British and Irish Lions Legends - England
The Best English Players to Have Played for the British Lions
Dickie Jeeps British Lions
Jeeps was selected for the 1955 Lions tour as an uncapped scrum half. However, he forced his way into the test side to win the first of the caps that would make him England’s most capped British Lion.
He played in all four tests on that tour, selected for his superb passing qualities which sparked the Lions backs. In New Zealand in 1959, Jeeps added 5 more tests to his tally, only injury in the third test keeping him out of the final test.
His final tour saw him as one of the senior players and he was once more first choice for all 4 tests, bowing out in style, captain of the Lions for his thirteenth and final test.
Fran Cotton British Lions
Prop Fran Cotton formed the Lions very own, ‘Little and Large’, show with Ian, ‘Might Mouse’, McLauchlan when they became the cornerstone of the Lions pack in 1974.
Cotton was a versatile prop, able to play both sides of the scrum and his ability in the loose was a great advantage to the Lions on his two tours of ’74 and ’77.
Famously pictured covered in mud in one of the most iconic Lions photo’s of all time, Cotton has gone on to great success off the field after setting up Cotton Traders, a sportswear company with fellow England international Steve Smith.
Cotton played in seven tests for the Lions.
Jeremy Guscott British Lions
Guscott loved the spotlight, whether it was in his modelling career, scoring a hat trick on his England debut or winning tests for the Lions.
In his debut for the Lions in the second test in Australia 1989, the Lions had the slenderest of leads over Australia with minutes left. The situation called for possession rugby, Guscott, thought differently, he chipped the ball through, re-gathered and scored the winning try.
He also grabbed the headlines in 1997, when his late drop goal sealed the 2nd Test in Durban to give the Lions an, against the odds, 18-15 win and with it the series.
Guscott played 8 times for the Lions on 3 tours, (1989, 1993, 1997).
David Duckham British Lions
A conservative England side never got the best out of David Duckham, one of the most devastating broken field runners of his era. It was left to coaching genius Carwyn James to bring his skills to the fore on the 1971 Lions tour.
In New Zealand, the back three of Gerald Davies, J.P.R. Williams and Duckham formed a great counterattacking force, which gave the All Blacks major problems in the only series they have lost to the Lions.
Although Duckham only has a single tour and three caps, his play in one of the greatest Lions teams ever marks him out as a legend.
Richard Hill British Lions
A three time tourist, Hill played at openside in the first two tests in South Africa in 1997, but his influence was most felt in the 2001 tour to Australia. Hill was tasked with clearing out Aussie flanker George Smith, who had turned ball stealing at the breakdown into an art form.
Smith was nullified with such efficiency that the Lions trounced the Aussies in the first test and were winning the second comfortably until Hill was taken out at a ruck by Nathan Grey, breaking his nose. The Lions weren’t the same after that and lost the series 2-1.
Hill was selected for the ill fated 2005 tour, but injury had taken its toll on him by that time and he only played a single test.
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