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Only one non-All Black or Springbok named in fan-voted all-time XV

Georgia's Mamuka Gorgodze leaves the Test rugby field one last time in Japan (Photo by Dan Mullan/Getty Images)

In a team dominated by All Blacks and Springboks icons, you could be excused for raising an eyebrow to see the only non-New Zealand or South African player in the RugbyPass Hall of Fame Fan 1st XV hails from Georgia.

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However, that is exactly how things have transpired since the launch of the RugbyPass Hall of Fame, home to the greatest rugby players of all-time, two weeks ago.

The RugbyPass Hall of Fame acknowledges the outstanding efforts of the trailblazers from the amateur era through to the global stars who light up the sport to this day, with only those with the most votes in each position making the Fan 1st XV, a team made up of only the best players ever to have played rugby.

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As things stand, the best players to have graced the game from New Zealand and South Africa have largely dominated the make-up of the Fan 1st XV.

Three Springboks and four All Blacks have been included in the forward pack, while Kiwi stars Aaron Smith and Dan Carter currently occupy the halves positions, with the rest of the backline available to vote for from next week onwards.

As such, the duopoly of New Zealand and South African talent is clear to see as the fans continue to flock to the polls, but one player stands out from the rest of his teammates in the composite XV.

That player is Georgian rugby great Mamuka Gorgodze, widely-regarded as the best player to have ever played for The Lelos, who has been voted into the RugbyPass Hall of Fame Fan 1st XV at No 8.

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Not only has he been voted into the team alongside some of rugby’s greatest names, but he has dominated the polls to the point where he now stands as the most-voted for player in the entire Hall of Fame with 1508 votes, at the time of writing.

That figure more than triples the number of votes second-ranked No 8, current Springboks star Duane Vermeulen, has received, and has almost 100 more votes than what two-time World Cup-winning All Blacks captain Richie McCaw has attained.

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By reaching pole position in the No 8 slot, Gorgodze – who enjoyed a 75-test career with Georgia between 2003 and 2019 and attended four World Cups before retiring two years ago – has out-voted an array of rugby greats.

That includes World Cup-winners such as Vermeulen, Zinzan Brooke, Kieran Read, Lawrence Dallaglio, Sir Wayne Shelford and Bobby Skinstad, as well as former Italian captain Sergio Parisse and French cult hero Sebastien Chabal.

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With the current number of votes, Gorgodze joins an all-star forward pack comprised of Os du Randt, Sean Fitzpatrick, Owen Franks, Eben Etzebeth, Victor Matfield, Jerome Kaino and McCaw.

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

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Comments

3 Comments
L
Loveni 1166 days ago

Olo Brown

K
Kyle 1168 days ago

It’s obviously a troll vote

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Comments on RugbyPass

J
JW 1 hour ago
Where is the new breed of All Black 10?

Maybe Covid-19 did us some favours after all

NZR and Australia had a great opportunity to dump Super Rugby and reset with a more sustainable future, but unfortunately they only had eyes on getting back to playing asap, ditto the South Africans with their departure for the immediate salvation in URC. How ironic, to try to continue it on only to have it ripped up, with your squandered chance at something new gone.

You might look at the guys that have shown a lot of loyalty to us [like Richie]

No, that’s a bad edit. Why does it need to be a lot of loyalty though? If Richie had of won a RWC for New Zealand surely that would make up for a lack of loyalty in this regard? Of course Mo’unga had said goodbye long before that but Beauden Barrett had also, and he got offered a sabbatical deal to return despite no longer technically being on NZRs books. I guess the elephant here is that Richie accepted a 3 year deal, but that’s what the JRLO teams want, not 1 year, not even 2 years. Why does it have to be about his All Black status that determines loyalty as well? Why can’t any NZ player be given a sabbatical after 8 full SR seasons, and still be able to hold onto that dream if they find themselves flourishing in an overseas environment?

The All Blacks’ brand has to be seen to be ultimate sporting success story to attract and sustain sponsorship, which spools the debate all the way back to selection policy and Razor’s ability to pick players plying their trade abroad.

We’ll see if you understand your oxymoron here. No, no other side of the coin presented, not even a cursory to those you know who’ll post lol The reason the brand has been such a success is put solely down to the selection policy, how are you going to change the opinion on that? I don’t think it’s possible, I can see change when they give up trying. Thankfully that looks a long way off and a return to number one immanent for this ‘last hope’ of a rugby stronghold.

Jacomb was on the field for the first 51 minutes, D-Mac played the full 80. During the time with Jacomb at 10 and McKenzie at 15, the Chiefs were losing 6-14.

What were the stats then though? That’s what I’d like to know.

Mo’unga may be on sabbatical in Japan, but absence has if anything increased his importance to New Zealand rugby

Unfortunately JRLO made some changes to their content protection this year, unsure why, so no, his absences has unfortunately morphed into obscurity. Thankfully Rugby Pass TV has come to the table and given one game a week to NZ viewers if anyone is interested (myself it kinda came too late in the piece).


Please to see Jacomb get through his third start with such aplomb. Another tight game this week so perhaps another tight performance needed by him again. The Chiefs have lost their second starting fullback so Dmac might be asked to continue in the position for a while yet.

6 Go to comments
J
JW 2 hours ago
Super Rugby rolls back the years but challenges lie ahead

There is no appetite – either in New Zealand and Australia or Japan – to recreate a separate team like the Sunwolves to sit as a sole representative in Super Rugby.

If theres no appetite, why are you suggesting it?


Any JRLO involvement is a long way off were SR looses its place, and is only a equivalent of the Champions Cup. Which if happened, would still be a general overall win.


Any inclusion of the Jaguares would also require a recalibration of that tournament. Argentina would not be able to field a strong team by themselves (without changing Los Pumas eligibility again, which we don’t want them to do), it needs the full support of Super Rugby Americas, a competition which runs from Feb to Jun as well. I suppose it really depends how many stars UAR could bring back home, Jaquares have been brought back, so maybe they do have an aim, but would they accept hosting their games out of Santiago (just an hr further than Tokyo)?


One thing I could see change is SRP moving to finish in Oct.


Edit: The Sunwolves brand is pretty much Brave Lupus now I’d imagine so this team would need a new name, and I still see Tokyo as being the best place economically to place a new team, but would SRA and MLR get together to share a team their if they don’t have the players to do it individually? It just seems a waste of brand expenditure just for these unions to dip their foot into SR. Perhaps it’s a Hawaiian team?

3 Go to comments
S
Stacy K Davis 4 hours ago
Crusaders prepare for 'dangerous in all elements' Chiefs game-breaker

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LONG READ
LONG READ Where is the new breed of All Black 10? Where is the new breed of All Black 10?
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