#4. James Ryan (Ireland)
World ranking 2020 via Wales Online: #37 – “Without always being at his best, he’s still shown he’s a class act for Ireland and Leinster with some dominant line-out displays and eye-catching effort around the field.”
How it turned out: Not that long ago, Ryan was nailed on to start the Tests for the Lions and appeared in numerous pundits World XV, which makes the locks drop off in form all the more surprising.
Ryan made a very poor start to the Six Nations with Devin Toner and Iain Henderson preferred by Andy Farrell as the tournament went on.
Certainly still has a lot of potential but 2021 has been a big backwards step in his overall development.
DID YOU KNOW? He is the Great Grandson of Irish Politician and Easter Rising Revolutionary James Ryan