After their loss to New Zealand in the Tri Nations, he helped turn results around for the men in green and gold. It is now commonplace for coaches to take inspiration from other sports - but Francis was years ahead of his time in this regard. He captained a young and inexperienced England side to the inaugural Rugby World Cup Sevens in 1993, despite only having two weeks together in camp. England's greatest ever try scorer, and by some distance. 10. He led Auckland Blues to victory as a captain in the Super 12 championships in 1996 and 1997. A strong start to 2021 could certainly see this man back in a red shirt in South Africa. 10. Read below for our pick of England's 10 best players Papers: Chelsea divided on future of head coach Potter, PL Predictions: Newcastle defence to shut out Man City, Klopp: Liverpool vs Manchester United is 'the derby', Hamilton: Mercedes 'long way off' F1 rivals | Alonso hails Aston Martin surge, Ten Hag's tactics analysed | How Man Utd are a team transformed, How Casemiro silenced doubters to become Man Utd cult hero, Transfer Centre LIVE! One year later, on 20 December 1947, he became the first black man to play for Great Britain, in the third Test against New Zealand in Bradford. Website. A working class man needing to earn money, Francis had only one path to take. Cotton made his England debut. Most of today's familiar rugby nations participated, as did Sweden, the Netherlands and the Soviet Union. Moving to England after leaving school, Catts English mother meant he qualified for the Red Rose and went on to play 75 times in the white jersey. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful. A monstrously accurate defender, with a penchant for destroying opposition fly-halves, Winterbottom travelled the world on the club scene, playing in South Africa and New Zealand, as well as in England. As the England national rugby team have been so successful over the years, many famous faces and star players have represented England Rugby, including several greats of the game such as Martin Johnson and Jason Leonard, who are in the International Rugby Hall of Fame.Currently, some of the finest players in world rugby play for the England Rugby union team, including lock Maro Itoje, fly-half Owen Farrell and wing Jonny May. He dropped a ball against Ireland and a misplaced kick in the final match of the Autumn Nations Cup. Not for Francis. He has been sensational for Exeter Chiefs this season, winning the domestic and European title. One of, if not the best place-kicker throughout the majority of his career, Farrell will soon pass Underwood's record to become the most capped back in England history. On 2 November 2019, England were defeated 12-32 by South Africa in the 2019 Rugby World Cup Final. Durban-born Stevens played for South Africa at U18 and U19 level before moving to the UK. Kate Middleton grins as rugby team lifts her in the air at training Kate Middleton joined the English rugby team's practice session as she made her debut as their new patron - in Prince Harry's former role. Still the only man to captain England to Rugby World Cup glory. Votes: 6,751. At Hull FC in 1955, he became the first. Francis developed rapidly, but his progress was curtailed when the Australian Harry Sunderland took over as coach and played the youngster in only seven of 86 games. However, a number of South African-born players have gone on to wear the white jersey and weve put together a team of those players and those who could go on to carry the Red Rose. His usual position is at fullback or wing. Despite playing no games for the Springboks in 2020, he still had more than enough flashy moments for his domestic club, Toulouse. The holistic view of Clive Woodward's England rugby union successes or Sir Dave Brailsford's 'marginal gains' at British Cycling were decades away. His speed is still sensational, his tackling non-stop. Despite not featuring regularly for France this year, his form for his club has been that good that he certainly deserves a spot in this list. Regarded as the only player never to have been dropped by Clive Woodward, Hill was a phenomenal performer in the back-row for England during a period of unrivalled success. A shining light of Irish rugby this year, the Leinster and Ireland forward has made leaps and bounds in the rugby world at the tender age of 22. Up there with Johnson as one of the most talismanic England players to have worn the shirt, and one of the principal leaders on their road to 2003 Rugby World Cup success. The list of England Rugby Players shows all the England Rugby Players with their positions and debut rank. For example, Jonny Wilkinson made his Test debut off the bench as a wing, but is more famous as a fly-half. His use of video analysis and psychological techniques were revolutionary and he was arguably the first coach in rugby league to enforce a defensive line, demanding players defend their channel rather than floating across the pitch at will. Towards the end of his rugby career, he played on for two years after losing three fingers in a dockyard accident and he was a flyhalf. As the first black man to play rugby union for England, between 1906 and 1908, he . You can watch the BBC documentary 'The Rugby Codebreakers' on iPlayer here. He was named Man of Steel at the end of his first season in 1988 and helped Widnes to successive titles between 1987 and 1989 before . Nothing but integral for La Rochelle in the Top 14 this year. England squad - in full Forwards: Luke Cowan-Dickie (Exeter Chiefs, 21 caps) Tom Curry (Sale Sharks, 19 caps) Tom Dunn (Bath Rugby, uncapped) Ben Earl (Saracens, uncapped) Charlie Ewels (Bath. Just pipped out by the Harlequins man this year, but nobody could deny that Danny Care has been truly impressive for the Stoop-based side this season. 