While it's commonly known that Westland High School (formerly Hokitika District High School) boasts a famous All Black captain in Ron King as a former student, what's less known, as they also claim a former Wallaby with 22 test caps to his name.

Lawrence (Laurie) Wogan was born in Hokitika on the 10th of September, 1890, one of six brothers, and while two of Laurie's brothers would go on to play first class rugby in New Zealand, Samuel playing for Wellington between 1922 and 1924, and Neil for West Coast in 1925, Laurie would go on to make his name in representative rugby in Australia.

As a teenager, Laurie followed another brother Rupert to Wellington to play club rugby, but it was in Australia that he'd make his name in the game. Wogan's great niece Faye York, recalls the events that lead to Laurie moving to Australia, the move leading to a much-celebrated rugby career.  "Great Uncle Laurie told me his story of going to Australia, and how he had been working in an isolated area with provisions arriving wrapped in newspaper. On a page of the wrapping read that the Australian rugby team would be touring North America in 1912, so he thought he would go to Australia and get in that team, which he did". 

Moving to Sydney, Wogan played rugby for Glebe, Glebe-Balmain and Western Suburbs sides, and was selected in the New South Wales team to play Queensland as a centre, on August the 3rd 1912. His appearance would be the first of his 37 Caps for New South Wales, and such was his ability, he'd cement his place in the team for the next 12 years. 

His impressive form in 1912 would lead to his inclusion in the Wallaby side to tour the U.S.A and Canada and while he didn't earn a test cap on the tour he would play in 9 of the 16 games, with the Wallabies winning 11 of the games. 

The team travelled on the S.S Moana from Sydney to the U.S.A, and for the first four days of the voyage, a number of the players had to be confined to their cabins with sea-sickness. The sides results on tour however, may have been affected by the socialising that took place, rather than any ill effects from the voyage. The squad was billeted out in college fraternity houses in California, with Wallaby three-quarter Bob Adamson quoted as saying "We were never in bed. That was the trouble. I've never had such a time in my life".

In 1913, Wogan was again selected for the Wallabies, this time on the tour to New Zealand, where he'd make his test debut, the first of his 22 test caps, in the first test against the All Blacks in Wellington on September 6th.

Wogan would play against another West Coaster in the 30-5 loss to the All Blacks that day, with the Kohinoor R.F.C's Harry Atkinson making his debut at lock for the All Blacks, a game which was to be the West Coast representative's only test. Wogan would go on to play in the next two tests against the All Blacks, as well as the 6 other provincial tour games. 

He'd meet the All Blacks again in 1914, this time in Australia, where he'd play in all three tests, but with the outbreak of World War One, his international career had to be put on hold, as all International Rugby was suspended until 1920. In 1919 however, Wogan played for the famous Australian Imperial Force (AIF) rugby team against the service teams of New Zealand, South Africa and the British Army.  

In 1920, Wogan's representative career would resume, playing for New South Wales in three matches against the touring All Blacks, and these games for New South Wales are now recognised as tests matches for their players. He again represented New South Wales in 1921, playing three matches against the touring Springboks, with these matches also now being recognised as test matches for the New South Wales players. 

In the August of 1921 he was selected for his second tour of New Zealand, this time with the New South Wales side. Wogan playing in the solitary test match, a 17-0 victory against what effectively was a second string All Blacks at Lancaster Park, while he also played in eight provincial games on tour.  A highlight of the tour for Wogan, would have no doubt have been the trip back to the West Coast, for the August 31st fixture against the Thomas McIntosh captained West Coast side, where Wogan was a try scorer for his side in a 26-11 victory at Victoria Park in Greymouth. 

Over the next three years, Wogan would earn further test caps for New South Wales, including three against the All Blacks in Australia in 1922, as well as two against the New Zealand Maori team in 1923, and a further three caps in 1924, against the touring All Blacks in Sydney, with all of these matches being granted test match status for the New South Wales players. The third test against the All Blacks on July 16th at the Sydney Showgrounds, would be Wogan's final representative match before retiring. 

In total, Wogan would play a total of 22 test matches, 16 of which while playing for New South Wales, and 6 for the Wallabies, with his first-class career spanning from 1912 to 1924, and if it wasn't for WWI, the number of test matches Wogan played would no doubt have been a lot higher than 22 tests. 

Outside of Rugby, Wogan and his wife Nell were long-time residents of Sydney's western suburb of Burwood, with Wogan employed by New South Wales Rail as a paymaster at the time of his retirement.

Lawrence William Wogan, a West Coaster from Hokitika who by chance saw a newspaper that alerted him to the 1912 Wallabies tour of the U.S.A and Canada, setting in motion what would prove to be a remarkable rugby career, passed away in Sydney on the 28th of August, 1979, aged 88.