In 1955 the British Lions rugby union team toured Southern and Eastern Africa. The Lions drew the test series against South Africa, each team winning two of the four matches. They won the first test by a single point and the third by three points and lost the second and fourth matches by wider margins. As well as South Africa, the tour included a match against South West Africa (later to become Namibia), two games against Rhodesia (later to become Zimbabwe) and one versus East Africa.
Overall the tourists played twenty-five matches winning nineteen, losing five and drawing one. The Lions lost their opening fixture against Western Transvaal and were also beaten by Eastern Province and Border later in the tour. They drew with Eastern Transvaal.
It was the Lions' second tour after World War II and the first to South Africa after that war.
The touring party was captained by Robin Thompson of Ireland. The manager was Jack A. E. Siggins and the assistant manager was D. E. Davies.
Jack Siggins had the honour of being invited, by the Rugby Football Union of East Africa (RFUEA), officially to open the newly constructed RFUEA Ground at Ngong Road in Nairobi just prior to the Lions last match of that tour against East Africa.
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1 Dickie Jeeps later played for England but was uncapped at the time of the 1955 tour.
There is a frequently repeated urban legend[1][2] that that Idi Amin (later to become the infamous military dictator of Uganda) was selected as a replacement by East Africa for their match against the 1955 British Lions. The story is entirely unfounded, he does not appear on the team photograph or on the official team list[3] and replacements were not allowed in international rugby until 13 years after this event is supposed to have taken place.[4]
| Score | Opposition | |
|---|---|---|
| Lions | 6-9 | Western Transvaal |
| Lions | 24-14 | Griqualand West |
| Lions | 32-6 | Northern Universities |
| Lions | 31-3 | Orange Free State |
| Lions | 9-0 | South West Africa |
| Lions | 11-3 | Western Province |
| Lions | 22-3 | South Western Districts |
| Lions | 0-20 | Eastern Province |
| Lions | 34-6 | North Eastern Districts |
| Lions | 36-13 | Transvaal |
| Lions | 27-14 | Rhodesia |
| Lions | 16-12 | Rhodesia |
| Lions | 23-22 | South Africa (Johannesburg) |
| Lions | 21-14 | Central Universities |
| Lions | 11-0 | Boland |
| Lions | 20-17 | Western Province Universities |
| Lions | 9-25 | South Africa (Cape Town) |
| Lions | 17-17 | Eastern Transvaal |
| Lions | 14-11 | Northern Transvaal |
| Lions | 9-6 | South Africa (Pretoria) |
| Lions | 11-8 | Natal |
| Lions | 15-12 | Junior Springboks |
| Lions | 12-14 | Border |
| Lions | 8-22 | South Africa (Port Elizabeth) |
| Lions | 39-12 | East Africa |
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