Top Ten Rugby Players
Daniel William Carter ONZM (born 5 March 1982) is a New Zealand rugby union player. Carter plays for Racing 92 and played for New Zealand's national team, the All Blacks. He is the highest point scorer in Test match rugby, and is considered by many experts as the greatest ever first-five eighth (fly-half) in the history of the game.
1 Richie McCaw Winning Career Stats. McCaw’s career statistics are unrivalled both in number of appearances and success as a player. While rugby is a team game and no individual can take the credit for wins, McCaw has undoubtably played his part for the Crusaders and All Blacks and has earned his shirt for both as an all-roud talent.
Beauden John Barrett (born 27 May 1991) is a New Zealand rugby union player. He plays in the fly-half position for Taranaki and the Wellington based Super Rugby side, the Hurricanes, and for New Zealand's national team the All Blacks. He was a key member of the 2015 Rugby World Cup winning team.
Jonah Tali Lomu MNZM (12 May 1975 – 18 November 2015) was a New Zealand rugby union player. He became the youngest ever All Black when he played his first international in 1994 at the age of 19 years and 45 days. Playing on the wing Lomu finished his international career with 63 caps and 37 tries.
Brian Gerard O'Driscoll (born 21 January 1979) is an Irish former professional rugby union player. He played at outside centre for the Irish provincial team Leinster and for Ireland. He captained Ireland from 2003 until 2012, and captained the British and Irish Lions for their 2005 tour of New Zealand.
Israel Folau (Tongan: Isileli Folau; born 3 April 1989) is an Australian professional rugby union footballer who plays for the Waratahs in Super Rugby. He has previously played professional rugby league and Australian rules football.
Jonathan Peter Wilkinson, CBE (born 25 May 1979) is an English former rugby union player who represented England and the British and Irish Lions. He rose to prominence from 2001 to 2003, before and during the 2003 Rugby World Cup, and is widely acknowledged as one of the best rugby union players of all time.
Brodie Allan Retallick (born 31 May 1991) is a New Zealand rugby union footballer. His regular playing position is lock. He was a key member of 2015 Rugby World Cup winning team.
Bryan Habana will go down as one of South Africa's greatest rugby players before and after unity, and a model professional who was a great role model for kids from all walks of life.
Owen Andrew Farrell (born 24 September 1991) is an English professional rugby union player, currently playing for Aviva Premiership side Saracens, and as the Captain of the English international rugby team.
Shane Mark Williams MBE (born 26 February 1977) is a Welsh rugby union player most famous for his long and successful tenure as a wing for the Ospreys and the Wales national team. He can also play scrum-half.
Oghenemaro Miles Itoje (born 28 October 1994), known professionally as Maro Itoje, is an English rugby union player, who plays as a lock or as a blindside flanker for English Premiership club Saracens and the England national team.
Jonathan Sexton is an Irish rugby union player. He plays for Leinster Rugby and Ireland. He is regarded by critics as one of the best outhalfs to ever play professional rugby.
Kieran Read (born 26 October 1985) is the current captain of the All Blacks, New Zealand's national rugby union team. He also plays for the Crusaders in the Super Rugby competition. He was the IRB Player of the Year in 2013 and a key member of 2011 and 2015 Rugby World Cup winning teams, becoming one of only 20 dual Rugby World Cup winners.
Eddie Jones (rugby union) Eddie Jones (born 30 January 1960) is an Australian professional rugby union coach and former player. He is the current head coach of the England national rugby union team.
Sergio Parisse (Italian pronunciation: [ˈsɛrdʒo paˈrisse]; born 12 September 1983) is an Italian rugby union player. He currently plays for French club Stade Français and is the current captain of Italy. Parisse is Italy's most-capped player, and currently 5th most-capped player worldwide.
Sonny William 'Sonny Bill' Williams (born 3 August 1985) is a New Zealand rugby union and rugby league footballer and a heavyweight boxer. He is only the second person to represent New Zealand in rugby union after first playing for the country in rugby league, and is one of only twenty players to have won two rugby union World Cups.
