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The 'Still Playing Today' 2007 Rugby World Cup XV

(Photo by Francois Nel - World Rugby/World Rugby via Getty Images)

With the recent retirement of All Blacks out-half Dan Carter, the list of players who competed at the 2007 World Cup and are still playing today has grown even slimmer. The legendary half-back was actually part of an even smaller group who also played in RWC 2003. 

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That list is only made up of a handful of players, including Carter’s former All Blacks teammate and current Toulon centre Ma’a Nonu, who was actually overlooked by Graham Henry for the 2007 tournament.

With every season that now passes, the contingent that travelled to France in 2007 is declining and it has now reached a point where an XV of players who are still playing can just about be chosen: 

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Finn Russell guests on the latest RugbyPass Offload with Simon Zebo and Ryan Wilson

1. GREG HOLMES (Australia)
The 37-year-old ex-Exeter Chiefs prop played two matches for Australia at the 2007 tournament. He is part of the Western Force squad in this year’s Super Rugby AU. 

2. BISMARCK DU PLESSIS (South Africa)
The 36-year-old hooker came on from the bench in the 2007 final win for the Springboks. He is now playing for Montpellier in the Top 14. 

3. JANNIE DU PLESSIS (South Africa)
Bismarck’s 38-year-old brother was also on the bench in the 2007 final, although he didn’t come on. He also played for Montpellier but he returned to South Africa in 2020 to play for the Lions. 

4. ALUN WYN JONES (Wales)
The 35-year-old is not just one of the few 2007 RWC players who are still playing, but he is also still playing Test rugby. Furthermore, he remains one of the first names on the Wales team sheet and this weekend he travels to Italy where his country will hope to take another step towards another Six Nations Grand Slam.    

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5. VALENTIN URSACHE (Romania)
The 35-year-old Romania lock is still plying his trade in France’s Pro D2 with Oyonnax. 

6. KANE THOMPSON (Samoa)
Although primarily a lock, the 39-year-old played all four matches for Samoa in 2007. He is now part of the New Orleans Gold squad for the upcoming Major League Rugby season. 

7. JOE TEKORI (Samoa)
The 37-year-old Toulouse lock made his Samoa debut only months before the 2007 tournament. He played occasionally at flanker and is part of a sizeable back row in this ‘Still Playing Today’ team. 

8. SERGIO PARISSE (Italy)
Still hoping for a possible international send-off with Italy, the 37-year-old – who has 142 caps – was also part of a group who played in the 2003 tournament. 

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9. ANDY ELLIS (New Zealand)
The 37-year-old former All Blacks scrum-half is another MLR import having joined Rugby United New York after previously playing for the Kobelco Steelers in Japan. 

10. LIONEL BEAUXIS (France) 
The 35-year-old started for France in their legendary quarter-final win over the All Blacks in Cardiff. He is another member of the Oyonnax squad in Pro D2.

11. ISAIA TOEAVA (New Zealand)
Primarily now a centre with Toulon, the 35-year-old started on the wing for the All Blacks against Portugal at the finals in 2007. 

12. TOBY FLOOD (England) 
A replacement for Jamie Noon in 2007 who came off the bench for England in the final, the 35-year-old is still playing for Newcastle in the Premiership. 

13. MATT GITEAU (Australia)
Another player who also played in 2003, the 103-cap 38-year-old recently signed for LA Giltinis in MLR. 

14. ADAM ASHLEY-COOPER (Australia)
Another Australian centurion to sign for LA Giltinis in 2021, the 36 was at Austin Gilgronis last year. 

15. FRANCOIS STEYN (South Africa)
He started at inside centre in the 2007 final as a 20-year-old and came off the bench in the final twelve years later. Now 33, he joined the Cheetahs in 2020 and still hasn’t made any announcement about his international future.

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J
JW 2 hours ago
'Passionate reunion of France and New Zealand shows Fabien Galthie is wrong to rest his stars'

Ok, managed to read the full article..

