Fastest rugby union tries

Often the build up to a high profile rugby game can be just as exciting as the game itself. Supporters will spend the week waiting patiently for the team sheets to come up, then analyse the head to heads between the two sides.

Come the morning of the game, eager fans will have their schedules set to ensure a comfortable position to watch the build up on television. If at the game, they’ll often spend that hour beforehand discussing the information that’s been indulged over the past week, all building up to this game.

With all this in mind, we end up expecting a fast and exciting start to each and every match. Now in the world of sports, that is not always the case.

But when it does, it is magnificent to watch. To see these specimens launching themselves into each other with all their weight behind them, the silky hands and electric speed can bring a stadium to its feet within moments.

We see below the fastest ever tries scored in Rugby Union, courtesy of the Guinness World Records:

Fastest ever try in a Rugby Union Super Rugby match

VULA MAIMURI – 12 MAY 2001 – 12 SECONDS

The fastest try in a rugby union Super Rugby match is 12 seconds and was achieved by Vula Maimuri for the Highlanders against the Crusaders at Christchurch, New Zealand, on 12 May 2001.

Maimuri spent the majority of his playing career in New Zealand playing for provincial side Northland, as well as showing up for Super Rugby sides, The Highlanders and The Blues.

He also played for his home country of Fiji, appearing in the 2003 Rugby World Cup in Australia.

Fastest ever Rugby Union World Cup hat-trick

COBUS REINACH, 08 OCTOBER 2019 – 20 MINUTES 6 SECONDS

The fastest Rugby Union World Cup hat-trick was achieved by Cobus Reinach in the Kobe Misaki Stadium, while playing for South Africa against Canada.
Reinach’s hatrick took just 20 minutes and 6 seconds from the very start of the match, in a game that South Africa defeated Canada 66-7.

Reinach has had a glittering career which has seen him perform for teams in South Africa, England and France. A talented scrum half, as of 2022 he has had 18 caps for his country.

Fastest ever Rugby Union World Cup try

ELTON FLATLEY, 18 OCTOBER 2003 – 18 SECONDS

The fastest try scored in a Rugby World Cup match is 18 seconds after the kick-off by Elton Flatley. He did this playing for Australia against Romania at Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.

Australia went all the way to the final that year, only to be beaten by a famous extra-time drop goal by England’s Jonny Wilkinson.

Flatley played for the Queensland Reds for his entire career, before retiring in 2006 on medical grounds after complaining of blurred vision from multiple concussions.

Fastest ever time to score a try in a rugby union Premiership Rugby final

NIC WHITE, 01 JUNE 2019 – 25 SECONDS

The fastest try in a Premiership Rugby final is 25 seconds, achieved by Nic White for Exeter Chiefs in a face off against Saracens at Twickenham.

Saracens came out victorious in the end with a 37–34 victory over the Devon side, leaving White’s effort in vain.

Like many of his contemporaries, White has played his rugby all over the globe. Spending many years at the Brumbies in Australia, he has also turned out in the French and English top flight divisions respectively. With 47 international caps to his name as of 2022, the veteran scrum half has been a hugely important asset to the Wallabies.