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« Dallaglio plants his boot up England's backside | | No substitute for pace » February 13, 2009 Posted on 02/13/2009 Rugby's biggest chokers? In one of the less industrious moments at Scrum Towers we got onto the subject of the sport's biggest chokers. Who has bottled it at the worst possible time? There was an immediate call for individual categories for those players haunted by high-profile failure and those teams to have come up short when it matters most. A debate then followed about the difference between upsets and out and out bottle-jobs that is still raging as I speak. There were plenty of submissions - here's a few we came up with but we would be delighted to hear of any others that you think are worth a mention: Scotland's Gavin Hastings, 1991 - Let us set the scene. It is the 1991 Rugby World Cup semi-final against England and the scores are locked at 6-6 with only a few minutes to play. Hastings has a relatively straightforward penalty to put his side within touching distance of the final - but he fails to hit the target and England go on to win the game. England, Five Nations, 1999 - England were heavy favourites to beat Wales at Wembley and claim the Championship title and the Grand Slam. But Wales conjured a dramatic comeback sealed with a memorable try from centre Scott Gibbs and a Neil Jenkins conversion in the closing moments. New Zealand, Rugby World Cup, 2007 - The All Blacks were odds on to sweep France aside in their quarter-final clash at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff but found their northern hemisphere rivals more than a match for them. New Zealand's failure to think on their feet and find a Plan B under pressure cost them dear. Ireland, Rugby World Cup, 1991 - Lansdowne Road erupted as Gordon Hamilton touched down to put Ireland within reach of a shock victory over Australia. Ralph Keyes added the conversion and the hosts just had to hold out for the final moments of the game. But Australia conjured a great escape with David Campese grabbing a late score. New Zealand, Rugby World Cup, 2003 - The All Blacks marched into the 2003 Rugby World Cup as most people's favourites and swept all before them until Australia threw a spanner in the works in the semi-finals with a deserved victory. The Wallabies' performance was the key to the victory but it was another example of New Zealand's failure to produce the goods when it counts. Comments
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