The greatest Lions XV of the past 40 years

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6 hours ago

From unforgettable tours to heroic test match performances, the Lions have showcased the very best of British & Irish rugby.
Lions tours have seen so many legends of the game don the iconic red jersey.
Here is the greatest Lions XV of the past 40 years:
There are some heavyweight contenders in this position, starting with Scotland legend Gavin Hastings, who was a big presence on the 1989 and 1993 tours.
Neil Jenkins played 15 in 1997 and was hugely influential in that series victory over South Africa — but Jenkins was a 10 being played out of position for his place-kicking. Matt Perry was solid rather than spectacular in 2001 and 2005 does not count. That leaves Lee Byrne, Rob Kearney, Leigh Halfpenny, Liam Williams and Stuart Hogg, who all had their moments in the Lions No15 jersey between 2009 and 2021.
But the staggering quality of Kearney's performances in 2009 sets him apart. He had gone on that tour under the radar and was expected to back up Lee Byrne which was how it played out in the early stages. Rob Kearney. Pic:However, when Kearney came off the bench for Byrne in the first Test he was sensationally good and was picked to start the second Test.
There followed one of the greatest individual displays in Lions history which saw Kearney score the first try and then deal with relentless aerial bombardment by the Springboks.
His fielding was so good that day it actually stunned the Pretoria crowd, accustomed to full backs crumbling under pressure, while also inspiring the Lions to raise their game and push the world champions right to the edge. Kearney's performance that day was at such a level, it would be wrong to give the jersey to anybody else.
Ieuan Evans will be remembered as one of the great Lions wingers and he brought pace and quality to the 1989, 1993 and 1997 tours.
Tommy Bowe was another quality performer in the No14 jersey, especially in 2009 when he became something of a cult hero for Lions supporters. But George North's displays on the 2013 tour to Australia have gone down in Lions folklore. The Welshman ended up in the centre later in his career but back in 2013 he was an out-and-out winger at the peak of his powers. George North. Pic:for HSBC
Standing 6ft3in tall and built like a back-row with sprinter's speed, the then 21-year-old North was also fearless and brimming with self-belief. In the first Test, he scored one of the great Lions tries, starting inside his own 10-metre line and swerving past four Wallaby players. Then in the second Test came the famous 'fireman's lift' when North picked up giant Wallaby Israel Folau and ran with him on his shoulder — while still carrying the ball.
It was a staggering moment and is one of the most watched Lions clips of all time. He went on to score another try in the series-clinching third Test. Injury affected his participation in the 2017 tour to New Zealand, when he had to come home early, and the 2021 tour to South Africa but those remarkable 2013
displays by North will never be forgotten.
Jeremy Guscott had a tremendous Lions career, excelling on the Test team in 1989, 1993 and 1997.
A wonderful silky runner, the Bath and England star brought class to the Lions midfield and will always be remembered for his winning drop goal in 1997.
However, the way Brian O'Driscoll performed on four tours between 2001 and 2013 cannot be ignored. In 2001, he was the fresh-faced 'Waltzing O'Driscoll' ripping the Aussies apart, especially in the first Test victory when scoring arguably the greatest solo try in Lions history, causing amazement among the Aussies, with scrum-half George Gregan famously asking his teammates: 'What happened?' Brian O'Driscoll. Pic: Dave Rogers/Allsport via Getty Images
In 2005, O'Driscoll was performing superbly as captain in difficult circumstances until his tour was ended by the infamous spear tackle incident minutes into the first Test – which was when Clive Woodward's expedition really came off the rails.
But the way O'Driscoll responded in 2009 was magnificent – forming a superb partnership with Jamie Roberts that mixed grit with guile and enhanced his reputation as one of the best centres to have played the game. He was excellent again in 2013 in his 30s until harshly dropped for the third Test by Warren Gatland, but even that controversial incident cannot take away from O'Driscoll's superb Lions career – one so good that it just gets him the nod over the remarkable Guscott.
Inside centre is another position awash with quality options.
The Welsh colossus Jamie Roberts was immense on the 2009 and 2013 tours, winning Lions player of the series in 2009. Will Greenwood had some excellent moments for the Lions between 1997, 2001 and even 2005 while Ireland's Rob Henderson surpassed all expectations when forcing his way into the Test team in Australia in 2001. But the man who gets the nod at 12 is one of the most popular players in the history of the Lions — Welsh legend Scott Gibbs.
