Born: January 28, 1898 - Auckland
Died: September 17, 1947 - Auckland
Test record: 7 Tests (1920, 1924, 1926-27) - 3 tries (9 points)
Tours: 1919 tour of Australia, 1925 tour of Australia, 1926-27 tour of Britain
Auckland forward Ernie Herring played 46 games for New Zealand from 1919-27, including seven Tests - all against England.
The former Auckland rugby union representative switched codes and was a 21-year-old New Zealand tourist to Australia in 1919 from Grafton Athletic. He made a tryscoring debut against Tamworth among six appearances on tour.
The following season, after moving to the Maritime club, Herring played his first Test in the series opener against England - a 31-7 loss in Auckland. He was replaced by Eric Bennett for the second Test.
After a stint with Marist Old Boys, Herring returned to Grafton Athletic and earned a recall to the New Zealand team for the 1924 home series against England. In a 2-1 triumph, he scored tries in the first Test at Carlaw Park and the third in Dunedin.
Herring scored the first try in the inaugural interisland match in 1925, then played four games on New Zealand's tour of Australia (no Tests were scheduled) and turned out for his country in two matches against Queensland on home soil later that year.
The 1926-27 tour of Britain was overshadowed by a player strike, with seven forwards refusing to play in a stand-off with management. That resulted in Herring playing in 30 of the 34 matches - more than any player in the squad - almost exclusively at hooker.
Herring featured in all three Tests against England, scoring a try in the last encounter at Headingley, which would prove to be his last appearance for New Zealand. He finished his club career with Newton Rangers in 1928 and was later involved in the formation of the Avondale club.