20 Hardest Rugby Players Of All Time

I created a list of the 20 players I think are the toughest to ever have played rugby. This list is just my opinion, and there isn't much to base the rankings on other than opinion so you may disagree especially since there are so many tough rugby players!
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Chapters:
0:00 Bismarck du Plessis
0:48 Mamuka Gorgodze
1:22 Juan Smith
2:02 Sebastien Chabal
3:16 Michel Palmie
3:29 Alain Esteve
3:44 Willie John McBride
4:01 Lewis Moody
5:29 Martin Johnson
6:04 Bakkies Botha
6:49 Jerry Collins
7:52 Graham Price
8:45 Colin Meads
9:18 Richie McCaw
10:09 Kevin Skinner
12:28 Schalk Burger
13:20 Gerard Cholley
13:55 Jacques Burger
15:43 'Paddy' Mayne
16:08 'Buck' Shelford

[@RugbyManual]

0:00 Bismarck du Plessis He would drive to training with a pillow under his arm to help ease the pain of a serious neck injury 0:48 Mamuka Gorgodze Legend of Georgian rugby, played in 4 Rugby World Cups 1:22 Juan Smith Came back out of retirement in 2013 after recovering from an achilles injury and played another 4 years. 2:02 Sebastien Chabal Famous for his intimidating look 3:16 Michel Palmie This quote from 'Rugby Magazine' says it all" “punched and gouged his way from Paris to Toulouse” 3:29 Alain Esteve Esteve was known as a hard man in the days everyone was a hard man 3:44 Willie John McBride A true leader and introduced the '99' call for the 1974 Lions tour to help combat the referee not stopping on pitch violence 4:01 Lewis Moody Moody would put his body on the line for whatever team he was playing. After he returned to training from injury he was so excited he ended up fighting with Martin Johnson. 5:29 Martin Johnson England's enforcer of the late 90s and early 2000s 6:04 Bakkies Botha A brutal 'enforcer' even with all the cameras. Eddie Jones tells a story of how ahead of a match against England Botha was headbutting the changing room wall to hype himself up. 6:49 Jerry Collins Many say he was the toughest player they have ever faced. Definitely one of the hardest hitters ever. 7:52 Graham Price One of the Pontypool front row 'Viet Gwen' 8:45 Colin Meads One of the greatest rugby players of all time. Also Broke his arm in a match and played on - that's pretty tough. 9:18 Richie McCaw 148 caps for New Zealand. One of the greatest rugby players of all time. Often targeted by the opposition but just kept playing. Broke his foot early on in the 2011 RWC and played through it. 10:09 Kevin Skinner Otago Heavyweight Boxing Champion 1946, New Zealand Heavyweight Boxing Champion 1947. He was the most capped All-Black ever when he retired. Came out of retirement to face the Springboks in 1956 and helped win the series. 12:28 Schalk Burger Doctors said he may never play again after a serious neck injury. He made a full recovery and played for another 13 years! In 2013 he was extremely ill with bacterial meningitis after a calf operation, amazingly he made a full recovery once again. 13:20 Gerard Cholley Voted the most frightening french rugby player of all time in 2006 in the Sunday Times. Played against Wales in 1976 with a 39-degree fever after taking lots of vitamin C tablets he was so pumped for the match he punched a hole in the ceiling. Would switch sides scrummaging to ‘sort out any problems'! 13:55 Jacques Burger Had over 60 injuries in his last 3 years of rugby.Two double cheekbone reconstructions, 3 shoulder surgeries, 9 or 10 on his right knee. One of the hardest hitters in rugby. 15:43 'Paddy' Mayne I'd highly recommend you read about his military career and antics on the 1938 Lions tour! 16:08 'Buck' Shelford Served in the royal navy for 10 years. Incredible toughness to play through injuries.

[@edeledeledel5490]

Never heard of JPR Williams?

[@gandigooglegandigoogle7202]

Chabal is my favorite !! what a monster !

[@keithm6252]

Sébastien Chabal was a beast 🔥 🔥 ....strange not to see the Tuilagi brothers and Eben Etzebeth on the list .

