Colin James Loader (10 March 1931 – 19 June 2021) was a New Zealand

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...

player who represented the

All Blacks The New Zealand national rugby union team, commonly known as the All Blacks ( mi, Ōpango), represents New Zealand in men's international rugby union, which is considered the country's national sport. The team won the Rugby World Cup in 1987 ...

between 1953 and 1954. Born in

Dannevirke Dannevirke ( "Earthworks (archaeology), work of the Danes", a reference to Danevirke; mi, Taniwaka, lit= or ''Tāmaki-nui-a-Rua'', the area where the town is), is a rural service town in the Manawatū-Whanganui region of the North Island, New ...

in 1931, Loader was educated at

Hutt Valley High School Hutt Valley High School is a State school, state coeducational secondary school located in central Lower Hutt, New Zealand. A total of students from Years 9 to 13 (ages 12 to 18) attend the school as of making the school one of the largest i ...

, where he was a member of the 1st XV between 1948 and 1950. He first represented Wellington from the University club, but switched to the Hutt club in 1952. A second five-eighth and centre three-quarter, Loader was selected for the 1953–54 All Black tour to the British Isles, France and North America. He played 16 matches on the tour, including four

test matches Test match in some sports refers to a sporting contest between national representative teams and may refer to: * Test cricket * Test match (indoor cricket) * Test match (rugby union) * Test match (rugby league) * Test match (association football) ...

, scoring three tries in all. He made his international debut in Dublin against

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

on 9 January 1954. He played all four of his test matches at the centre three-quarter position. He did not play for the All Blacks again and retired from rugby at the end of the 1955 season. He later coached at the Hutt club. Loader died in

Dunedin Dunedin ( ; mi, Ōtepoti) is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from , the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Th ...

on 19 June 2021.

References

1931 births 2021 deaths New Zealand international rugby union players New Zealand rugby union coaches New Zealand rugby union players People educated at Hutt Valley High School Rugby union centres Rugby union players from Dannevirke Wellington rugby union players {{NewZealand-rugbyunion-bio-1930s-stub