Topsy Ojo’s Team of My Life: ‘Simply the best’ Dan Carter and ‘undervalued’ England outcast feature in stunning side
There’s few players with a more impressive Premiership try scoring record than former England and London Irish winger turned TV pundit Topsy Ojo.
We have partnered with eToro, the official investing and trading partner of Premiership Rugby, to bring you this series, Team of My Life, in which a famous face from the world of rugby recalls an ultimate XV.
With a career that spanned some 300 games and over 80 tries, Ojo also represented his country, grabbing two tries against New Zealand on debut back in 2008.
Who better to give us the best side he played with or against? Here’s his picks.
Topsy Ojo’s Team of My Life
15 Mils Muliaina (New Zealand): A Rolls-Royce full-back who I faced on my debut and scored against us. 100 All Black caps is a massive achievement.
14 Jason Robinson (England): Electric, evasive and abrasive, Robinson had the lot. A generational player in a generational side.
13 Brian O’Driscoll (Ireland): One of the Irish greats, a three-time Lion and a cap centurion. World class and a powerhouse in every way.
12 Seilala Mapusua (Samoa): No backline is complete without an abrasive Samoan in there somewhere. Mapusua was a cornerstone of London Irish’s midfield for some seven brilliant seasons where he scored 21 tries in 126 appearances.
11 Shane Williams (Wales): Like Robinson on the right wing, Williams’ acceleration was the superpower that set him apart and both he and Jason would light up any Test arena they graced.
10 Dan Carter (New Zealand): Played in that 2008 debut match against England and another who scored. Carter is simply the best 10 the game has ever seen and is a shoo-in in this side.
9 Byron Kelleher (New Zealand): Tends to go under the radar given the man who succeeded him, Aaron Smith. Byron was a different type of nine, far more abrasive and direct around the fringes, but challenged opponents equally as well as any other.
The forwards
8 Sebastien Chabal (France): Massive, brooding and fearsome. Chabal at his best was a man mountain who eviscerated anything in his path. Magnificent rugby player on the pitch, equally as scary off it!
7 Steffon Armitage (England): He was a massive loss to English rugby when he went to France, but somehow he was undervalued by the selectors. His performances for Toulon speak for themselves when he went on to became a three-time EPCR champion.
6 Jerry Collins (New Zealand): The scariest man you’d ever meet on a rugby pitch, the most humble and entertaining you’d ever encounter off it. A true legend of the game.
5 Nick Kennedy (England): A true lineout professor who now inspires the next generation of academy player. Underused at Test level and perhaps should have had more caps than he did.
4 Brad Thorn (New Zealand): Not the tallest lock, but one of the biggest engines in the game. Unusually for a second-row, Thorn was one of the most intelligent tacticians going and his cross code achievements set the standard for a forward.
3 Faan Rautenbach (South Africa): 21 stone of sheer Boer beef, no scrum went backwards when big Faan was on the tighthead. An incredible servant to London Irish where he made 137 appearances.
2 Schalk Brits (South Africa): Few overseas players have made a bigger impact on the Premiership than Schalla, the smiling assassin. A centre in a hooker’s body, his ball handling was world class.
1 Soane Tonga’uiha (Tonga): There was a period around 2010 to 2013 where Soane smashed everything in the Premiership, making him one of the most feared looseheads around. His love of the game is so great he made a few appearances for Banbury RFC at the age of 40 last season.
Topsy Ojo‘s Team of My Life is brought to you by eToro, the official investing and trading partner of Premiership Rugby.
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