Northern Edition

Select Edition

Northern Northern
Southern Southern
Global Global
New Zealand New Zealand
France France

Jonah Lomu and Bryan Habana among newly-inducted RugbyPass Hall of Fame wings

Bryan Habana of the Springboks and Jonah Lomu of the All Blacks are two of the greatest wingers to play the game. (Photos by Getty Images)

The 11th wave of inductees into the RugbyPass Hall of Fame have been revealed as the finest left wings ever to grace the game were recognised on Monday.

ADVERTISEMENT

Home to the greatest rugby players of all-time, the RugbyPass Hall of Fame acknowledges and recognises the outstanding efforts of the trailblazers from the amateur era through to the global stars who light up the sport to this day.

The amalgamation of rugby’s top players from the amateur and professional eras has been reflected in the RugbyPass Hall of Fame’s first-ever induction announcement, from which 14 of rugby’s best left wings have been unveiled as inductees.

Related

Among the headline names inducted into the RugbyPass Hall of Fame include World Cup-winning speedsters Chester Williams, Bryan Habana and Julian Savea, each of whom lifted the Webb Ellis Cup with the Springboks and All Blacks in 1995, 2007 and 2015, respectively.

In addition to his world-beating exploits, Habana finished his career as one of the most-prolific try-scorers in the history of international rugby, scoring 67 tries in 124 test matches for South Africa.

Furthermore, the 38-year-old was crowned World Rugby Player of the Year in 2007 and shares the record for most tries scored in World Cup history with 15 to his name.

ADVERTISEMENT

That feat was also achieved by the late All Blacks great Jonah Lomu, who is widely-regarded as the first and only genuine global superstar the sport of rugby has ever produced.

Lomu joins Savea, who still holds the best strike rate of any veteran All Black with 46 tries in 54 tests, as two of three New Zealanders among the new inductees, with the other being another try-scoring machine in the form of Joe Rokocoko.

A great of the New Zealand game, Rokocoko still holds the record for most test tries in a single season when he scored 17 times in his debut campaign in 2003.

Habana and Williams, meanwhile, are the only two South African players included in the new wave of RugbyPass Hall of Fame inductees, with Habana joined by Welsh great Shane Williams as the only new admissions to have won World Rugby Player of the Year.

ADVERTISEMENT

Williams claimed the award the year after Habana and sits two places below the ex-Springbok as the fourth-highest try-scorer in test rugby history with 60 tries in 91 tests.

The 44-year-old is one of three Welshmen inducted into the RugbyPass Hall of Fame alongside current Wales international George North and former flyer Gerald Davies.

Related

Elsewhere, Fiji icons Rupeni Caucaunibuca and Nemani Nadolo have joined countryman Leone Nakarawa in the RugbyPass Hall of Fame, while Manu Samoa legend Alesana Tuilagi becomes the second Samoan inductee after hooker Trevor Leota.

Former Wallabies wings Lote Tuqiri and Joe Roff have also been included, as has the late French great Christophe Dominici.

Of all those included in the RugbyPass Hall of Fame, only the players with the most votes in each position will make the Fan 1st XV, a team made up of only the best players ever to have played rugby.

The door remains open for other players to become RugbyPass Hall of Famers, so register now to have your say and vote for your favourite inductee in the Fan 1st XV.

Current RugbyPass Hall of Fame Fan 1st XV

1. Os du Randt (South Africa, 1994-2007)
2. Sean Fitzpatrick (New Zealand, 1986-1997)
3. Owen Franks (New Zealand, 2009-2019)
4. Eben Etzebeth (South Africa, 2012-present)
5. Victor Matfield (South Africa, 2001-2015)
6. Jerome Kaino (New Zealand, 2004-2017)
7. Richie McCaw (New Zealand, 2001-2015)
8. Mamuka Gorgodze (Georgia, 2003-2019)
9. Aaron Smith (New Zealand, 2012-present)
10. Dan Carter (New Zealand, 2003-2015)
11. Induction 13.12.20221
12. Induction 14.12.2021
13. Induction 15.12.2021
14. Induction 16.12.2021
15. Induction 17.12.2021

Coach: 20.12.2021
Referee: 21.12.2021
Stadium: 22.12.2021

ADVERTISEMENT

LIVE

{{item.title}}

Trending on RugbyPass

Comments

2 Comments
C
Chris 1056 days ago

This one is easy. Lomu is an all time great. Habana was incredible too.

i
isaac 1057 days ago

I think caucau for all cares was 90 percent better than habana who only had speed...the way caucau and habana scored tries really should be the point..not the longevity of one's test career

Join free and tell us what you really think!

