Born: October 5, 1901 – Auckland
Died: September 29, 1977 – Auckland
Test record: 5 Tests (1932, 1935) – 2 tries (6 points)

Legendary All Black midfield back Bert Cooke made a mighty impact on rugby league in New Zealand after switching codes in 1932.

The Aucklander scored 38 tries in 44 games for the All Blacks – making eight Test appearances – and establishing himself as a great of the era on the 1924-25 ‘Invincibles’ tour, where he and fullback icon George Nepia (who would also later become a Kiwi) were the star performers.

Cooke had subsequent provincial stints with Hawke’s Bay, Wairarapa and Wellington, and last represented the All Blacks in 1930 before joining Richmond Rovers in the Auckland Rugby League competition.

Six weeks after joining rugby league’s ranks, the 30-year-old scored three tries for North Island in the 1932 interisland fixture and was quickly drafted into the New Zealand Test team for the home series against England.

Cooke scored a try on debut at five-eighth, then featured in the remaining two Tests at centre and dotted down in the third encounter. He also represented Auckland against the tourists.

A major drawcard domestically, Cooke was chosen as Kiwis captain for their next assignment three years later: the 1935 home series against the Dave Brown-led Australians.

Cooke lined up at fullback in the first two Tests – a 22-14 win in the opener and a 29-8 loss in the second clash – but an injury suffered in the latter ruled him out of the decider.

Hanging up the boots at the end of the season, Cooke coached Ponsonby and Auckland in 1936. He joined the Royal New Zealand Air Force after the outbreak of World War II and returned to rugby union for the service team in 1940. The story of his later life was a tragic one, banned from working on the Auckland waterfront after siding with strikers during the 1951 dispute, suffering from dementia and dying in a mental hospital in 1977.

The great rugby writer T.P. McLean wrote: ‘Rugby rejected Bert Cooke; league did not. To the end of his days he and his wife were always the guests of the New Zealand Rugby Football League for the big games at Carlaw Park. He was peerless, one of the finest inside backs New Zealand football had seen.’

Cooke’s contribution to both games was recognised when he was one of the inaugural New Zealand Sport Hall of Fame inductees in 1990.