Martin Osborne Johnson CBE (born 9 March 1970) is an English former rugby union player who represented and captained England and Leicester. He is best known for captaining England to victory in the 2003 Rugby World Cup.
Julian Savea (born 7 August 1990) is a New Zealand rugby union player and All Black. He currently plays for the Hurricanes in Super Rugby, and is current vice-captain of the Wellington Lions in the mitre 10 cup. He has also represented New Zealand at sevens and at under-20 level. His position of choice is wing.
David Pocock (born 23 April 1988) is an Australian rugby union player. He is an openside flanker, vice captain of the Brumbies.
Paul Jeremiah O'Connell (born 20 October 1979) is a retired Irish rugby union player. When he stopped playing, he was Ireland's third most-capped player (108) and the eighteenth most-capped international player in rugby union history.
Stuart Hogg (born 24 June 1992) is a Scottish rugby union player who has more than fifty caps for Scotland and plays for Glasgow Warriors. He plays full-back. In the Six Nations, Hogg was twice named player of the tournament- in 2016 and 2017. Hogg toured with the British and Irish Lions in 2013 and 2017, but 2017 tour was cut short due to an injury.
Eben Etzebeth (born 29 October 1991) is a South African international rugby player. He currently plays for the Stormers in Super Rugby. His regular playing position is as a number 4 lock.
Matthew James 'Matt' Giteau (born 29 September 1982) is an Australian rugby union player who now plays for the Japanese Top League side Suntory Sungoliath. During his career he won 100 test caps for Australia. He was reselected to the national team after several years' absence under rule known as Giteau's law. Giteau is a utility back.
Ma'a Allan Nonu MNZM (/ ˈ m ɑː ʔ ɑː ˈ n ɒ n uː /; born 21 May 1982) is a professional rugby union player from New Zealand who currently plays for Toulon. He plays in the inside centre, but can also cover outside centre and wing.
Early rugby career. David Campese played his first game of rugby union for the Queanbeyan Whites in 1979 in fourth grade. During 1980 he was promoted to first grade. After two years of first-grade rugby, in 1981 Campese was promoted to the Australian under-21 squad to tour New Zealand that was beaten 37-7.
Warren David Gatland, OBE (born 17 September 1963) is a New Zealand rugby union coach, currently the head coach of Wales. Since becoming coach in 2007, Wales have won three Six Nations titles, including two Grand Slams, and reached the semi-final of the 2011 World Cup.
Conor Murray is an Irish rugby union player who plays for Munster in the Pro14 and European Rugby Champions Cup. He plays as a scrum-half and represents Garryowen Football Club in Division 1A of the All-Ireland League. Internationally, Murray has represented Ireland and the British and Irish Lions.
John Philip "Bakkies" Botha, (born 22 September 1979 in Newcastle, KwaZulu-Natal Province) is a South African rugby union player who played as a lock for the Springboks until 22 November 2014.
Rugby career. Brooke was a founding player of the Southerners Sports Club (Bangkok), playing in the inaugural side in 1994 against Taradale RFC. In 1995 he published his autobiography Zinny: The Zinzan Brooke story, written with Alex Veysey. Brooke is considered one of the best number eights to have ever played for the All Blacks.
Stephen Leigh Halfpenny is a Wales and British and Irish Lions international rugby union player. Halfpenny is the third highest record points scorer for Wales after Neil Jenkins and Stephen Jones. He currently plays club rugby for Welsh club Scarlets who play in the Pro14.
Michael Hooper (born 29 October 1991 in Sydney, Australia) is an Australian rugby union player who is the captain for the Waratahs in Super Rugby, the Sydney Rays in the National Rugby Championship and newly-appointed captain of the national side the Wallabies.[2] His playing position is openside flanker.
Sébastien Chabal (born 8 December 1977) is a retired French rugby union player. He played number eight and lock professionally for the French team Bourgoin (1998–2004); the English team Sale Sharks (2004–2009); the French team Racing Métro 92 Paris (2009–February 2012); and the French national side.
Victor Matfield (born 11 May 1977) is a South African rugby union player. He has played for and captained the Springbok rugby team as well as the Blue Bulls in the Currie Cup and the Bulls franchise in Super Rugby.
