John Walter (2 August 1904 – 25 April 1966) was an

All Black 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, ...

and

Taranaki Taranaki is a region in the west of New Zealand's North Island. It is named after its main geographical feature, the stratovolcano of Mount Taranaki, also known as Mount Egmont. The main centre is the city of New Plymouth. The New Plymouth Dist ...

rugby football Rugby football is the collective name for the team sports of rugby union and rugby league. Canadian football and, to a lesser extent, American football were once considered forms of rugby football, but are seldom now referred to as such. The ...

representative in the 1920s and 1930s.

Biography

John Walter was born in

Toko Toko is a small rural settlement 10 kilometres east of Stratford, New Zealand, at the intersection of East Road ( State Highway 43) and Toko Road. It is located on a railway, the Stratford–Okahukura Line, the western portion of which was ope ...

on 2 August 1904. Playing for the Stratford club, he was selected for his first game for Taranaki in 1924. In 1925 he was selected for the All Black tour of Australia, where, as a 20-year-old, he played in seven of the eight matches and scored four tries. He looked to have a promising career ahead of him, however the competition as loose forward was too great and Walter lost his place. Between 1924 and 1932 Walter played 85 matches for Taranaki, and played in the combined Taranaki-

Wanganui Whanganui (; ), also spelled Wanganui, is a city in the Manawatū-Whanganui region of New Zealand. The city is located on the west coast of the North Island at the mouth of the Whanganui River, New Zealand's longest navigable waterway. Whangan ...

side against the touring

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

team in 1925. In 1931 he led Taranaki to an 11–10 victory over the touring Australian side. John Walter died on 25 April 1966 in Stratford. His nephew Alan Smith, also playing out of the Stratford club, was a Taranaki representative and an All Black lock in 1967–70.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Walter, Jack 1904 births 1966 deaths New Zealand international rugby union players Rugby union players from Stratford, New Zealand People educated at New Plymouth Boys' High School Taranaki rugby union players Rugby union flankers