Sign up for free
ADVERTISEMENT

Latest Features

Comments on RugbyPass

O
Oh no, not him again? 2 hours ago
England internationals disagree on final play execution vs All Blacks

Okay, so we blew it big time on Saturday. So rather than repeating what most people have all ready said, what do I want to see from Borthwick going forward?


Let's keep Marcus Smith on the pitch if he's fit and playing well. I was really pleased with his goal kicking. It used to be his weakness. I feel sympathy for George Ford who hadn't kicked all match and then had a kick to win the game. You hear pundits and commentators commend kickers who have come off the bench and pulled that off. Its not easy. If Steve B continues to substitute players with no clear reason then he is going to get criticised.


On paper I thought England would beat NZ if they played to their potential and didn't show NZ too much respect. Okay, the off the ball tackles certainly stopped England scoring tries, but I would have liked to see more smashing over gainlines and less kicking for position. Yes, I also know it's the Springbok endorsed world cup double winning formula but the Kiwi defence isn't the Bok defence, is it. If you have the power to put Smith on the front foot then why muzzle him? I guess what I'm saying is back, yourself. Why give the momentum to a team like NZ? Why feed the beast? Don't give the ball to NZ. Well d'uh.


Our scrum is a long term weakness. If you are going to play Itoje then he needs an ogre next door and a decent front row. Where is our third world class lock? Where are are realible front row bench replacements? The England scrum has been flakey for a while now. It blows hot and cold. Our front five bench is not world class.


On the positive side I love our starting backrow right now. I'd like to see them stick together through to the next world cup.


Anyway, there is always another Saturday.

7 Go to comments
C
CO 2 hours ago
Scott Robertson responds to criticism over All Blacks' handling errors

Robertson is more a manager of coaches than a coach so it comes down to intent of outcomes at a high level. I like his intent, I like the fact his Allblacks are really driving the outcomes however as he's pointed out the high error rates are not test level and their control of the game is driving both wins and losses. England didn't have to play a lot of rugby, they made far fewer mistakes and were extremely unlucky not to win.


In fact the English team were very early in their season and should've been comfortably beaten by an Allblacks team that had played multiple tests together.


Razor has himself recognised that to be the best they'll have to sort out the crisis levels of mistakes that have really increased since the first two tests against England.


Early tackles were a classic example of hyper enthusiasm to not give an inch, that passion that Razor has achieved is going to be formidable once the unforced errors are eliminated.


That's his secret, he's already rebuilt the passion and that's the most important aspect, its inevitable that he'll now eradicate the unforced errors. When that happens a fellow tier one nation is going to get thrashed. I don't think it will be until 2025 though.


The Allblacks will lose both tests against Ireland and France if they play high error rates rugby like they did against England.


To get the unforced errors under control he's going to be needing to handover the number eight role to Sititi and reset expectations of what loose forwards do. Establish a clear distinction with a large, swarthy lineout jumper at six that is a feared runner and dominant tackler and a turnover specialist at seven that is abrasive in contact. He'll then need to build depth behind the three starters and ruthlessly select for that group to be peaking in 2027 in hit Australian conditions on firm, dry grounds.


It's going to help him that Savea is shifting to the worst super rugby franchise where he's going to struggle behind a beaten pack every week.


The under performing loose forward trio is the key driver of the high error rates and unacceptable turn overs due to awol link work. Sititi is looking like he's superman compared to his openside and eight.


At this late stage in the season they shouldn't be operating with just the one outstanding loose forward out of four selected for the English test. That's an abject failure but I think Robertson's sacrificing link quality on purpose to build passion amongst the junior Allblacks as they see the reverential treatment the old warhorses are receiving for their long term hard graft.


It's unfortunately losing test matches and making what should be comfortable wins into nail biters but it's early in the world cup cycle so perhaps it's a sacrifice worth making.


However if this was F1 then Sam Cane would be Riccardo and Ardie would be heading into Perez territory so the loose forwards desperately need revitalisation through a rebuild over the next season to complement the formidable tight five.

28 Go to comments
LONG READ
LONG READ England need to face a few home truths if they are to relearn that winning habit England need to face a few home truths if they are to relearn that winning habit
Search