1908 Home Nations Championship


The 1908 Home Nations Championship was the 26th series of the rugby union Home Nations Championship. Six matches were played between 18 January and 21 March. It was contested by England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales.
Although not officially part of the tournament until 1910, matches were arranged with the French national team which were played during the Championship. During the 1908 Championship, two Home Nations faced France, England and Wales. As Wales beat all three Home Nation opponents and France, they not only took the Triple Crown but were the unofficial winners of the Championship's first Grand Slam.

Table

Scoring system

The matches for this season were decided on points scored. A try was worth three points, while converting a kicked goal from the try gave an additional two points. A dropped goal was worth four points, while a goal from mark and penalty goals were worth three points.

Matches

England vs. Wales

England: AE Wood, WN Lapage, JGG Birkett capt., D Lambert, A Hudson, J Peters, RH Williamson, R Gilbert, F Boylen, GD Roberts, CEL Hammond, LAN Slocock, WA Mills, H Havelock, Robert Dibble
Wales: Bert Winfield, Johnnie Williams, Billy Trew, Rhys Gabe, Reggie Gibbs, Percy Bush, Tommy Vile, James Watts, George Travers, Charlie Pritchard, John Alf Brown, Billy O'Neill, Jim Webb, William Dowell, Arthur Harding capt.
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Wales vs. Scotland

Wales: Bert Winfield, Johnnie Williams, Billy Trew, Rhys Gabe, Reggie Gibbs, Percy Bush, Tommy Vile, James Watts, George Travers capt., George Hayward, John Alf Brown, Billy O'Neill, Jim Webb, William Dowell, Arthur Harding
Scotland: DG Schulze, T Sloan, H Martin, MW Walter, ABHL Purves, LL Greig capt., George Cunningham, IC Geddes, JA Brown, GM Frew, JC MacCallum, LM Speirs, GC Gowlland, Bedell-Sivright, JMB Scott
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England vs. Ireland

England: AE Wood, WN Lapage, JGG Birkett, Henry Vassall, A Hudson, GV Portus, RH Williamson, R Gilbert, F Boylen, TS Kelly, CEL Hammond capt., LAN Slocock, John Hopley, H Havelock, Robert Dibble
Ireland: WP Hinton, GGP Beckett, C Thompson, James Cecil Parke, HB Thrift capt., Herbert Aston, FNB Smartt, Bethel Solomons, Tommy Smyth, C Adams, A Tedford, HG Wilson, E McG Morphy, TG Harpur, George Hamlet
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Ireland vs. Scotland

Ireland: WP Hinton, GGP Beckett, C Thompson, James Cecil Parke capt., HB Thrift, ED Caddell, FNB Smartt, Bethel Solomons, Tommy Smyth, F Gardiner, A Tedford, HG Wilson, EHJ Knox, TG Harpur, George Hamlet
Scotland: DG Schulze, KG McLeod, H Martin, MW Walter, ABHL Purves, LL Greig capt., George Cunningham, JS Wilson, JA Brown, GM Frew, JC MacCallum, LM Speirs, GA Sanderson, Bedell-Sivright, JMB Scott
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Ireland vs. Wales

Ireland: WP Hinton, GGP Beckett, C Thompson, James Cecil Parke capt., HB Thrift, ED Caddell, Herbert Aston, Bethel Solomons, Tommy Smyth, F Gardiner, A Tedford, HG Wilson, JJ Coffey, TG Harpur, George Hamlet
Wales: Bert Winfield capt., Johnnie Williams, Billy Trew, Rhys Gabe, Reggie Gibbs, Dick Jones, Dicky Owen, James Watts, George Travers, George Hayward, Tom Evans, Billy O'Neill, Jim Webb, William Dowell, Dick Thomas
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Scotland vs. England

Scotland: DG Schulze, KG McLeod, H Martin, CM Gilray, ABHL Purves, AL Wade, J Robertson, IC Geddes capt., AL Robertson, GM Frew, JC MacCallum, LM Speirs, HG Monteith, WE Kyle, JMB Scott
England: GH D'O Lyon, D Lambert, JGG Birkett, WN Lapage, A Hudson, J Davey, RH Williamson, R Gilbert, F Boylen, TS Kelly, Tommy Woods, LAN Slocock capt., WL Oldham, FB Watson, Robert Dibble

French matches

France vs. England

France: H Issac, C Varseilles, R Sagot, E Lesieur, Gaston Lane, A Hubert, A Mayssonnie, G Borchard, P Mauriat, H Moure, R de Malmann, Marcel Communeau capt., C Beaurin, R Duval
England: AE Wood, WN Lapage, JGG Birkett, D Lambert, A Hudson, GV Portus, HJH Sibree, EL Chambers, F Boylen, GD Roberts, TS Kelly capt., LAN Slocock, WA Mills, H Havelock, Robert Dibble
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Wales vs. France

Wales: Bert Winfield, Teddy Morgan capt., Billy Trew, Rhys Gabe, Reggie Gibbs, Dick Jones, Dicky Owen, James Watts, George Travers, George Hayward, John Alf Brown, Billy O'Neill, Jim Webb, William Dowell, Dick Thomas
France: H Martin, C Varseilles, Maurice Leuvielle, E Lesieur, Gaston Lane, A Hubert, A Mayssonnie, A Masse, P Guillemin, P Mauriat, A Branlat, R de Malmann, Marcel Communeau capt., J Dufourcq, R Duval