1, 999 caps: The most capped Test rugby XV of all time - by position
- 16976
Another international test window has come and gone.
A thrilling and historic July test window saw new additions to the test centurion club, and we take a look at what the most capped Test XV, by position of all time, now looks like.
1. Gethin Jenkins, 134 caps (Wales/British and Irish Lions)
The most capped loosehead in the game, Jenkins was regarded as one of the best looseheads in the game during his career.
He made 129 appearances for Wales and added 5 test caps to his tally with the British and Irish Lions.
Ireland prop Cian Healy took his tally to 118 test caps in New Zealand while Wallabies' prop James Slipper will look to add to his 117 during the Rugby Championship.
2. Keven Mealamu, 132 (New Zealand)
Mealamu tops an impressive list of hookers that have made over 100 appearances for their nation. The former All Black played his 132nd and final test in the 2015 Rugby World Cup final against Australia.
Stephen Moore came close to the All Blacks' tally making 129 appearances while Rory Best made his 124th appearance in his final game for Ireland.
3. Martin Castrogiovanni, 119 Italy
Castrogiovanni made a name for himself as one of the premier scrummagers in the game and enjoyed a long stint in the Italian nation jersey featuring 119 times for his adoptive country.
Owen Franks took his tally to 108 test caps before his test career came to an end.
England and Lions legend Jason Leonard also played 119 test during his career featuring on both sides of the scrum but Castrogiovanni gets the nod having played the majority of his career on the tighthead side.
4. Alun Wyn Jones, 165* (Wales/British and Irish Lions)
Alun Wyn Jones took his test cap tally to 165 in Wales' third test match against the Springboks in Cape Town.
He has featured 12 times in the Red of the British and Irish Lions and is now comfortably the most capped international with a 17 cap buffer over former All Blacks' captain Richie McCaw.
France's Fabien Pelous, Ireland's Paul O'Connell, Italy's Marco Bortolami and Portugal's Gonçalo Uva are among the other Northern Hemisphere second rowers who have racked up over 100 appearances for their country.
|
|
5. Sam Whitelock, 134* (New Zealand)
Sam Whitelock overtook Victor Matfield's tally of 127 test caps in October last year and is now closing in on McCaw for the most capped All Black tag.
He earned his 134th test cap in the defeat to Ireland in the third test in New Zealand.
6. Michael Hooper, 121 (Australia)
The youngest Wallaby to reach the 100 test cap mark, Michael Hooper is now the second most capped flanker of all time.
The Wallabies' captain still seems to have plenty left in the tank and at the age of 30, he may well be targeting the 150 test cap mark.
Alessandro Zanni represented Italy 119 times during a career that lasted 16 years with his first test coming against Tonga in 2004 and his last during the Rugby World Cup in Japan.
7. Richie McCaw, 148 (New Zealand)
The second most capped player of all time Richie McCaw captained the All Blacks for most of his career winning two World Cups, and countless Bledisloe Cups and became the first player to win 100 test matches and has won more games as captain than any other player.
8. Sergio Parisse, 142* (Italy)
The most capped Italian of all time! Sergio Parisse also became the first player to captain his country in 50 Six Nations matches in the final round of the 2019 Six Nations against France.
Parisse has put off retirement three times since the 2019 Rugby World Cup, the last time he featured for Italy, but we may still see him represent the Azzuri after he signed on another season at Toulon.
9. George Gregan, 139 (Australia)
One of the greatest scrum-halves to have graced the game, Gregan is currently the fifth most capped player of all time turning out 139 times for the Wallabies, winning the World Cup in 1999.
During his time with the Wallabies, the side won two Tri-Nations.
Gregan's record as the most capped scrumhalf isn't in any danger at the moment with Ben Youngs the most capped active scrumhalf in world rugby right now (119).
10. Ronan O’Gara, 130 (Ireland/British and Irish Lions)
O'Gara tops an impressive list of flyhalves who have made over 100 appearances for his country. The Irish International earned 130 test caps (128 for Ireland, 2 for the British and Irish Lions).
O'Gara won 1 Grand Slam, four Triple Crowns and Six Nations in 2009. He was also a tourist on three Lions Tours and was inducted in the World Rugby Hall of Fame.
Dan Carter, Stephen Jones, Stephen Larkham and Matt Giteau all made over 100 appearances for their country.
11. Bryan Habana, 124 (South Africa)
The most prolific Springbok try scorer of all time, Habana burst onto the test scene scoring off the bench at Twickenham and went to score 67 tries in 124 tests for South Africa winning the 2007 World Cup, a Tri-Nations and a Lions Series.
George North could take Habana's place in seasons to come, even though he has made the move into the centres. He is currently on 108 test caps.
12. Florin Vlaicu, 129* (Romania)
Vlaicu made his test debut back in 2006 against Ukraine and has set a few records over his career including the most capped Romanian player and Romania's top points scorer in Rugby World Cups (28).
He is also the only Tier 2 player to have scored 1000 points in test rugby. Georgia's Davit Kacharava is not far off the Romanian with 122 test caps.
13. Brian O’Driscoll, 141 (Ireland/British and Irish Lions)
The fourth most capped player of all time, O'Driscoll retired from test rugby in 2014 with 141 test caps. Regarded as one of the greatest of the game, O'Driscoll won two Six Nations titles, four Triple Crowns and a Grand Slam. O'Driscoll went on four Lions tours and captained the side in 2005.
His long list of awards includes: The 6 Nations All-time Top try scorer, Three-time 6 Nations Player of the tournament and was shortlisted for the World Player of the Award three times.
14. Adam Ashley-Cooper, 121 (Australia)
Australia's 'Mister Fix It' made his return to the test set up for the Rugby World Cup in 2019.
Ashley-Cooper scored 39 tries in 121 tests for the Wallabies and has featured on the wing, fullback and at outside-centre for the national side.
Ashley-Cooper played in all but four of the 56 Tests played between 2008 and 2011.
He brought the curtain down on a 16-year professional playing career that saw him attend four World Cups for the Wallabies between 2005 and 2019.
15. Yuri Kushnarev, 120 (Russia)
A seasoned international, Yuri Kushnarev recently brought an end to his test career with Russia turning out for the 120th time. Kushnarev was a mainstay in the Russian test team featuring at fullback and flyhalf.
He is Russia’s most decorated player, after picking up silverware with several clubs during his career, including 11 Russian Championships and two European Rugby Continental Shields.
He beats Merab Kvirikashvili to a place in the side with the Georgian racking up 115 test caps. Chris Paterson is the most capped Tier one fullback with 109 caps for Scotland.
The Full XV
