2. Tom Youngs – The way he plays the game is something to behold. His commitment around the park is second to none. You can always give him the ball and he’ll make yards.
3. Julian White – One of the senior players at the club when I broke into the team and, although he plays in a completely different position to me, he was very good at taking me under his wing. Great if things kicked off too.
4. Courtney Lawes – A huge hitter who puts the fear of god into fly-halves when he’s on the pitch. I remember that hit on Toby Flood in the Premiership final a few years back. Great to see someone with such commitment.
5. Brad Thorn – He’d be my captain. His experience and leadership were huge for us this season. You need someone to hit the rucks hard in your team and he’s great at that.
6. Samu Manoa – Another huge ball carrier. Incredibly hard to take down and even when you do tackle him he can offload. He has that x-factor.
7. Lewis Moody – Watching his commitment even in training was crazy for me as a youngster. He broke his ankle playing touch rugby at training once. A great leader too.
8. Henry Tuilagi – We played Perpignan a few years back and he’s the biggest man I’ve ever seen on a rugby pitch. Makes Manu looks small.
9. Ruan Pienaar – World class at controlling the pace of the game and probably the best kicking scrum-half in the world. Always very cool-headed when we played Ulster and that’s something I admire.
10. Charlie Hodgson – Incredible kicker of the ball but also great to play in the line and manages to find holes in the defence through his passing.
11. Bryan Habana – Well renowned for his pace and killer instinct. He loves an interception too.
12. Matt Giteau – You know what you’re going to get from him. He’s got everything. Can play anywhere across the backline.
13. Manu Tuilagi – Hugely disruptive. You can always give him the ball and he’ll do something with it. We missed him massively this season but we’re looking to have him back next season hopefully.
14. Sinoti Sinoti – Incredibly hard to tackle because of his great feet. Greases his legs to make it even harder.
15. Geordan Murphy – One of the most skilful players in the Premiership. He was a great mentor to me and he’s becoming a very fine coach.