Known variously as the pocket rocket or 'fastest prop in world rugby', Gibbs was selected for the 1993 tour aged just 22 and played so well he took the place of veteran England captain Will Carling in the Test side, considered one of the best 12s in the world at that time. Scott Gibbs. Pic: Nick Wilson/Allsport via Getty Images
After a stint in rugby league, Gibbs returned to the fold in time to make the 1997 tour when he excelled again — his most famous moment coming when he sat down giant prop Os 'Ox' Du Randt when the Springbok got in his way.
Gibbs was massively influential in attack and defence during that 2-1 series victory, forming a brilliant partnership with Jeremy Guscott in midfield, and was voted player of the tour for a string of phenomenal performances.
Gibbs was a popular addition to the 2001 tour when called up again and his place in the pantheon of Lions greats was assured.
There have been plenty of players who have tried to make the transition from rugby league to union in search of greater exposure and the vast majority have not been successful.
The most high profile was Sam Burgess in 2015, a legend in league became a cause celebre calamity in England's World Cup squad but he has lots of company in the failed switch bracket, not least current Lions coach Andy Farrell, who fell far below his league reputation when he made the jump in the mid-2000s.
But the one unqualified success in this area was Jason Robinson. Jason Robinson. Pic: Nick Wilson/ALLSPORT via Getty Images
The Wigan legend only made his England debut in 2001 and, while there were adjustment issues learning new systems, he was so impressive in attack that he immediately made that summer's Lions tour, where he was sensational.
It is clear from the footage on the tour documentary that the Lions coaches were taken aback by just how good he actually was.
Robinson's speed off the mark and ability to change direction at full tilt made him practically unmarkable – he played all three Tests in 2001, scoring two tries, and tormented the Wallabies throughout. Robinson was key to England's World Cup win in 2003 and then toured with the Likons again in 2005, playing the first two Tests. One of the most exciting wingers to have played the game.
Jonny Wilkinson ranks just behind Dan Carter as the most influential 10 in rugby over the last 40 years.
Wilkinson played superbly well on the 2001 tour but was haunted by his pass being intercepted for a momentum-shifting score as the Wallabies took control of the second test and series. Johnny Sexton was superb at 10 for the Lions in 2017. Pic: Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile
His candidacy was also affected by his involvement in the 2005 disaster.
Rob Andrew was a solid 10 for the Lions in 1989 and 1993 but too welded to the kicking/territory game to be elevated to true greatness in the jersey once worn by Barry John, Phil Bennett and Jackie Kyle. Gregor Townsend was exceptional in 1997, primarily as a running 10, the kicking duties having been handed to Neil Jenkins, who was relocated to full-back.
However, Johnny Sexton's contribution to the 2013 victory in Australia and then the 2017 drawn series in New Zealand gets him the nod.
The Dubliner started all three Tests in 2013 and was especially dominant in the deciding third test, scoring a vital try. Four years later, Sexton was picked on the bench for the first Test which the Lions lost and then started the next two which were won and drawn.
The Leinster playmaker brought great authority to the Lions jersey that his teammates were able to rally around and worked particularly well with England's Owen Farrell.
He should have made the 2021 tour to South Africa but was omitted by Warren Gatland, who felt the veteran had too many miles on the clock in his mid-30s. The Lions missed him badly and Sexton went on to to enjoy two of the finest seasons in his career up to the 2023 World Cup.
The list of scrum-halves to have starred for the Lions over the last 40 years includes some of the finest players to have ever worn the No9 jersey.
Robert Jones, Dewi Morris and Dwayne Peel were all world-class, while Mike Phillips and Conor Murray excelled in the Lions jersey also, bringing their size to bear in a big way on their opponents. Rob Howley. Pic: Alex Livesey/Allsport via Getty Images
But the two to stand tallest in the battle for the scrum-half slot over this period are undoubtedly Matt Dawson and Rob Howley, who toured together in 1997 and again in 2001. On both occasions, Howley's experience was compromised by injury – with Dawson stepping up in 1997 and exceeding expectations as the Lions sealed an unlikely series victory over the world champions and again in 2001 when he did his best, to no avail, in the narrow third test loss to the Wallabies.
However, when Howley was fit and firing, the Welshman was the full package – brilliant delivery, superb kicker, lethal on the break and punishing in defence. Between 1997 and 2001, he was the only scrum-half who could match the hall of fame excellence of South Africa's Joost van der Westhuizen and Australia's George Gregan.
Over the years, Scotland are the nation who have had the least impact on Lions tours. There have been great Lions like Andy Irvine, the 'Broon from Troon' Gordon Brown, Finlay Calder and Gregor Townsend but in terms of bulk impact, the Scots lag way behind the influence of the Welsh, English and Irish.
