Samuel Arthur Lowrie (1889-1954) was a New Zealand

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as rugby league in English-speaking countries and rugby 13/XIII in non-Anglophone Europe, is a contact sport, full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular Rugby league playin ...

player who represented

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

. His grandnephew,

Jason Lowrie Jason Anthony Lowrie (born 22 January 1970) is a New Zealand rugby league coach and former player who represented New Zealand. Background He is the grand-nephew of fellow international Sam Lowrie who was a hooker for Ponsonby in the 1910s and ...

, also represented New Zealand in rugby league.

Personal life

Sam Lowrie was born on 6 September 1889, in Thames. His parents were Samuel Lowrie (1854-1913) and Johanne Donnelly (1868-1933). He had 12 siblings; William Ernest Lowrie (1886-1959), Mary Helena Lowrite (1887-1954), Alice Hannah Lowrie (1891-1962), Millicent Ellenor Lowrie (1893-1969), Annie Elizabeth Lowrie (1896-1970), Archibald James Lowrie (1898-1898), Flora Lowrie (1900-1902), Hilda Emily Lowrie (1903-1921), Jessie Myrtle Lowrie Cousin (1905-1967), Leslie John Lowrie (1910-1973), and Rachel Vilate Lowrie (1912-1973). Sam Lowrie did not marry and had no children. Various census rolls showed where he was living and what his occupation was at these times. In 1914 he was living in Karangahake as a miner. In 1915 he was living on Victoria Avenue and working as a miner. In 1919 he was living at 151 Newton Road and working as a miner. In 1928 he was living at 66 Beresford Street and working as a chamber hand. In 1935 he lived at 21 Virginia Avenue in central Auckland and was a labourer. He moved to Rotorua and was living in Ngaputahi as a contractor in 1938. From 1946-49 he was living at 165 Jervois Road and was a steelworker.

Playing career

Lowrie played for the Ponsonby club in the

Auckland Rugby League The Auckland Rugby League (ARL) is the governing body for the sport of rugby league in the Auckland Region of New Zealand. Founded in 1909, the ARL has played a pivotal role in the development and promotion of rugby league in Auckland and beyond. ...

competition.Coffey, John and Bernie Wood ''Auckland, 100 years of rugby league, 1909-2009'', 2009. . In 1919 Lowrie played for

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 ...

and was first selected to represent

, playing in three test matches against the touring Australian side. In 1922 Lowrie toured Australia, with the

New Zealand Māori rugby league team The New Zealand Māori rugby league team is a rugby league representative side made up of Māori people, New Zealand Māori players. With some controversy, the team participated in the 2000 Rugby League World Cup, 2000 World Cup as Aotearoa M ...

. He qualified for the Māori side through his grandmother Mere Tipona, who married his grandfather Samuel George Kennedy Lowrie. Lowrie was named Ponsonby's best forward in 1923. He again played for New Zealand in 1924, against the touring

Great Britain Lions The Great Britain national rugby league team represents Great Britain in rugby league. Administered by the Rugby Football League (RFL), the team is nicknamed The Lions. For most of the 20th century, the Great Britain team toured overseas, p ...

, and toured Australia in 1925, a tour where no test matches were played. He retired in 1927 after fracturing his jaw. He played in 153 games for Ponsonby between 1914 and 1927.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lowrie, Sam 1889 births 1954 deaths 20th-century New Zealand sportsmen Auckland rugby league team players New Zealand Māori rugby league team players New Zealand national rugby league team players New Zealand rugby league players Ponsonby Ponies players Rugby league hookers Rugby league players from Thames, New Zealand Rugby league second-rows