Bill Beaumont ranks the five greatest Lions of all-time

Each judge was asked to choose their own top 50 Lions, and rank them in order of preference

Points were then attributed to each judge's choices on the following basis: 50pts for their No1 choice, 49pts for their No2 choice, and so on down to 1pt for their No50 choice

 The scores from each judge were then collated to give a final, definitive Guardian list

Position: Fly-half
Tours: 1968, 1971  
Test record: P5 W2 D1 L2

They wrote: 'The Wales outside-half was dubbed the King after his exploits in New Zealand in 1971, although the adulation was such that in less than a year he announced his retirement aged 27.'

Position: Fullback
Tours: 1971, 1974  
Test record: P8 W5 D2 L1

They wrote: 'Williams had many qualities: his bone-shuddering tackling, his strength with the ball and his ability to time his entry into the line, but kicking drop goals was not thought one of them until the final Test of the 1971 series against New Zealand when he scored from 45 metres to help secure a series-winning draw.'

Position: Lock
Tours: 1993, 1997, 2001  
Test record: P8 W4 D0 L4

They wrote: 'It is sometimes overlooked that the Leicester lock had never captained his country prior to being picked to lead the 1997 party. In that respect the Lions played a major part in shaping the man who went on to hoist the World Cup in 2003.'

Position: Lock
Tours: 1962, 1966, 1968, 1971, 1974  
Test record: P17 W5 D3 L9

They wrote: 'Some fine players have never represented the Lions; Willie-John went on a record-equalling five tours, won a record 17 Lions Test caps and will forever be remembered among the game’s most illustrious captains. A key member of the successful tours in 1971 and 1974, the Ulsterman was a lock forward of rare strength whose on-field intensity brought the best out of those around him.'

Position: Scrum-half
Tours: 1968, 1971, 1974  
Test record: P10 W5 D3 L2

They wrote: 'The Wales scrum-half was the key threat in his country’s golden era. The winner in our Guardian poll, Edwards was in the top five selection of 11 of our 12 panelists.'