[@Mzansi74]

All excellent choices. What I like is that this does not go back to the professional era either. The 1974 Lions had many hard guys and that's why they managed to smash us, with Willie John McBride at the helm! After RWC 2023, Eben Etzebeth and Pieter-Steph du Toit also qualify! 🙂

[@GreetTheSacredCow]

Chabal without his long hair and beard seemed harder to see coming. We was surprisingly rapid for a giant.

[@grillo6570]

I know, it's impossible remember every great players in 20 name. But Jonah Lomu (196 cm, 120 kg, 100m in 10.70s) isn't a classic dancer. I remember 5 Wales players cutted down as ninepins. Forgot Lomu talking about beast of rugby is as talking about football palyers and forget Maradona.

[@zIJarIz]

i really enjoyed the part with lomu in it...

[@faampie]

what about Etzebeth, Pieter-Steph du Doit, Malcolm Marx, Duane Vermeulen ?

[@Enoch940]

Very true. All tough top tallent.

[@peteohead]

Wade Dooley, Mick the Munch Skinner

[@ljawgtn1393]

Buck Shelford / Colin Meads / Richie McCaw- Legends RIP Jerry Collins

[@faustinot9313]

Henry tuilagi ate chabal and burger!😮

[@tane1mahuta1]

Daylight between 2nd and Buck!

[@PatNetherlander]

My all-time favorites: Bakkies Botha, Chabal and Eben Etzebeth. They all were/are intimidating as hell!

[@stevewylie4873]

Buck …… yeah then my arm fell off, and I lost an eye, then I had a pint 😂

[@conormcatarsney141]

Man running round with his ballbag ripped open like it's nothing.

[@sjmarham]

For a fly half, Wilkinson never shied away from a tackle, and was never scared to go into rucks. Ill throw a left ball out here and given his size and stature, Nigel Owens ruled the pitch. You could probably add Winterbottom to the list.

[@rikrikiai49]

Nice, but where is Olivier Merle, the man and half , the Massif Central ???

[@avhovanheerden]

And the winner...... The INCREDIBLE SCALK

[@dazeng4633]

Champion eye gouger

[@chrisgopsill3961]

Gotta be POC, Mike Teague, Micky the Munch Skinner and Chabal

[@maureenthomas9758]

Back in the 50s rh williams was considered by the new zealand public as the greatest forward to visit their shores. Colin meades said he was one of the toughest men he came across

[@JasonGHarding]

Holy shit, I got goosebumps seeing all these players around early 2000's! I totally forgot about them, like Martin Johnson, Jerry Collins, Spencer, Lewis Moody and so on.. What a great time for Rugby that was! I dont think we've had that calibre ever since sadly. Fuck, goosebumps just typing this out 🤣 Love from South Africa!

[@michaelrawiri]

Jerry Collins, the terminator RIP brother

[@charliepepper3039]

Jacques Burger and Jerry Collins were the hard men of this lot.

[@jamiew1286]

Totally agree, mate.

[@jjbomber2006]

Blair Paddy Maine. Just Google him if you don't know.

[@petermaunsell4575]

Steve Fenwick. Scary as.

[@robertlayte61]

Danny Grewcock Julian White Fred Tuilagi Keith Wood Brian Moore Mick Skinner

[@Enoch940]

You funny, not one mentioned on your list should be concidered.

[@derekallan1341]

thank you for that. That's for the angels that rip off the Boks. One thing I can say is that Dalton playing against the lions said to Wood, "Keith if you come around the short side here I am going to kill you" The referee said to Wood when he appealed "Keith you must believe him". This is so funny.

[@WAN-ox4lk]

A ridiculous list. It shows how they are unaware of South American rugby by not mentioning the greatest fly half of all time: The great Hugo Porta, mentioned as the best in the world on 4 occasions

[@kaneelliott9104]

love that you put jerry collins making chabal shit himself and throw the ball away

[@faustinot9313]

1 name....Henry the butcher tuilagi😮

[@sandyn3384]

Sebastien without a shirt holy cow😮😍💥

[@pierrewepener3938]

Frik du Preez 1938 (Sringboks), Jona Lomo (All Blacks)!

[@willemp6432]

Jerry Collins could only go high.

[@davekenny8292]

What absolute bullshit. How many red cards?