15. His barnstorming runs and unrivalled aggression have helped to make him the starting number 8 after Kieran Read retired. Andrew Cole. He was named Man of the Year for 1907-08 by Plymouth Football Herald, and played three more times for England in this period. List of rugby players by country and by club for the current season. Billy himself wanted to play for his beloved Cardiff but they showed no interest in him, nor his black peers from Butetown, Johnny Freeman and Colin Dixon, who also went on to be incredibly successful in rugby league. Here is our list of 11 South African rugby team player profiles. The second rower was also known for his reliable boot and scored six conversions and four penalties on top of two tries for England. What a player. One of the few real, natural opensides England have produced. England team to play South Africa: Elliot Daly; Anthony Watson, Manu Tuilagi, Owen Farrell, Jonny May, George Ford, Ben Youngs; Mako Vunipola, Jamie George, Kyle Sinckler, Maro Itoje, Courtney. He is also one of very few players in the sport to have won both a Rugby World Cup and Sevens World Cup. In many ways, his story is similar to Alfred Clunies-Ross, the first non-white test player who was selected for the very first international rugby match between Scotland and England in 1871. 50. One of the memorable moments of 2020 was when he sidestepped Jacob Stockdale in two consecutive games in the Champions Cup. He helped France to their strongest campaign in almost a decade, and he helped Toulouse as they dominated their domestic league. The only player from the current set-up to make it onto our list at this juncture, there can be no denying that Farrell has forged an outstanding England career, and is still only 28-years-old. Her astonishing achievements in the womens game are not as well-known as they deserve to be. "I know he's my father and blood's thicker than water. An out-and-out winner on the pitch. Matera was behind almost all of this. In 2016 the Port Elizabeth-born utility back was unveiled as Italys new attack coach. But it is not the accolades and silverware that Francis is chiefly remembered for, it is the manner in which he sought them out. He is notable as the first black man to play rugby union for England. The Connacht man has been sensational for club and ok for country this year. Stevens parents are English-born and his heritage meant he qualified for England U21s. A superb attacking presence and tactically astute too. A sensational Bulls season in Super Rugby unlocked helped the South African into this list at the ripe age of thirty six. 2023 Six Nations favourites and predictions. In the past three years, 16 black players have played for England's senior men's football team. In 1957, Hull signed a South African full-back called Mervyn 'Pin' McMillan, who was not aware his coach was black. Could he be in with a shot of a Lions starting place next summer if he can perform at the start of next year? 1. The former England scrum-half put in some world-beating performances for Harlequins over 2020 with many fans and critics alike seeing this 33-year-old as the worlds greatest 9 on the planet. Listen here on SoundCloud or subscribe on iTunes. The Cape Town-born speedster qualified for England through his English mother and quickly established himself as a regular in the sevens team. Born in Grahamstown in Eastern Cape, Black made ten appearances for England in the 1930s as well as featuring in all five tests of the 1930 Lions tour to New Zealand. Tweet it ! England Rugby. The list only includes players who have played in a Test match. Despite being a fantastic talent, injury meant Abbott was restricted to only nine appearances for England. Talk to a rugby union fan, however, and many wont know his name. It is he who, with a choice remark or slight action, can rapidly dispel the tension of a critical moment.". A few more strong years and he could be one of the greats of French rugby. 15 October 1971. Having turned down offers from both French and Welsh sides to give himself the unlikely chance of playing for the Springboks, he represented both the Proteas and later the South African Barbarians, including in the team that toured the UK in 1979 as the first multiracial South African team overseas. Durban-born Labuschagne played for the men in white on five occasions in the 1950s, beating Wales and Scotland and losing out to France and the Welsh, as well drawing with Ireland. Always considered one of the best rugby players around. Andrew HarrimanDespite being known as the Prince of Pace, it was Andrew Harrimans leadership qualities that made the difference in his career. Francis' Leeds played beautiful rugby, forwards passing the ball wide, backs tackling hard. A stunning start to 2020 had this young Welshman in the focus for the whole of January in the rugby world. These prominent rugby players of England may or may not be currently alive, but what they all have in common is that they're all respected English rugby players.