Three of the Greatest Rugby Players of All-Time

It’s countdown to Rugby World Cup 2019.  The players are in Japan preparing for their warm up matches and fans are making last minute travel arrangements to the land of the rising sun. 
 
Right now, teams of technicians are setting up giant TV screens, laying miles of cable and briefing referees on the finer points of the on-field microphones.  It’s all systems go!
 
Youngsters all over the world are emulating their heroes like Israel Kalumba of Zambia, Blaine Scully of the USA and Andriy Lunin of the Ukraine.  Most of them are dreaming of a time when they can represent their country in one of the biggest sports showpieces on earth.
 
As we build up to the opening match of Rugby World Cup 2019 between Japan and Russia, let’s spare a thought for the players who have reached the apex of their careers.  The guys who are now widely regarded as the greatest rugby players of all-time.
 

 
Here are three men who are legends of the game:
 

Schalk Burger - South Africa

 
South Africa’s burly loose forward Schalk Burger was like Armageddon in boots.  He was also a forward who loved to join the back line and score lots and lots of tries.  He was fast, physical and entirely unstoppable especially when he built up a good head of steam.
 
The fiery blonde-haired wine farmer’s son made 86 appearances for the Springboks - the most for a flanker in the history of the game.  He scored a total of 80 points and his 13 test tries as a flanker are an all-time record. 

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Along with his cunning and creativity on the field, Burger was known as an all-round nice guy.  He scooped up two SA Rugby Player of the Year awards, one IRB Player of the Year award and was part of the World Cup winning team in 2007. 
 
Burger may have hung up his boots in the test arena but he is still an active and aggressive member of the Saracens rugby team in England.
 

Dan Carter - New Zealand

 


At the height of his international career Dan Carter struck fear into the hearts of his opponents.  Not because he was big and intimidating but because he could slot the ball through the posts from anywhere on the field. 
 
Carter is the greatest flyhalf the game has even seen.  He was - and still is - the complete package. 
 
Along with his ball kicking skills, Carter could slice through the line like a hot knife through butter.  He was strong on his legs, a ferocious tackler and could marshal his troops and set up one attack after another.
 
Daniel Cater earned 112 caps for the All Blacks, scored 1,598 test match points and was named the IRB Player of the Year on three occasions.  The superstar from Canterbury now plies his trade for the Kobelco Steelers in Japan.
 

Brian O’Driscoll - Ireland

 
Brian O’Driscoll was Ireland’s Captain Courageous and the most prolific try-scorer of all-time.  The fleet-footed Dubliner played outside centre for Leinster, Ireland, the British and Irish Lions and the Barbarians.
 
O’Driscoll was a side-stepping genius who could bamboozle his opponents and score tries at will.  He was strong powerful and tenacious and had more guts than the meanest prop forward.  O’Driscoll played 141 test matches, scored 46 tries for Ireland and ended his career as the highest scoring centre of all-time.
 
He holds the records for the most tries in the Six Nations (26) and the Heineken Cup (30).  Owing to his incredible achievements Brian O’Driscoll was inducted into the World Rugby Hall of Fame.
 

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