Southern hemisphere’s dream rugby team
SINCE its inception in 1996, the Tri Nations and its modern incarnation, the Rugby Championship, have thrown up some of the game’s foremost exponents. The Sunday Times’ rugby writers have compiled a team they believe represents the best the competition has had to offer.
15 Christian Cullen
The Paekakariki Express, as he was also known, was a try scorer of irresistible force. He had a jaw-dropping strike rate, dotting down 46 times in 58 tests. (Contenders: Mils Muliaina, Matt Burke, Chris Latham).
14 Bryan Habana
The Springboks’ workaholic top try scorer may have gone through a dip when he joined Western Province but he has reemerged with the same voracious try-scoring appetite that first made him a Bok. (Contenders: Doug Howlett, Ben Tune).
13 Stirling Mortlock
The former wing reinvented himself following a serious knee injury and returned as a straight-running midfielder of considerable tactical awareness. (Contenders: Jaque Fourie, Conrad Smith).
12 Tana Umaga
The sight of Umaga in full flight after bursting through a gap must be one of the most enduring images of the Tri Na-
tions’ early years. (Contenders: Matt Giteau, Ma’a Nonu, Jean de Villiers. Tim Horan seemed to reserve his best for the World Cup).
11 Joe Roff
A smart, gifted footballer who was surprisingly elusive for a big man. He was also durable, playing in 62 consecutive tests between 1996 and 2001. (Contenders: Jonah Lomu, he may have terrorised the Wallabies but he never scored against the Boks).
10 Dan Carter
Test rugby’s most prolific points scorer and underwear model excels at everything. (Contenders: Stephen Larkham, Andrew Mehrtens).
9 George Gregan
He put a disappointing RWC 1995 behind him to become the heartbeat of the Wallaby team once the Tri Nations launched. (Contenders: Joost van der Westhuizen, Fourie du Preez, Justin Marshall).
8 Kieran Read
Cuts a commanding presence in attack and defence and has led the All Blacks with distinction. (Contenders: Gary Teichmann, Toutai Kefu, Zinzan Brooke).
7 Richie McCaw
The All Black s captain’s ability to leave his imprint on matches has made him one of the game’s dominating forces since 2001. (Contenders: George
Smith, Josh Kronfeld).
6 Schalk Burger
Burger has put his body on the line perhaps more than is necessarily desirable. His impact has been immense. (Contenders: Danie Rossouw, Juan Smith, Owen Finegan).
5 John Eales
He’s not called “Nobody” for nothing. You know, nobody is perfect. (Contenders: Victor Matfield, Nathan Sharpe, Norm Maxwell).
4 Bakkies Botha
It is testament to the longtime Bok enforcer’s reputation that opponents wanted to avoid him at all cost. (Contenders: Brad Thorne, Chris Jack, Ian Jones, Dan Vickerman).
3 Patricio Noriega
The former Los Pumas prop took his scrumming nous to Australia where the Wallabies, for once, found good use for it. (Contenders: Carl Hayman, Adrian Garvey, Greg Somerville).
2 Sean Fitzpatrick
Apart from being a hooker of immense class, Fitzpatrick was able to influence matches in other ways too. (Contenders: Phil Kearns, John Smit, Keven Mealamu).
1 Os du Randt
Whether in the scrum, defence or crash-ball runner, Du Randt was a prop of rampaging authority. (Contenders: Rodrigo Roncero, Craig Dowd).