Good Morning Britain host Piers Morgan has selected his 10 top English sportsman of all-time.
The 55-year-old, who was responding to a list from popular sports journalist Henry Winter, included a variety of characters from a range of different sports from darts to rugby.
Morgan controversialy has left out Jonny Wilkinson.
It doesn’t matter if you know absolutely nothing about rugby, you know about Wilkinson. In 2003, the fly-half famously scored a drop-kick in the last minute of the final to win the Rugby World Cup for the first time in England’s history.
He also has 91 appearances and nearly 1,200 points for his country, being recognised as one of the best rugby union players of all time.
However, Morgan has opted to select Martin Johnson among his top 10 instead.
So without further ado, let’s take a look at who Piers did name among his English sporting elite.
Here are Piers Morgan’s 10 top English sportsmen:
- Sir Ian Botham (Cricket)
- Lennox Lewis (Boxing)
- Lewis Hamilton (Formula One)
- Sir Steve Redgrave (Rowing)
- Paul Gascoigne (Football)
- Daley Thompson (Decathlon)
- Sir Mo Farah (Running)
- Phil Taylor (Darts)
- Sir Nick Faldo (Golf)
- Martin Johnson (Rugby)
Piers Morgan names his dream XV – and fans hate it
Piers Morgan has picked his all-time greatest – an said that it’s impossible to argue with his selection.
It’s fair to say they have following the omission of legends such as Joost van der Westhuizen, Jonny Wilkinson, Willie John McBride and many more legends.
Read on to see who Morgan selected in his all-time rugby XV.
Loosehead-prop: Os du Randt (South Africa)
One of the great figures of Springbok rugby, the loosehead-prop is a true legend of not just the World Cup, but the game itself. A powerful scrummager who had a strong work rate around the field, du Randt was rarely outplayed by any opposition.
It was the 1995 World Cup where he first excelled and will be best remembered for, before tirumphing again with the Springboks in 2007. The final against England was the last game he would ever play, retiring straight afterwards.
DID YOU KNOW? In 2000, at the age of 27, Du Randt suffered injuries that kept him out of rugby for nearly three years
Hooker: Sean Fitzpatrick (New Zealand)
He is widely regarded as one of the greatest players to grace the game. A devastating combination of awesome physicality, impressive ball skills and tactical awareness saw him make 92 appearances for New Zealand, 51 of which were as captain.
DID YOU KNOW? He was part of two of the finest frontrow combinations in rugby history, firstly with Steve McDowell and Richard Loe, and secondly with Craig Dowd and Olo Brown
Tighthead-prop: Graham Price (Wales)
Remembered for scoring a stunning 70 yard try on his debut against France, Graham Price helped Wales to Grand Slams in 1976 and 1978 before retiring in 1983. Price was in the Lions squads that toured New Zealand in 1977, South Africa in 1980 and New Zealand in 1983.
DID YOU KNOW? In 2012 Price made a cameo appearance as himself in an episode of the UK comedy drama Stella
Lock: Martin Johnson (England)
Iconic England legend Johnson is widely regarded as one of the greatest locks to have ever played the game.
He famously led England to glory at the 2003 Rugby World Cup and also captained the British & Irish Lions in 1997 and 2001 – the first player to have ever led the elite tourists twice. In a glittering career, Johnson was also part of two Grand Slam-winning England sides in 1995 and again as the Skipper in 2003.
DID YOU KNOW? Johnson was awarded an OBE by The Queen in 1997 but later honoured with a CBE in the aftermath of England’s Rugby World Cup triumph in 2003.
Lock: John Eales (Australia)
Perfect is a hard word to describe someone as but John Eales was not far off. He had pretty much every skill the modern-day rugby play requires and was a born match winner. A true Australian sporting legend, Eales won two World Cups and played 86 times for his country, 55 times as captain.
Rarely for a forward, he was also a goal-kicker, with his most memorable strike being a sideline penalty goal in the final minutes of a 2000 test to win the Bledisloe Cup against New Zealand.