5 greatest rugby union players of all time
Yesterday at 09:46 AM
1: Jonah Lomu
The first well-known global rugby union superstar. Jonah Lomu was an international winger who played for New Zealand between 1994 and 2002. He scored an astonishing 37 tries in 63 international appearances. He was a giant winger who crashed over opposition players to score tries. For a big man, he was fast and agile. He was hard to tackle with legs like tree trunks. Lomu had it all speed, power, agility, and determination. In the 1995 World Cup, Lomu scored fifteen tries in eleven appearances. A record at that time. A rugby union sensation and a real fan favorite around the world. Lomu retired from international rugby in 2007 due to a chronic kidney disorder. Unfortunately, Jonah Lomu suffered a heart attack on the 18th of November 2015. He passed away at the age of 40. Jonah Lomu was one of the greatest players in the history of rugby union.
2: Dan Carter
Born on the fifth of March in 1982 Daniel William Carter played for the All Blacks team between the years 2003 and 2015. He scored an amazing 1,598 points in his stellar career. He is indeed the highest scorer in test match history in rugby union. Many experts believe he is the greatest fly-half to play the game of rugby. He was named International Player of the Year in 2005,2012 and 2015. He played most of his games for the Crusaders from Christchurch New Zealand. He was in the Rugby World Cup-winning teams of 2011 and 2015. He played 112 test games for his country and scored 29 tries,293 conversions,281 penalties and 8 drop goals. He retired in 2021 and will be remembered as a point-scoring legend of his era. A true master of the game.
3: Richie McCaw
A veteran with a 14-year career and the most decorated All-Black captain of all time. Richie McCaw played a staggering 148 test caps for New Zealand and broke numerous records during his influential and very successful term at the helm of the great All Blacks team. He was born on the 31st of December 1980. He was the first player to win 100 tests and also the first player to play 100 caps for his country.
He won 2 World Cups and seven tri-nations series plus 8 Bledisloe cups. He scored 135 points for his country and truly was the general of the New Zealand team. He was awarded the player of the decade in (2011-2020). He also owns the record for the most wins as a player (131) and the most wins as a test captain (110). The record-breaking captain was a versatile genius on the field and played both openside flankers and went on to play blindside flankers as well. In 2004 he was appointed the captaincy of the New Zealand side and led them for 110 games. A true genius of rugby union.
4: Antoine Dupont.
Dupont is a modern-day French international. He's the captain of the French side and his position is scrum-half. He is regarded as 1 of the modern-day greats of rugby union. He was born 15th of November 1996. Dupont has won the World Rugby Mens Player of the Year Award in 2021 and the World Rugby Mens Sevens Player of the Year in 2024. He also captained the French side to the gold medal in the 2024 Summer Olympic Games in the men's rugby sevens. Dupont has won 9 major championships in his career and is expected to be a hall-of-fame player of the future.
5: John Eales.
Born on June 27th, 1970, in Brisbane City Australia. His last 5 games for Australia were outstanding. He was the most successful captain in Australian rugby union history. He played from 1991-2001 and was a towering 200cm or ( 6ft 7in). He played lock for Australia and won multiple Rugby World Cups for his country. He scored 173 points during his career and captained the Wallabies 86 times more than any other player. He played in the 1991 and 1999 World Cup-winning Wallaby side. A captain who lead by example and a true champion.