One of the great Scottish Lions from the 1970s was Ian 'Mighty Mouse' McLauchlan, the 5ft9in loosehead, who played eight Tests for the Lions on the victorious tours to New Zealand in 1971 and South Africa in 1974 and lost only once. Tom Smith. Pic: David Rogers/Allsport via Getty Images
A little over two decades later, Smith emerged like a homage to Mighty Mouse and, despite widespread predictions of a midweek role, battled his way into the Test team on the back of a series of compelling scrummaging and loose play perform-
ances.
Slightly taller than McLauchlan at 5ft10in, he was still a Lilliputian when compared to the enormous South African front row in 1997. Yet, in tandem with Irish tighthead Paul Wallace, Smith burrowed under the behemoth Boks and played a major role in the series win. It endeared him to Lions supporters and he backed it up by making the Test side again in 2001 – a phenomenal prop who was sadly lost to
cancer aged 50 in 2022.
The 1990s were an unremittingly grim period for Irish rugby.
There were some superb, shock victories in that decade – notably the wins over England in 1993 and 1994 – but Irish rugby was locked into an amateur approach long after the major nations had gone down the professional road in terms of preparation.
That lasted into the early years of the game officially going open and the heavy defeats came thick and fast. Keith Wood. Pic: Nick Wilson/Allsport via Getty Images
But what Irish rugby did have at that time was one player who was acknowledged as world class across the rugby globe. Simon Geoghegan was an elite presence in green at the start of the decade but injuries had started to affect the winger's career by the mid-1990s which was when Keith Wood burst onto the scene.
It is no exaggeration to say that Wood altered thinking on how hookers, and forwards in general, should play. First catching the eye with Garryowen and then exploding onto the international scene in 1994, it was Wood's ability to burst onto the ball at full tilt that captured the imagination in an era when forwards were largely expected to trundle from set piece to set piece. By the time the 1997 Lions rolled around, Wood was at the peak of his powers and the best hooker in the world, which he made count against the Boks.
Four years later, he still had that status and was equally good against the Aussies. There have been other excellent hookers in the last 40 years, especially Brian Moore in 1989 and 1993, but Wood was in a league of his own.
There has been no outstanding tighthead to star on multiple Lions tours since 1989, although there have been some excellent performances along the way.
Not least from two Irishmen, Paul Wallace in 1997 and Tadhg Furlong in 2017 and 2021.
Wallace, in particular, chiselled out a place for himself in folklore when coming from nowhere (he was not selected in the original touring party) to make the Test side and negate the expected Springbok advantage from their leviathan loosehead 'The Ox' (Os Du Randt). Jason Leonard. Pic: Alex Livesey/Allsport via Getty Images
However, the tighthead spot goes to Wallace's fellow 1997 tourist Jason Leonard for the overall contribution he made to three separate tours between 1993 and 2001.
A specialist loosehead, Leonard developed the invaluable capacity to play tighthead as well to an elite standard – at a time when only one prop was allowed on the bench.
Having lost out to Ireland's Nick Popplewell at loosehead in 1993, who was in the form of his life in New Zealand, Leonard saw Tom Smith leapfrog him in 1997 and 2001.
But rather than mope, Leonard reinvented himself on all three occasions as a tighthead and played superbly throughout. It may not have seen him nail down the No3 jersey on the Test side but England's first centurion became hugely influential off the bench as well as radiating positivity around the squad. So much so that Ian McGeechan, the most revered of Lions head coaches, nominated Leonard as the best player he ever worked with. That is some commendation to receive.
Not only the best second row to have played for the Lions for the last 40 years, Johnson is the best of all time – higher even than the mighty Willie John McBride.
Johnson's career, which included a stint in New Zealand as a youngster, was phenomenal from start to finish and his Lions achievements rank right up there.
He was just 23 and only a few months into his England career when he was called out to join the 1993 trip to New Zealand after Wade Dooley returned home following the death of his father. He immediately went into the Saturday side, overtaking more experienced second rows and played superbly in two Tests – especially the win in Wellington. Martin Johnson. Pic:Four years later, Johnson was the leftfield selection for the tour to South Africa. Johnson was not captaining England at the time, that was being carried out by Phil De Glanville, but coach Ian McGeechan was determined to have a leader the Boks had to look up at.
It worked beautifully, as Johnson set a tone of defiance that spurred on the Lions and rattled the South Africans as the Lions secured a superb victory.
Four years later, he was the natural choice to lead again and once more captained and performed superbly. This time he had a worthy foe in Wallabies captain John Eales, who could look Johnson (6ft 7in) right in the eye.
The Lions lost but no blame could be placed at Johnson's door and he is a shoo-in for captain of this side also.