[@guydavies3035]

You confuse hard with dirty. Many dirty players are actually not hard at all, but play dirty to compensate. Several of the South African players listed here would fall into that category.

[@Enoch940]

Crybaby

[@daviddempster8717]

Different era guy

[@derekallan1341]

and you have got plenty. Go back to your bar stool in the pub in the dunce corner

[@JohnSmith-oe5kx]

Which ones? Botha was a dirty prick but also as hard they come.

[@MrSuperdave75]

Most Saffers are dirty.

[@ramonpalacios9342]

What about Brian Lima?

[@darrendavies1780]

Good shout 👏

[@hoggiegaming1749]

POM but in the non conventional way fella chats major shit and is made of granite

[@SomeBizarretaSomeBizzareLabel0]

[@kubinka879]

Collins leading with the shoulder every time!

[@FOE-LEKA]

Chabal- the Jonah Lomu of Europe

[@ronita6917]

Collins was the best in Rugby 08

[@maxdeist497]

What about Eben Etzebeth

[@MrSuperdave75]

Dirty not hard

[@derekallan1341]

@@MrSuperdave75 talk crap. He is as hard as any other player playing today. You guys just don't have a lock as good as him so you try play the dirty trick. You make mw want to weep with you passing comments from your wendy house. Maybe even the balcony with the 2 old men in the muppets.

[@doge8748]

He was too good for the list 😂

[@juicygaming1400]

@@MrSuperdave75 u dirty

[@juicygaming1400]

@@MrSuperdave75 what abt the guy that knocked out 2 guys by punching them in one mach 😂, is that not dirty 😂

[@patjolly]

No Jean-Pierre Rives? I'd definitely have him ahead of Cheater

[@wilburburger6155]

Glad to see two Burger cousins!

[@Trajan2401]

Can't believe you left Keith Murdoch out he would easily be number 1 even Richard Loe and Eric Champ

[@fazertace6837]

The dirty ba**ard booted one of my countrymen full force up the arse when he was on all fours when Llanelli played the AB’s in 1972. Also smashed a bar up and got arrested at the function laid on in the evening. Left Wales, went to Oz, never seen again!

[@YallNotWhite_YourPINK]

Lmao nah buck is tougher

[@johnryan1479]

How about Dr. Jerry Welsh. Hardest back that Ireland has ever produced alongside Brian O Driscoll

[@derekallan1341]

go look for loe and murdoch and where they feature in AB folk lore. One of them through his foul play has disappeared. They do not and why????? Because they were far dirtier than all the Boks that you boys mention in your chats, They instigated the you do it to me, I will do it to you and all of you climb onto it

[@desertkc2413]

broo you forget about lomu

[@michaelschultz3230]

Jerry Collins is a shotgun brought to a pistol duel

[@castlegolfer]

A hard man list without Peter 'The Claw' Clohessy is not a hard man list !

[@cathalodiubhain5739]

I was waiting to see him myself.

[@siorac69]

Jean-Pierre Rives

[@davidloughton9291]

Fucking brilliant 👍🏻

[@chrisgopsill3961]

Oh and throw in Dean Richards too

[@zarg64]

OMG Alain Esteve & Michel Palmie so terific players !

[@davitoga6427]

Team Beziers 70's Esteve , Palmie , Vaquerin , Paco

[@antipropo461]

Of 21st century maybe but all time? Colin Meads would be in the top 10.

[@dundundun4242]

You left me off this list

[@jacqloock]

Kevin Skinner - unadulterated Kiwi cheating

[@JohnWilliams-fk3hb]

Imagine not having Paddy mayne as number 1 😂. Even Buck would shit his grits. Only one who would give him a good go is Cholley and he loses.

[@CandaAhar]

supercool

[@qubitmusictechnology]

Chabal eats all them for breakfast, then shits out their bones, then eats their bones for lunch. vive Chabal................

