"He's finished" - 5 rugby players who've endured an AWFUL 2021

Twelve months ago the powerhouse centre was dubbed 'the next Manu Tuilagi' and was being thrust into the England midfielder for the 2021 Six Nations. He proved to be just as effective as using folk to eat soup as Eddie Jones' men levelled a record low fifth-place finish. The England boss later labelled him as 'not hungry' in a damning section of his new book. So, yeah, 2021 could have gone better.

To England fans: Marcus Smith is the shiny new Buzz Lightyear while Farrell is the Woody discarded under the bed. A dismal Six Nations followed by a forgettable Lions tour has made it a hideous 12 months for a player who was ranked as the best number 10 in the world 12 months ago. This year couldn't have gone much worse for the 29-year-old.

Not that long ago, Ryan was nailed on to start the Tests for the Lions against the Springboks and appeared in numerous pundits World XV. That is what makes the locks drop off in form all the more surprising. He looks like a poor man's Joe Launchbury right now with Iain Henderson looking twice the player. It's been a rotten year.

No offence to Tipuric, but was he at any stage the tenth best player in the world? That's what Wales Online claimed last December. Ruled out of the Lions tour before it even started with a dislocated shoulder, it hasn't been the best of years for the dynamic back-rower. He's arguably the most overrated underrated player ever.

Every year of the wingers career has been packed full of ups and downs, but 2021 proved to be be more downhill than a bobsled course. He's currently rotting in the Worcester reserves calling his old teams begging for them to take him back. I'm sorry Ash, but I think you're done.