Benjamin Robert Smith (born 1 June 1986) is a rugby union player who captains the Highlanders in the Super Rugby competition, for Otago in the ITM Cup, and for New Zealand. He plays as a Fullback and Wing, but can also play at Centre and Halfback.
A rugby union centre, he represented Canterbury at first-class level on 21 occasions. Coaching career. Hansen began his coaching career with the Canterbury provincial rugby union team from 1996 to 2001. During his tenure the side won the National Provincial Championship in 1997 and 2001.
Du Preez played for the Blue Bulls in the Currie Cup competition in South Africa and the Bulls in the international Super Rugby competition. Du Preez was widely regarded as the best scrum half in the world and one of the best players at the time playing in world rugby.
Alun Wyn Jones (born 19 September 1985) is a Welsh rugby union player. He is the current captain of the Wales national team, and the Ospreys in the Pro14. He is Wales' most capped lock forward and Wales' second most capped player behind Gethin Jenkins.
George Musarurwa Gregan AM (born 19 April 1973) is a retired Australian rugby union player, and is currently Australia's highest ever internationally capped player. Gregan was born in Lusaka, Zambia.
The 100 Best Players In The World: 3 Leone Nakarawa – Our bronze medallist in the list of the Top 100 Players in the World goes to Fijian Leone Nakarawa.
Tadhg Furlong (born 14 November 1992) is an Irish rugby union player for Leinster in the Pro14 and European Rugby Champions Cup. His preferred position is tighthead prop. Internationally, Furlong has represented Ireland and, in 2017, the British and Irish Lions. Furlong comes from a farming family in the parish of Horeswood in County Wexford.
In 1997, he captained South Africa's Sevens team to the final at the 1997 Rugby World Cup Sevens in Hong Kong, where they were beaten by Fiji. Van der Westhuizen was part of the team that won South Africa's first Tri-Nations series title in 1998. He captained the Bulls to the 1998 Currie Cup.
Thierry Dusautoir ([tjɛ.ʁi dy.so.twaʁ]; born 18 November 1981) is a French former rugby union player who last played for France at international level and Toulouse in the French Top 14 club competition. Dusautoir was considered as a strong ball carrier with good speed and possessing the right amount of strength to break tackles.
Jason Thorpe Robinson OBE (born 30 July 1974) is an English former dual-code international rugby league, and rugby union footballer of the 1990s and 2000s. Playing as a wing or fullback, he won fifty-one rugby union international caps for England, and in rugby league he won twelve caps for Great Britain, and seven for England.
Tana Umaga was named in the Chiefs' starting line-up for their opening Super Rugby fixture of the 2011 season to face the ACT Brumbies. This signals his first Super rugby game since he was a Wellington Hurricanes regular in 2007.
Jonathan Davies (born 5 April 1988) is a Welsh professional rugby union player who plays at centre for the Scarlets and the Wales national team. He is commonly known as "Fox", differentiating him from the Jonathan Davies who played both rugby union and rugby league during the 1980s and 1990s.
Aaron Luke Smith (born 21 November 1988) is a rugby union player who plays for New Zealand – the All Blacks – in international rugby. He plays at half back in the team. Smith played for the Māori All Blacks in 2010, and was first selected for the All Blacks in 2012.
Sir Gareth Owen Edwards, CBE (born 12 July 1947) is a Welsh former rugby union player who played scrum-half and has been described by the BBC as "arguably the greatest player ever to don a Welsh jersey".
John Eales AM (born 27 June 1970) is an Australian former rugby union player and the most successful captain in the history of Australian rugby. He became one of only twenty dual Rugby World Cup winners
Sir Michael Niko Jones KNZM (born 8 April 1965) is a New Zealand former rugby union player and coach. He was nicknamed 'the Iceman' or 'Ice' because of the number of icepacks he needed for injuries. He was named by Rugby World magazine as the third best All Black of the 20th century after Colin Meads and Sean Fitzpatrick.
Conrad Gerard Smith MNZM (born 12 October 1981) is a New Zealand rugby union footballer who plays predominantly at centre. He captained the Hurricanes in Super Rugby, and played for New Zealand from 2004 until 2015.