Born: May 31, 1898 – Nelson
Died: October 31, 1960 – Ngāruawāhia
Test record: 4 Tests (1919-20) – 0 points
Tours: 1921 tour of Australia

Highly-rated forward Nelson Bass represented New Zealand from 1919-21, including four Test matches.

After playing for Auckland Province against the Australian tourists in 1919, Bass was called up to debut for New Zealand in the fourth Test, a 32-2 loss at the Domain Cricket Ground in Auckland.

The 22-year-old locked the scrum in all three Tests against England in 1920, as well as scoring a try in Auckland’s 24-16 upset of the visitors.

Bass toured Australia with the New Zealand side in 1921 and made five appearances (no Tests were played), showing his versatility by featuring against Ipswich at five-eighth.

Though he did not play for his country again, Bass represented Auckland, Auckland Province, Hawke’s Bay/Auckland and an Australasian combination against the star-studded NSW tourists in 1922. He was also a tryscoring standout in Auckland’s 1922 and 1924 three-match series against Australian Universities, and dotted down against England again for Auckland in 1924.

Bass played his club football for Ponsonby, Marist and City in Auckland, and also for the Hamilton club in the Waikato competition. He was in the North Island line-up for the inaugural interisland fixture in 1925.