... New Zealand’s has only 14 and the professional season is all over within four months. In France, club governance is the responsibility of an independent organisation [the Ligue Nationale de Rugby or LNR] which is entirely separate from the host union [the Fédération Française de Rugby or FFR]. Down south New Zealand Rugby runs the provincial and the national game.

That is the National Provincial Championship, a competition of 14 representative union based teams run through the SH international window and only semi professional (paid only during it's running). It is run by NZR and goes for two and a half months.


Super Rugby is a competition involving 12 fully professional teams, of which 5 are of New Zealand eligibility, and another joint administered team of Pacific Island eligibility, with NZR involvement. It was a 18 week competition this year, so involved (randomly chosen I believe) extra return fixtures (2 or 3 home and away derbys), and is run by Super Rugby Pacific's own independent Board (or organisation). The teams may or may not be independently run and owned (note, this does not necessarily mean what you think of as 'privately owned').


LNR was setup by FFR and the French Government to administer the professional game in France. In New Zealand, the Players Association and Super Rugby franchises agreed last month to not setup their own governance structure for professional rugby and re-aligned themselves with New Zealand Rugby. They had been proposing to do something like the English model, I'm not sure how closely that would have been aligned to the French system but it did not sound like it would have French union executive representation on it like the LNR does.

In the shaky isles the professional pyramid tapers to a point with the almighty All Blacks. In France the feeling for country is no more important than the sense of fierce local identity spawned at myriad clubs concentrated in the southwest. Progress is achieved by a nonchalant shrug and the wide sweep of nuanced negotiation, rather than driven from the top by a single intense focus.

Yes, it is pretty much a 'representative' selection system at every level, but these union's are having to fight for their existence against the regime that is NZR, and are currently going through their own battle, just as France has recently as I understand it. A single focus, ala the French game, might not be the best outcome for rugby as a whole.


For pure theatre, it is a wonderful article so far. I prefer 'Ntamack New Zealand 2022' though.

The young Crusader still struggles to solve the puzzle posed by the shorter, more compact tight-heads at this level but he had no problem at all with Colombe.

It was interesting to listen to Manny during an interview on Maul or Nothing, he citied that after a bit of banter with the All Black's he no longer wanted one of their jersey's after the game. One of those talks was an eye to eye chat with Tamaiti Williams, there appear to be nothing between the lock and prop, just a lot of give and take. I thought TW angled in and caused Taylor to pop a few times, and that NZ were lucky to be rewarded.

f you have a forward of 6ft 8ins and 145kg, and he is not at all disturbed by a dysfunctional set-piece, you are in business.

He talked about the clarity of the leadership that helped alleviate any need for anxiety at the predicaments unfolding before him. The same cannot be said for New Zealand when they had 5 minutes left to retrieve a match winning penalty, I don't believe. Did the team in black have much of a plan at any point in the game? I don't really call an autonomous 10 vehicle they had as innovative. I think Razor needs to go back to the dealer and get a new game driver on that one.

Vaa’i is no match for his power on the ground. Even in reverse, Meafou is like a tractor motoring backwards in low gear, trampling all in its path.

Vaa'i actually stops him in his tracks. He gets what could have been a dubious 'tackle' on him?

A high-level offence will often try to identify and exploit big forwards who can be slower to reload, and therefore vulnerable to two quick plays run at them consecutively.

Yes he was just standing on his haunches wasn't he? He mentioned that in the interview, saying that not only did you just get up and back into the line to find the opposition was already set and running at you they also hit harder than anything he'd experienced in the Top 14. He was referring to New Zealands ultra-physical, burst-based Super style of course, which he was more than a bit surprised about. I don't blame him for being caught out.


He still sent the obstruction back to the repair yard though!

What wouldn’t the New Zealand rugby public give to see the likes of Mauvaka and Meafou up front..

Common now Nick, don't go there! Meafou showed his Toulouse shirt and promptly got his citizenship, New Zealand can't have him, surely?!?


As I have said before with these subjects, really enjoy your enthusiasm for their contribution on the field and I'd love to see more of their shapes running out for Vern Cotter and the like styled teams.

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