Paul O'Connell was acknowledged as one of the best second rows in the game in the mid-to-late 2000s.
He had already made his mark in a big way on the international stage by the time of the 2005 tour to New Zealand – that was the time of the whole 'Superman goes to bed in Paul O'Connell pyjamas' cult hero status among Irish supporters. However, along with almost every other member of the 2005 touring party on that damned expedition under Clive Woodward, O'Connell struggled badly on that tour. Paul O'Connell. Pic: William West/AFP via Getty Images
It was certainly not down to lack of effort but nothing seemed to work for O'Connell and, having been so consistently excellent for Munster and Ireland for the previous three years, it was weird to see him so off his game.
By the time of the next tour, O'Connell had won two European Cups with Munster and Ireland's first Grand Slam in 61 years and was determined to make up for what had gone wrong four years previously. He played superbly throughout and took the captaincy duties in his stride – earning universal approval among players and coaches for his people and inspirational skills.
Unfortunately, such leadership was not rewarded with series victory but O'Connell made a huge impression and added to his legacy with his role in 2013 – when he played well again and started the first Test win only to be then ruled out by injury.
Blindside flanker has hosted some of the finest performances we have seen in Lions red.
Lawrence Dallaglio was immense on the Lions tour to South Africa in 1997, his jaw-jutting defiance in conjunction with Martin Johnson and Tim Rodber a key factor in the Lions facing down that enormous set of Springbok forwards.
In 2001, Dallaglio got injured and Martin Corry stepped up in a big way, the Leicester backrow exceeding his peripheral status with England to become a Test star. Mike Teague. Pic: Dave Rogers/Allsport via Getty Images
Even in 2005, Simon Easterby produced some superb performances in challenging circumstances having been called up late and tour captain Sam Warburton was immense in 2017 as the Lions battled back to draw the series with New Zealand. But this No6 jersey could not go anywhere else but to 'Iron Mike' Teague for the remarkably physicality he brought to the party in 1989 and 1993.
Teague was an old-school Gloucester forward who used to train by running through the hills and streams of the Cotswolds whilst carrying large rocks.
When he was unleashed on the Wallabies in 1989, they did not know what hit them – Teague showing the way in the infamous 'Battle of Ballymore' as the Lions forwards dominated their Australian counterparts on the way to a famous win. Teague was hugely popular among his teammates and the Lions supporters and would end up being named player of the series. He featured again in 1993, coming off the bench in the second Test win over New Zealand – meaning Teague's Lions Test record reads played three, won three.
Openside has delivered some special players into the Lions jersey.
England's Peter Winterbottom was exceptionally good in 1989 and 1993, earning huge respect among Australians and New Zealanders respectively.
Neil Back was a superb contributor to three tours up to 2005, and perhaps the closest to taking this jersey away from the winner was Ireland's David Wallace in 2009. Having already starred in a cameo role in 2001, Wallace impressed throughout the 2009 trip and was locked into the Test team in the No7 jersey – with the physical presence to stand up to the Boks. Richard Hill. Pic: David Rogers/Allsport via Getty Images
But it is impossible to look anywhere else really but at Richard Hill. The ultimate undercover assassin, Hill's greatest worth was recognised when he was not available. In 2001, the Lions had cruised the first Test and were well on the way to doing the same in the second when Hill was taken out by a cheap elbow shot – from that point on, Australia wrested control of the match and the series.
Hill had already been a star performer in the 2001 triumph and in a way that never garnered the headlines.
He did not crave plaudits, he was not flashy or ego-driven, he just enjoyed working as hard as he could towards the common goal of victory and he was exceptionally good at it.
In fact, there has been none better – before or since.
The story goes that when England brought in bleep tests in the early 1990s, their veteran No8 did the first few until the bleeps got to seven, and then stopped.
He apparently informed the coaches that if they felt he wasn't getting to rucks on time they could get back to him but in the meantime he was not going to run in time to some bleeping machine – then he went off for a fag.
True or not, it speaks to a player who danced to his own tune and whilst he might not have looked the biggest, strongest or fastest forward around, Richards was an incredibly clever and effective operator, possessed of a raw natural strength, and a No8 who had the gift of always seeming to be in the right place at the right time. Dean Richards (left). Pic: INPHO/Billy Stickland
With socks rolled down and jersey hanging loose, he lured numerous opponents into a false sense of security before destroying them. As was the case on the 1989 and 1993 tours when Richards dominated his personal battles with the minimum of fuss and became a focal point for Lions forward resistance.
Notable mentions go to Tim Rodber, Scott Quinnell and Taulupe Faletau but Richardswas something special.