HISTORY OF RUGBY (Chapter 4)

FIRST INTERNATIONAL GAME
The first international rugby football game resulted from a challenge issued in the sporting weekly Bell's Weekly on 8 December 1870 and signed by the captains of five Scottish clubs, inviting any team "selected from the whole of England" to a 20-a-side game to be played under the Rugby rules. The game was played at Raeburn Place, Edinburgh, the home ground of Edinburgh Academicals, on 27 March 1871. The English team wore white with a red rose and the Scots brown[6] with a thistle. Three international matches played according to Association Football rules had already taken place at the Oval, London, in 1870 and 1871.
The team representing England was captained by Frederick Stokes of Blackheath, that representing Scotland was led by Francis Moncrieff; the umpire was Hely Hutchinson Almond, headmaster of Loretto College. England played in all white, with a red rose on their shirts; Scotland wore brown shirts and white cricket flannels.
The game, played over two halves, each of 50 minutes, was won by Scotland, who scored a goal (a try followed by a successful conversion kick). Both sides also scored a try, but these did not count as the conversion kicks were missed.[7]
In a return match at the Kennington Oval, London, in 1872, England were the winners