Born: December 11, 1940
Died: October 28, 2019
Test record: 7 Tests (1961, 1963-64) – 1 try (3 points)
Tours: 1961 tour of Britain and France, 1963 tour of Australia

Bruising centre/five-eighth Ken McCracken found his niche on the wing in the Test arena, playing seven Tests on the flank for New Zealand during the first half of the 1960s.

Named in the New Zealand Schoolboys team in 1955, McCracken was just 20 when chosen for the Kiwis’ 1961-62 tour of Britain and France from Eastern United. He made a modest 11 appearances – debuting against Castleford-Featherstone at centre and lining up at five-eighth against Wakefield – but broke into the Test side on the French leg of the tour, replacing the injured Tom Hadfield on the wing for the last two Tests.

McCracken was overlooked for the 1962 home series against the Lions but starred on the 1963 tour of Australia, scoring eight tries in 11 games. He came back into the Test side for the second clash with Australia and scored a try in a 16-13 victory at Lang Park, before holding his place for the 14-0 loss in the SCG decider.

Later that year, he featured in the centres in New Zealand’s 4-3 loss to South Africa that was not awarded Test status.

McCracken, who had joined Ellerslie, was back on the wing for the 1964 home series against France, playing all three Tests in the cleansweep. The Auckland and North Island rep finished his club career with Ponsonby.

His son, Jarrod, became a Kiwis mainstay and a Australian premiership star during the 1990s.