Paul Moriarty
Former Welsh rugby union international, Paul Moriarty scored two tries in his Great Britain rugby league Test debut against Papua New Guinea at Central Park, Wigan.
Moriarty, who was signed by Widnes from the Swansea rugby union club in Wales, was one of three debutants in the British side which demolished the Kumuls 56-4. The other new boys were fellow Welshman, Anthony Sullivan (St Helens) and Michael Jackson (Wakefield Trinity), with Jackson named man of the match.
One of the stars of Wales’ impressive union World Cup campaign in 1987, Moriarty played two more league Tests for Britain – both against France. He also played 14 league Tests for Wales on top of his 21 union Test caps. His last league Test was the World Cup semi-final against Australia in Huddersfield in 2000.
In 1991 Britain were skippered for the first time by Leeds’ five eighth, Garry Schofield, in the absence of the injured Ellery Hanley from Wigan.
Australia’s Bill Harrigan refereed the Test and penalised PNG 11-4.
The Test result completed a disastrous British tour by the Kumuls, who were beaten 68-0 by Wales in Swansea; 58-0 by the British under-21s in Leeds; 16-14 by a Humberside Selection in Hull and 34-12 by Cumbria at Workington.
Things didn’t get much better in France, with PNG losing three of their four matches, including the Test in Carcassonne.
France, captained by Avignon’s Giles Dumas, won 28-14 in Carcassonne, with Englishman, Colin Morris the referee.
PNG lost 35-4 to Mid-Pyrenees in Toulouse and 32-16 to a Presidents XIII in Villeneuve-sur-Lot.
The tourists only win came at Carpentras, where they accounted for Provence 26-20.
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