After a preliminary tour of New Zealand in 1888 , the side travelled to England via Melbourne and Suez . The Māori players initially provoked curiosity due to their race , but the British press subsequently expressed some surprise that the side was not as " Māori " as they had expected . Playing their first match , on 3 October against Surrey , the team was subjected to a taxing match schedule , and frequently played three matches per week . Their early matches included a 9 – 0 loss to Middlesex , but their form improved in November , when they won 10 of their 13 matches . The team played its first international match on 1 December , against Ireland , and won 13 – 4 . This was followed by a win over one of the strongest English county teams , Yorkshire , and a 5 – 0 defeat against the Wales national team . By January 1889 the Natives had played 36 matches in less than three months , winning 22 of them ; they had spent most of their time in the north of England , where the playing strength was strongest and the crowds largest and most profitable .