Louis Magee
Encyclopedia
Aloysius Mary "Louis" Magee (1 May 1874 – 4 April 1945) was an Irish
rugby union
halfback. Magee played club rugby for Bective Rangers
and London Irish
and played international rugby for Ireland
and was part of the British Isles team
in their 1896 tour of South Africa
.
Magee was capped 27 times for Ireland, ten as captain, and won two Championships, leading Ireland to a Triple Crown
win in the 1899 Home Nations Championship
. Magee was one of the outstanding half backs of world rugby prior to 1914, and is credited as being a driving force in turning Ireland from a no-hope team into one that commanded respect.
was also an international rugby player for Ireland, while another brother James
played cricket
for Ireland
. His brother-in-law, Tommy Little
, played rugby for Ireland between 1898 and 1901. Magee played almost the entirety of his rugby for club team Bective Rangers, as did both his brothers. In 1898, while in London, Magee was approached by newly formed club, London Irish, to play for the first team. When Magee accepted, his presence in the team helped recruit other countrymen to join the exile club, and is seen as a major catalyst in the success of the club.
in an encounter with England
. Magee was selected along with his brother Joseph, but Joseph's international career ended after only two games, playing in only the first two matches of the 1895 season. Although Ireland narrowly lost the opening game, Magee scored the only points for Ireland when he scored his first international try
. Magee was reselected for the next two games of the Championship, Ireland losing both narrowly in two tight matches which saw Ireland end bottom of the table for the season.
and drawing 0-0 with Scotland
, giving Ireland its second Championship in three years. Magee played in all three games of the season making him a Championship winning player. Towards the end of the 1896 season, Magee was approached by Johnny Hammond
to join his British Isles team on their tour of South Africa
. Magee accepted, and was joined on the tour by his brother James, who was also a member of Bective Rangers. The tour was notable for the large contingent of Irish players, who had been poorly represented on previous tours. The other Irish players being Tom Crean
, Robert Johnston, Larry Bulger
, Jim Sealy, Andrew Clinch
, Arthur Meares
and Cecil Boyd. Magee played in only fourteen of the 21 arranged games of the tour, but played in four Test games against the South African national team
. In the First Test he was partnered at half back with Matthew Mullineux
, but for the final three tests he was joined by Cambridge University
player Sydney Pyman Bell
.
, which saw him gain the captaincy of the national team in the opening game of the campaign, a home match against England. Ireland won 6-0, with Magee scoring with a penalty kick and long term Irish half back partner, Gerald Allen, scoring a try. Magee then set up two of the tries in a 9-3 victory of Scotland, leaving the encounter with Wales as the decider for the Triple Crown
.
The game was played at Cardiff Arms Park
in front of a record crowd of 40,000, who constantly disrupted the game as the spectators spilled onto the pitch. The game was decided by a single try by Ireland's Gerry Doran
, but Magee was called into action preventing a try from one of the Welsh three-quarters in the last minute with a tackle from behind. The win gave Ireland the Triple Crown for the second time in the country's history.
, and apart from an good win over England in 1901
and a strong three-quarters, there was little to celebrate in the Irish results. The 1902 Championship
saw Magee lose the captaincy to half back John Fulton. Ireland lost their opening match against England, but after a win over Scotland, Magee was handed the captain's position for the final encounter, against Wales. Ireland were well-beaten in their biggest home defeat since the start of the Championship competition.
The 1903 Championship started with a strong win over England, but the Irish captaincy was now in the hands of Harry Corley
, Magee's half back partner since the start of 1902. Magee was seen as one of the finest half backs to come out of Ireland, his playing style was of a basic left-side, right-side tradition of half back play; Corley was one of the first specialized fly-halves, pointing the new way forward in rugby play. Ireland failed to capitalise on their strong opening game, losing narrowly to Scotland and then being completely out-classed by Wales. losing 18-0.
Magee was dropped for the 1904 Home Nations Championship
, replaced by Robinson and Kennedy, as Corley was moved to the centre position. But the team were well beaten by both England and then Scotland, leading the Irish selectors to make eight changes in the final match at home to Wales. Magee was recalled to partner Kennedy in his final international, and the game turned out to be the match of the season. The Welsh took an early lead, but after Ireland were reduced to 14 men through an injury, the team appeared inspired and improved their game. With four tries from each side, the only difference was that Ireland managed to convert one of their tries, whereas Wales missed all theirs. Magee finished his international career with a great win, and with 27 appearances was the most capped Irish player to date.
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
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...
halfback. Magee played club rugby for Bective Rangers
Bective Rangers
Bective Rangers is a rugby union club in Dublin, Ireland founded in 1881.The Club is affiliated to the Leinster Branch of the Irish Rugby Football Union and play in Division 2 of the All Ireland League....
and London Irish
London Irish
London Irish RFC is an English rugby union club based in Sunbury, Surrey, where the senior squad train, the youth teams and senior academy play home games, and the club maintain their administrative offices. The senior squad play home games at the Madejski Stadium in Reading and compete in the top...
and played international rugby for 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 was part of the British Isles team
British and Irish Lions
The British and Irish Lions is a rugby union team made up of players from England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales...
in their 1896 tour of South Africa
1896 British Lions tour to South Africa
1896 British Isles tour to South Africa was a rugby union tour undertaken by the British Isles, one of the first British and Irish Lions tours. The team toured South Africa for the second time in 1896. Between July 11 and September 5, they played 21 games, including four tests against South Africa...
