George Maber (2 November 1869 – 17 December 1894) 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 ...

in 1894. His position of choice was

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People * Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Sm ...

. Maber did not play in any test matches as New Zealand did not play their first until 1903.

Career

Maber was described as "wiry built". He played only two seasons of 1st-class rugby. Although born in

Kaiapoi Kaiapoi is a town in the Waimakariri District of the Canterbury region, in the South Island of New Zealand. The town is located approximately 17 kilometres north of central Christchurch, close to the mouth of the Waimakariri River. It is con ...

, Maber played all of his club rugby for the Petone club in Wellington. He was in the

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

provincial side between 1893 and 1894. After playing for his province against the touring New South Wales side in 1894, Maber was selected for the All Blacks to play in the unofficial "test" match which was also played on the tour. The match was lost 8-6. This would be his only All Black appearance. Because of his excellent showing in 1894 Maber received a trophy from the Petone club.

Personal and death

Surprisingly Maber left for Australia. He then became severely ill after developing

typhoid Typhoid fever, also known as typhoid, is a disease caused by '' Salmonella'' serotype Typhi bacteria. Symptoms vary from mild to severe, and usually begin six to 30 days after exposure. Often there is a gradual onset of a high fever over several ...

. He died in Coolgardie, Western Australia at the age of just 25. Coolgardie, at the time was a major mining site for gold. Although it was more than likely he left because of the gold digging no evidence has ever been found to indicate this was the reason for the sudden move, which ultimately ended his promising career. He was buried at Coolgardie Cemetery, in the Wesleyan section. Maber may have changed his name to John, and is suggested to have died on 18 December.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Maber, George New Zealand international rugby union players New Zealand rugby union players People from Kaiapoi New Zealand expatriates in Australia 1869 births 1894 deaths Infectious disease deaths in Western Australia Rugby union forwards Rugby union players from Canterbury, New Zealand