changes to the squad. The lack of consistency failed to produce good results and Gibson's final game, against 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...
, also ended in English defeat.