.
Magee was capped 27 times for Ireland, ten as captain, and won two Championships, leading Ireland to a Triple Crown
Triple Crown (Rugby Union)
In rugby union, the Triple Crown is an honour contested annually by the four national teams of the British Isles who compete within the larger Six Nations Championship: England, Scotland, Ireland, and Wales. If any one team manages to win all their games against the other three they win the...
win in the 1899 Home Nations Championship
1899 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....
. Magee was one of the outstanding half backs of world rugby prior to 1914, and is credited as being a driving force in turning Ireland from a no-hope team into one that commanded respect.
Rugby career
Magee came from a well known sporting family. His eldest brother Joseph MageeJoseph Magee
Joseph Thomas Magee was an Irish rugby union wing. Magee played club rugby for Bective Rangers and played international rugby for Ireland. He is often mistaken as being a member of the British Isles team that toured South Africa in 1896, a position actually taken by his brother James Magee.-Rugby...
was also an international rugby player for Ireland, while another brother James
James Magee
James Mary Magee was an Irish cricketer and rugby union player. Magee was capped in both sports, playing cricket for Ireland and in 1896 he was part of the British Isles team that toured South Africa.-Cricket career:Magee was born in Dublin in 1872 and was educated at Clongowes Wood College in...
played cricket
Cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of 11 players on an oval-shaped field, at the centre of which is a rectangular 22-yard long pitch. One team bats, trying to score as many runs as possible while the other team bowls and fields, trying to dismiss the batsmen and thus limit the...
for Ireland
Irish cricket team
The Ireland cricket team is the cricket team representing all of Ireland. Because of political difficulties, the Irish Cricket Union was not elected to the International Cricket Council until 1993, and qualified for the World Cup for the first time in 2007. The Irish Cricket Union is the...
. His brother-in-law, Tommy Little
Tommy Little
Thomas Stewart Colquhoun Little was a footballer who played in the Football League for Bradford Park Avenue and Stoke. He made twenty one appearances for Stoke.-References:...
, played rugby for Ireland between 1898 and 1901. Magee played almost the entirety of his rugby for club team Bective Rangers, as did both his brothers. In 1898, while in London, Magee was approached by newly formed club, London Irish, to play for the first team. When Magee accepted, his presence in the team helped recruit other countrymen to join the exile club, and is seen as a major catalyst in the success of the club.
Early international career
Magee first played international rugby during the 1895 Home Nations Championship1895 Home Nations Championship
The 1895 Home Nations Championship was the thirteenth series of the rugby union Home Nations Championship. Six matches were played between 5 January and 16 March...
in an encounter with 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...
. Magee was selected along with his brother Joseph, but Joseph's international career ended after only two games, playing in only the first two matches of the 1895 season. Although Ireland narrowly lost the opening game, Magee scored the only points for Ireland when he scored his first international 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...
. Magee was reselected for the next two games of the Championship, Ireland losing both narrowly in two tight matches which saw Ireland end bottom of the table for the season.
British Isles tour
1896 was a turn around in fortunes for Ireland, beating England and WalesWales 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...
and drawing 0-0 with 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...
, giving Ireland its second Championship in three years. Magee played in all three games of the season making him a Championship winning player. Towards the end of the 1896 season, Magee was approached by Johnny Hammond
Johnny Hammond (rugby player)
John "Johnny" Hammond was an English rugby union forward who, although not capped for England, was part of three British Lions tours, all to South Africa. He gained three caps during the 1891 tour to South Africa and captained the 1896 tour, winning another two test caps...
to join his British Isles team on their tour of South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
. Magee accepted, and was joined on the tour by his brother James, who was also a member of Bective Rangers. The tour was notable for the large contingent of Irish players, who had been poorly represented on previous tours. The other Irish players being Tom Crean
Thomas Joseph Crean
Major Dr. Thomas Joseph Crean, VC, DSO was an Irish rugby union player, British Army soldier and doctor. During the Second Boer War, while serving with the Imperial Light Horse, he was awarded the Victoria Cross. His VC medal is displayed at the Army Medical Services Museum...
, Robert Johnston, Larry Bulger
Lawrence Bulger
Lawrence 'Larry' Quinlivan Bulger was an Irish rugby union player, athlete and doctor. Bulger played international rugby for Ireland and in 1896 was chosen to represent a British Isles XV in their tour of South Africa...
, Jim Sealy, Andrew Clinch
Andrew Clinch
Andrew Daniel Clinch , was an Irish rugby union forward who played club rugby for Dublin University and international rugby for Ireland and the British Isles.-Biography:...
