Dream Team: Adrian Flavin – former London Irish and Connacht hooker
2. Trevor Leota – I played against him quite a few times and I also loved watching him. He was a huge tackler but also had great skills to go with it.
3. Census Johnston – Another top scrummager, but also fleet-footed with good hands. He is as likely to pop up on the wing as he is to carry a short ball.
4. Martin Johnson – Johnno was always tough to play against and led by example. He went about business with actions rather than words and inspired those around him.
5. Paul O’Connell – Another great leader who rarely has a bad game. He has been at the top for so long and continues to deliver which is remarkable.
6. Francois Louw – Quite simply a fantastic player. He very rarely makes a bad decision and is Mr Consistent for both club and country. An absolute pest at the breakdown while also being a great ball carrier. Bath are very lucky to have him.
7. George Smith – A classy player who’s been at the top for so long. Huge influence in every team he’s played in.
8. Jerry Collins – He could play across the back row and reputation goes before him as a huge hitter and great ball carrier.
9. Robert Jones – He has stuck in my head as one of the best scrum-halves ever since the ’89 Lions Battle of Brisbane. A tough nugget who had a great pass and kept the opposition honest with his running ability.
10. Carlos Spencer – The mercurial, unpredictable No.10 was a coach’s nightmare some of the time but equally he could conjure things from nothing. Another who was great to watch.
11. Jonah Lomu – Absolute beast of a man who redefined how wingers played the game – and to that end how modern rugby‘s played.
12. Philippe Sella – He had electric pace and a great step and was part of a great French back-line before bringing that form to Saracens. A cool character but he had that Gallic temperament that sparked every now and again which was great to see!
13. Brian O’Driscoll – Has been the best player in the world for some time. His form in the summer justified an amazing feat of four Lions tours – not common in the professional game!
14. Rupeni Caucau – The light version was amazing to watch and the heavy version wasn’t too bad either! His broken field running was breathtaking and he could score tries for fun.
15. Jarrod Cunningham – Quite possibly the best player I have played with. He could create opportunities that most players couldn’t even dream of and most of the time they were made from nothing. He is sorely missed but will be remembered in the hearts of many players and fans.
