Rugby League South Africa attempted to counteract any of the difficulties its identical twin had in the face of stiff English competition and hired former Wigan, Easts and Australian coach, Dave Brown, for three months. The Lions defeated the South Africans rugby league representative side convincingly. Fortunately, not all was lost as the British later admitting that the South Africans where skilled, only lacking in tactics, specifically defensive, which had lost them the game. Each organisation went on to make separate applications for affiliation with the International Board. The RLIF must have known that the decision to grant one league affiliation with the board would inevitably lead to the collapse of the other and thus such a move would result in loss of clubs and fans. In an effort to protect the game in South Africa, the international board put forth a proposal to both parties that would effectively see the two league's merged. In reality, the RLIF gave the NRL its death notice, who had little choice but to turn over its clubs to the South African Rugby League as it seemed the RLIF now favoured the SARL over itself. To make the deal more appealing to the NRL, the international board also proposed that the NRL clubs founders be reimbursed for any initial investments through future NRL club profits in the SARL. South African rugby league as it seemed, had a future. Part of this future, it was hoped, was that the nine teams located in the Johannesburg area would launch the 1963 season. At the time when the International Board had made its proposal for the combined governing body for rugby league in South Africa it also stated the significance an invitation from Australia to the South Africans to tour. The Australian board of control also took on the International Boards proposal and in an obvious expression of their interest in seeing rugby league exceed in South Africa, offered the invitational side 65 percent of gross gates and a guaranteed $45,000. As was a tradition already set down in South African rugby league history, only more could go wrong, and it did. The visitors where totally out-played by the Australian's, even taking into account the early injuries sustained by the South Africans. It was obvious the skill and their knowledge of tactics (particularly of the forwards) had not improved and so it set a deep decline for South African rugby league. In December 1988 when Widnes and Wigan were both at the top of the Rugby League tree in England, a chance meeting took place in the South African Irish pub called Fibber Maghees next to Kyalami Motor Racing circuit. Dave Southern from Widnes and Tony Barker from Wigan were the individuals the conversation went something like this DS to TB - I contacted Harry Edgar from Open Rugby about a World Development Officer who could help establish League in SA, he wrote back to say that no such position existed and even if it did SA would not be welcome due to the current political regime in power - Apartheid - basically I felt that I was being penalised for being in the country and trying to promote my game.