Australia national rugby union team - Origins

In 1883 the Southern Rugby Football Union (renamed the New South Wales Rugby Union in 1892) toured New Zealand becoming the first team in the world to tour overseas. The New Zealand national team toured New South Wales in 1884 — defeating New South Wales in all three matches, and winning all nine matches on tour.

The first tour by a British team took place in 1888. A British Isles team toured the Australian colonies and New Zealand, though no Test matches were played. Although they had representatives from all four home nations, the players were drawn mainly from England and the Scottish borders. The tour was not sanctioned by the Rugby Football Union as it was organised by entrepreneurs and thus contravened the union's strict regulations pertaining to professionalism.

In 1899 the first officially sanctioned British Isles team toured Australia. Four Tests were played between Australia and the British Isles (three in Sydney and one in Brisbane). Although all called "Australia", the teams were a representative of the colony in which the match was played. Accordingly the team wore the blue of New South Wales when playing in Sydney, and the maroon of Queensland when playing in Brisbane. The tourists won all their games except the first, which was played at the Sydney Cricket Ground and won 13–3 by Australia.