RUCK's Rugby Badge Quiz – #1

Rugby Quizes

by Rugby Rucker

Tuesday, 27 October 2020 at 14:02

byRugby Rucker

Add as a preferred source on Google

From the multiple choices below each badge, you have to correctly identify the club to which each belongs. See? Dead easy.

Where Are They Now? 5 English Wonderkids Who Never Reached Their Potential

grayscale rock climber youtube thumbnail 3 1 1

I decided to look into five England players careers I felt didn’t match up to the ability they showed when they were younger.

This could be if a player fell by the wayside due to form or injuries or if a player's career never achieved the success it warranted. Hope you enjoy the read!

1. Matthew Tait

Making his debut against Wales, when the then-18-year-old was repeatedly dumped by Welsh centre Gavin Henson is infamous. That day would set back Tait’s development significantly, but he still played in the Rugby World Cup in 2007. After a quiet tournament, Tait lit up the final against South Africa with a dashing break that led to Mark Cueto’s infamously disallowed try.

But if Tait’s footwork in the final demonstrated his talent, he was never able to demonstrate that consistently on the biggest stage. Shifts from outside centre, to wing and then to full-back stunted his progress and were indicative of a possible star whose versatility worked against him ultimately.

2. Olly Barkley

The wonderkid won 23 caps for England between 2001 and 2008, and such was his early reputation that he featured for England before his club debut with Bath. A graceful left-footer able to play at fly-half or inside-centre, Barkley should have been a mainstay in the England midfield after the retirement of Will Greenwood.

The strange thing about Barkley is that it is hard to say where it all went wrong. Although he was never blessed with great pace, the playmaker kicked well from the tee and out of hand, was a fine distributor and hardly a weak player in defence. He is possibly the biggest mystery of English rugby from the 2000s.

3. James Simpson-Daniel

The Gloucester legend was always a fan favourite and narrowly missed out on selection for the 2003 World Cup, despite being involved in the all-conquering England team that dominated in the southern hemisphere during the 2002 Autumn Internationals.

Although heralded as a potential world-class wing, injury constantly blighted his career and numerous England head coaches looked to other options ahead of him. He ended his career with a pitiful 10 caps, but it could have and should have been so much more.

4. Ollie Smith

Sir Clive Woodward tipped the centre to be a global superstar towards the end of his England reign. Although he was initially ignored by Andy Robinson, Smith came into the reckoning for the 2005 Six Nations and was named as part of an enlarged British and Irish Lions squad in 2005.

However, Smith struggled to nail down a regular spot in England squads and he left Leicester Tigers in 2008 after a loss of form. He played for Montpellier for two seasons and then came back to England with Harlequins before retiring in 2012 after a knee injury.

5. Anthony Allen

The then Gloucester wonderkid made his England debut against New Zealand on 5 November 2006, aged 20, partnering Newcastle Falcons' Jamie Noon in the centre.

Allen received multiple stitches in his mouth halfway through that first half after being hit in the face by his New Zealand opposite number, but Allen was dropped after they lost 25–18 to Argentina. This would prove to be his final England cap.

He was often a feature in England squads or Saxons squads afterwards, but his consistent club was never rewarded with a starting berth for England.