1979 England rugby union tour of Japan, Fiji and Tonga

In 1979 an England rugby union touring team toured Japan, Fiji and Tonga. The tourists won all their seven matches, scoring 270 points and conceding only 93. Only the first international against Japan was close, with Japan leading 19–15 going into injury time – a converted try by Peter Squires allowed England to win the match.

1979 England rugby union tour of Japan, Fiji and Tonga
Summary
P W D L
Total
07 07 00 00
Test match
4[1] 04 00 00
Opponent
P W D L
 Japan
2 2 0 0
 Fiji
1 1 0 0
 Tonga
1 1 0 0

England did not award full international caps for the matches against Japan, Fiji and Tonga and the tourists played under the name of England XV rather than England in those games. The Welsh referee Clive Norling travelled with the party and refereed five of the matches. The leading tour points scorer was Huw Davies, with 60 points, and the leading try-scorers were John Carleton (9 tries) and Mike Slemen (7 tries).

The visit to Tonga was the first time that a major rugby nation had visited the country.

Matches

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Scores and results list England's points tally first.
Opposing Team For Against Date Venue Status
Japan 'B' 36 7 10 May 1979 Tokyo Tour match
Japan 21 19 13 May 1979 Kintetsu Hanazono Stadium, Osaka First 'Test'
Kyūshū 80 3 16 May 1979 Fukuoka Tour match
Japan 38 18 20 May 1979 Olympic Stadium, Tokyo Second 'Test'
Fiji Juniors 39 22 25 May 1979 Lautoka Tour match
Fiji 19 7 29 May 1979 National Stadium, Suva 'Test' Match
Tonga 37 17 1 June 1979 Teufaiva Sport Stadium, Nukuʻalofa 'Test' Match

Touring party

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Full back

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Three-quarters

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Half-backs

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Forwards

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References

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  • Jenkins, Vivian (1980). Rothmans Rugby Yearbook 1980–81. Queen Anne Press. pp. 39–43. ISBN 0-362-02018-3.

Notes

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  1. ^ not official test-matches for Rugby Football Union