Ernie Wiggs
New Zealand international rugby league footballer and coach
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ernest David Wiggs (1940 or 1941 – 10 October 2014) was a New Zealand rugby league player who represented New Zealand in the 1968 World Cup.
Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Ernest David Wiggs | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | 17 December 1942 New Zealand | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Died | 10 October 2014 (aged 71) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Playing information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Wing, Prop, Lock | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Coaching information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Source: [1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Playing career
Wiggs played for Otahuhu in the Auckland Rugby League competition. An Auckland representative, Wiggs was selected for New Zealand in 1964 for a Test against France at Prop. He was then selected to play Great Britain at Lock in 1966 before being included in the 1968 World Cup squad as a Winger. Wiggs also won the New Zealand Rugby League's player of the year award that year.[2]
Between 1967 and 1970 he won the Painter Rosebowl Trophy four times as the leading points scorer in the Auckland Rugby League competition.[3] Wiggs was also part of the 1969 Auckland side that defeated Australia 15–14.[4] Wiggs again won the trophy in 1973, however by then he was playing for the Mount Albert Lions.[citation needed]
Wiggs later coached both the Otahuhu Leopards and the Mangere East Hawks.[3] In 1978 the Wiggs-coached Hawks made the Fox Memorial grand final, losing to Otahuhu.[5]
Wiggs died in 2014,[6] and he was buried at Waikumete Cemetery.[7]