, Arthur Meares
Arthur Meares
Arthur William Devenish Meares, also known as Arthur William Devenish-Meares or "Newry" Meares was an Irish rugby union player who won four caps for Ireland and two for the British Isles....
and Cecil Boyd. Magee played in only fourteen of the 21 arranged games of the tour, but played in four Test games against the South African national team
South Africa national rugby union team
The South African national rugby union team are 2009 British and Irish Lions Series winners. They are currently ranked as the fourth best team in the IRB World Rankings and were named 2008 World Team of the Year at the prestigious Laureus World Sports Awards.Although South Africa was instrumental...
. In the First Test he was partnered at half back with 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...
, but for the final three tests he was joined by Cambridge University
Cambridge University R.U.F.C.
The Cambridge University Rugby Union Football Club, or CURUFC, is the rugby union club of Cambridge University, and plays Oxford University in the annual Varsity Match at Twickenham stadium every December. CURUFC players wear light blue and white hooped jerseys with a red lion crest...
player Sydney Pyman Bell
Sydney Pyman Bell
Sydney Pyman Bell was an English rugby union halfback and solicitor. Bell played club rugby for Cambridge University and Northern and played international rugby for the British Isles XV in their 1896 tour of South Africa....
.
1899 Home Nations Championship
On his return to Britain, Magee retained his position in the Ireland national team, and from his first game in 1895 he played at centre for 26 consecutive games taking in eight Championship seasons. Magee's finest season was the 1899 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....
, which saw him gain the captaincy of the national team in the opening game of the campaign, a home match against England. Ireland won 6-0, with Magee scoring with a penalty kick and long term Irish half back partner, Gerald Allen, scoring a try. Magee then set up two of the tries in a 9-3 victory of Scotland, leaving the encounter with Wales as the decider for the Triple Crown
Triple Crown (Rugby Union)
In rugby union, the Triple Crown is an honour contested annually by the four national teams of the British Isles who compete within the larger Six Nations Championship: England, Scotland, Ireland, and Wales. If any one team manages to win all their games against the other three they win the...
.
The game was played at Cardiff Arms Park
Cardiff Arms Park
Cardiff Arms Park , also known as The Arms Park, is primarily known as a rugby union stadium, but it also has a bowling green, and is situated in the centre of Cardiff, Wales. The Arms Park was host to the British Empire and Commonwealth Games in 1958, and hosted four games in the 1991 Rugby World...
in front of a record crowd of 40,000, who constantly disrupted the game as the spectators spilled onto the pitch. The game was decided by a single try by Ireland's Gerry Doran
Gerry Doran
Gerald "Gerry" Percy Doran also known as Blucher Doran, was an Irish international rugby union wing who played club rugby for Lansdowne. Doran played international rugby for Ireland and in 1899 he was selected for the British Isles team on its tour of Australia...
, but Magee was called into action preventing a try from one of the Welsh three-quarters in the last minute with a tackle from behind. The win gave Ireland the Triple Crown for the second time in the country's history.
1900-1904
Magee continued to captain his country over the next two season's, but he did not experience the same success as in the 1899 campaign. A single draw against Scotland was the best result in 19001900 Home Nations Championship
The 1900 Home Nations Championship was the eighteenth series of the rugby union Home Nations Championship. Six matches were played between 6 January and 17 March. It was contested by England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales.-Table:-Results:...
, and apart from an good win over England in 1901
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...
and a strong three-quarters, there was little to celebrate in the Irish results. The 1902 Championship
1902 Home Nations Championship
The 1902 Home Nations Championship was the twentieth series of the rugby union Home Nations Championship. Six matches were played between 11 January and 15 March. It was contested by England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales....
saw Magee lose the captaincy to half back John Fulton. Ireland lost their opening match against England, but after a win over Scotland, Magee was handed the captain's position for the final encounter, against Wales. Ireland were well-beaten in their biggest home defeat since the start of the Championship competition.
The 1903 Championship started with a strong win over England, but the Irish captaincy was now in the hands of Harry Corley
Harry Corley
Harry Cecil Corley , also known as Harry Hegarty Corley was an Irish sportsman and sport official...
, Magee's half back partner since the start of 1902. Magee was seen as one of the finest half backs to come out of Ireland, his playing style was of a basic left-side, right-side tradition of half back play; Corley was one of the first specialized fly-halves, pointing the new way forward in rugby play. Ireland failed to capitalise on their strong opening game, losing narrowly to Scotland and then being completely out-classed by Wales. losing 18-0.
Magee was dropped for the 1904 Home Nations Championship
1904 Home Nations Championship
The 1904 Home Nations Championship was the twenty-second series of the rugby union Home Nations Championship. Six matches were played between 9 January and 19 March. It was contested by England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales.-Table:-Results:...
, replaced by Robinson and Kennedy, as Corley was moved to the centre position. But the team were well beaten by both England and then Scotland, leading the Irish selectors to make eight changes in the final match at home to Wales. Magee was recalled to partner Kennedy in his final international, and the game turned out to be the match of the season. The Welsh took an early lead, but after Ireland were reduced to 14 men through an injury, the team appeared inspired and improved their game. With four tries from each side, the only difference was that Ireland managed to convert one of their tries, whereas Wales missed all theirs. Magee finished his international career with a great win, and with 27 appearances was the most capped Irish player to date.