David Evans

David Alexander Evans (4 October 1886 – 12 October 1940) was a New Zealand dual-code international rugby player who represented New Zealand in both rugby union and rugby league.

Playing career Rugby union Evans began his career playing rugby union and represented Hawke's Bay 19 times from 1906. He made the 1910 New Zealand tour of Australia and played in the 0–11 Test defeat by Australia at the Sydney Cricket Ground on 27 June 1910, becoming the Hawke's Bay's third representative.

Rugby league While in Australia, Evans had been impressed by the rugby league code and, in 1911, he was instrumental in helping to persuade three Hawke's Bay clubs – Clive, Ahuriri and Kia Toa – to switch en masse to rugby league. He played 5 matches for New Zealand on the tour.

He played for the City club in the inaugural Hawke's Bay rugby league competition in 1911 playing 11 matches and 1 match for a combined City-Kia Ora team against Clive-Ahuriri for charity. In the same season he played three matches for Hawke's Bay (two against Wanganui and one against Auckland). He also played a match for the Napier team against Dannevirke. In 1912, he played for Hawke's Bay against Wellington and then against the touring New South Wales rugby league team.