England fly half Jonny Wilkinson puts in a match winning man of the match performance against New Zealand during his nation’s win over the All Blacks at Twickenham in November 2002.
One fan wrote: “No fly-half has ever been as good as Wilkinson was at this stage of his career. Carter took the #1 spot when Jonny dropped off after 2003 due to non-stop injuries but no one has ever been as good as 2001-2003 Wilkinson.”
A second viewer commented: “Sometimes I think yes he was good very good, one off the best but, come on, he is bit overrated by the English, and then I see a video of him again…”
Another fan wrote: “Happy memories of when JW was at his peak. Sadly a succession of injuries circumscribed his chances, but he remains a very fine player who did England proud.”
- 0:00 – Wilkinson nails his first penalty.
- 0:12 – Wilkinson breaks through the defence and gains his side 30 metres.
- 0:24 – Wilkinson punts New Zealand back into their own half from his right boot.
- 0:34 – Wilkinson hits a sweetly struck drop goal.
- 0:39 – Wilkinson stops hooker Andrew Hore on the gainline.
- 0:42 – Wilkinson slots another tricky 3 points.
- 0:50 – Wilkinson steps past a defender and draws the winger Jonah Lomu excellently to set up a try for Lewis Moody.
- 1:00 – Wilkinson throws a “lovely floated pass” to give a chance for Mike Tindall run out wide.
- 1:07 – Wilkinson shows great vision to spot the absence of a full back in the New Zealand defence and chip over and score a great try.
- 1:19 – Wilkinson hammers another good punt kick.
- 1:28 – Wilkinson puts another huge kick to put New Zealand back in their half again.
- 1:39 – Wilkinson is awarded man of the match.
Jonny Wilkinson match winning performance vs New Zealand 2002
Jonny Wilkinson facts:
- Wilkinson’s brother, Mark, was also a Newcastle player who made 16 appearances in the Premiership for the side between 2002 and 2005, predominantly as a centre. His father, Phil, was a rugby player and cricketer, and his mother, Philippa, played squash at county level. His grandfather, Phil, also played football for Norwich.
- When former England centre Jeremy Guscott walked into the dressing room on the day of Wilkinson’s international debut, he thought the 18-year-old had won a competition to spend the day with the national team.
- Wilkinson followed Buddhist principles and teachings to help control his perfectionist tendencies, according to an interview he gave with The Times newspaper in 2009.
- Jonny and Shelley became parents for the first time in late 2018. They keep their private life pretty much on lockdown, but according to reports, they had a little boy called James while they were still living in France.
- Wilkinson is currently a studio pundit for ITV Sport, working on their coverage of the Six Nations Championship, Rugby World Cup and other rugby events.
Jonny Wilkinson Has Been Voted The Greatest Ever Rugby Player In History
England legend Jonny Wilkinson has been voted as the rugby’s greatest ever rugby player after a survey was conducted with more than 1000 fans participated.
Forever remembered as the man whose last-gasp drop-goal won England the Rugby World Cup by edging past the hosts in Australia in 2003.
That moment is just one highlight of a record-breaking career that has seen Wilkinson rise to one of the sport’s all-time greats.
England won 67 of the 91 games Wilkinson played in with h1im scoring an outstanding total of 1,179 points. He also holds the Rugby World Cup points record with 277.
Within the top 20 players voted by the fans, New Zealand have the most representatives with five, including the likes of Dan Carter, Richie McCaw and Zinzan Brooke.
The only player to make the list from the amateur era is Wales best ever player, and arguably the best scrum-half of all-time, Gareth Edwards.
Here is the list of the top 20 greatest ever rugby players voted by fans:
Greatest Ever Rugby Player: Top 20
20. Sergio Parisse (Italy)
19. Johnny Sexton (Ireland)
18. Jason Leonard (England)
17. Zinzan Brooke (New Zealand)
16. Sonny Bill Williams (New Zealand)
15. Lawrence Dallaglio (England)
Lawrence Dallaglio facts:
- Already a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE), he was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2008 Birthday Honours
- Warren Gatland has said that Dallaglio was “The best captain that I’ve ever been involved with.”
- He is one of a very small number of players to have won both the Rugby World Cup and Sevens World Cup
- Dallaglio married his long-time girlfriend, Alice, in 2005. They have two daughters, Ella and Josie, and a son, Enzo
- He has also received an Honorary Doctorate from Buckinghamshire New University for services to sport