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

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 112 ...

player who represented

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

. 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 national rugby league team, New Zealand. Background He is the grand-nephew of fellow international Sam Lowrie.Coffey ...

, also represented New Zealand in rugby league.

Personal life

Sam Lowrie was born on September 6, 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. It is responsible for rugby league in the region, including both club and school rugby league. It began in 1910 when the fi ...

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

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

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 New Zealand Māori rugby league team is a rugby league representative side made up of New Zealand Māori players. The side represents the New Zealand Māori Rugby league. Like its union counterpart, the rugby league team previously competed in ...

. 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, ...

, and toured Australia in 1925, a tour where no test matches were played. He retired in 1927 after fracturing his jaw. He played in 149 games for Ponsonby between 1914 and 1927, out of a possible 196.

References

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