Adam "Addie" Lile (1885–1954) was a New Zealand

rugby football Rugby football is the collective name for the team sports of rugby union or rugby league. Rugby football started at Rugby School in Rugby, Warwickshire, England, where the rules were first codified in 1845. Forms of football in which the ball ...

er who was part of the professional 1907-1908 New Zealand rugby tour of Great Britain.

Early years

Originally from

Taranaki Taranaki is a regions of New Zealand, region in the west of New Zealand's North Island. It is named after its main geographical feature, the stratovolcano Mount Taranaki, Taranaki Maunga, formerly known as Mount Egmont. The main centre is the ...

, Lile enlisted in the

Army An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...

for the

South African War The Second Boer War (, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, Transvaal War, Anglo–Boer War, or South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer republics (the South African Republic and ...

but was sent home from

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

when it was discovered that he was only 15.Coffey and Wood ''The Kiwis: 100 Years of International Rugby League'' Lile remained in the Army and became an

Artillery Artillery consists of ranged weapons that launch Ammunition, munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieges, and l ...

man.

Rugby union career

Lile played

rugby union Rugby union football, commonly known simply as rugby union in English-speaking countries and rugby 15/XV in non-English-speaking world, Anglophone Europe, or often just rugby, is a Contact sport#Terminology, close-contact team sport that orig ...

for the Oriental club in Wellington alongside Albert Baskiville and was a

Wellington Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...

representative. Lile was widely regarded as being one of the top 30 players in the country during the 1907 season and he won North Island selection that year.John Haynes ''From All Blacks to All Golds: Rugby League's Pioneers'', Christchurch, Ryan and Haynes, 1996.

Rugby league career

Lile was selected by Baskiville to be part of the professional All Blacks 1907-1908 tour of Australia and Great Britain. As a result, he received a life ban from the

New Zealand Rugby Union New Zealand Rugby (NZR) is the Sports governing body, governing body of rugby union in New Zealand. It was founded in 1892 as the New Zealand Rugby Football Union (NZRFU), 12 years after the first provincial unions in New Zealand. In 1949 it b ...

. During the tour his background as a soldier proved useful as he often led the team in training drills. While on tour Lile played in three test matches and scored two tries in all tour games. On his return from the tour Lile was instrumental to the foundation of the Taranaki Rugby League. The team met with immediate success and in the 1909 season defeated both

and

Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...

, despite both teams featuring many of his fellow tourists. Lile was the Taranaki

player-coach A player–coach (also playing coach, captain–coach, or player–manager) is a member of a sports team who simultaneously holds both playing and coaching duties. Player–coaches may be head coaches or assistant coaches, and they may make chang ...

in both the 1908 and 1909 seasons. Lile was part of the 1909 New Zealand tour of Australia, playing in all three test matches.

Legacy

Lile has a street named after him, Adam Lile Drive, in

New Plymouth New Plymouth () is the major city of the Taranaki region on the west coast of the North Island of New Zealand. It is named after the English city of Plymouth, in Devon, from where the first English settlers to New Plymouth migrated. The New Pl ...

. The Taranaki Rugby League club trophy is also named the "Lile Shield" in his honour. In 2008 he was named in the Taranaki Rugby League Team of the Century.

Personal life

Adam Lile was born in 1885, the son of Adam Lile (Lisle) and Eliza Dandy. He had 7 siblings. In 1910 he married Ida Alberta Fleet. They had two children, Joyce Ngaere Lile in 1911 and Addie Bernard Lile in 1914.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lile, Adam 1885 births 1954 deaths 20th-century New Zealand sportsmen New Zealand Army personnel New Zealand military personnel of the Second Boer War New Zealand national rugby league team players New Zealand rugby league players New Zealand rugby union players Rugby league locks Rugby league players from Taranaki Taranaki rugby league team coaches Taranaki rugby league team players Wellington rugby league team players