[@anthonywilliams8087]

No JPR? 😮

[@danmcbmusic]

exactly

[@battievandermerwe9121]

Nice to see Mcbride and Meades on the list - there was a guy who kept both of them in check in that era - He is Frik du Preez...... The whole Skinner thing was the result of the All Blacks losing the '37 series and getting whitewashed 4 -0 in '49. Prior to this test the series was in the balance at 1 test each, and the SA forwards dominating. New Zealand HAD to win the series in 1956, come hell or high water! Well, they chose to cheat.... As per Don Clark in the interview here, Jaap Bekker put him down in the scrum twice, confirming superior scrummaging power, before, as Skinner claims, he had to "sort" him out. He even switched sides to get to Chris Koch and punched some of the other forwards in the line-outs. His behaviour sparked the violence that resulted during the whole test, including what happened to Tiny White. Scrummaging and line-outs, where physical prowess can bring dominance, are part and parcel of the game - punching, or attacking players are not! Why was Skinner not selected for the first wo tests? Maybe because he wasn't good enough as a straight forward rugby player - or maybe because he had other skills? He was available - he was selected with specific instructions. And then Skinner had the audacity to hand his All Black tie back in objection to the selection of Richard Loe because of his dirty play.....Funny man! Hard and dirty play are two diffrent things and should never be confused. The All Blacks seem to have a history to cheat in order to get the desired result. In 1981 the situation was the same as in 1956 - 16 years since a last series victory against SA in 1965, having lost in 1970 (ending tha All Blacks all conquering 5 year run)and 1976. The same thing happened in 1981 when Fraser attacked Gysie Pienaar in the first test which they won narrowly, to be annhialated in the second test, and then RESCUED in the final test by a lunatic referee. With the scores being equal - the clown did the following: he played 12 minutes extra time, changed an SA scrum feed to a free kick to the All Blacks, then the free kick to penalty, which was converted, and blew the final whistle! Unfortunately the results are in the books. Not the type of bragging rights one should aspire to

[@mikedavies5551]

Where are the hardest players? Plenty of dirty tacklers and blind siders.

[@redrust3]

No Tuilagis?

[@user-bt1cl4ex6d]

Gorgodze should be higher

[@MTT-ic3ci]

Wayne BUCK Shelford is the hardest man to ever put on a rugby jersey, make chabal look like a school girl.

[@Stefaans007]

Best ever = Richie McCaw Hardest i've ever seen = Jacques Burger

[@johnnykilv]

Cheap shots on defenceless players don’t make a Hard Man. Paul O’Connell made mincemeat of Bakkies Botha when they had a set too.

[@derekallan1341]

really?? Show us and lets see who is the best enforcer at that time. MINCE MEAT???? You are a joke. Even when Bakkies was on the ground and was being kicked he always stood up. Go talk to the leprechaun with a glass of guinness. Bakkie stood back foR NOBODY. If you don't know that then you don't know rugby from that period

[@derekallan1341]

were you watching from your wendy house. Maybe your dollies tod you that

[@jacqloock]

Oh BS. No-one ever ‘got’ Bakkies.

[@battievandermerwe9121]

Johnny English, or is it Irish? You're way funnier than Johnny English

[@MrDjplanta]

jonah Lomu ?

[@pedro1707]

Maine.....easily

[@samwlloyd]

Hahahah Lewis Moody was a bummmm! Always hitting people late or from behind. Dirty player yes hard no way.

[@mungogerryjnr]

Mark “Cowboy” Shaw Would eat the lot of em for dinner Seems only hard men are after 2000

[@ovinisorovakatini3350]

Mad dog got a bloody nose from the samoans😅😅😅😅😅😅😅

[@PandA-yx5ne]

Mickey Skinner.

[@raymcevoy7063]

Ehh how come we didn't see Rocky Elsom this is a joke!

[@sucellus5452]

and the winner is lomu seriously...

[@luvomhlakaza6513]

U write something if he's from earop

[@philthefluter1]

Gotta laugh , as if one could ever pick the hardest

[@ivano4773]

No Sean o Brien either lol it's a joke !

[@luizsilveira9518]

Bakkies at 11th? Wtf

[@fazertace6837]

Buck Shelford is the greatest ever AB.

[@manuelbelisario4548]

TESTOSTERONE PRIDE 100%

[@lennybars8639]

Beaucoup de scènes me rappellent le rugby de mon enfance, où on pouvait se foutre sur la gueule,avec moi ça partait direct j'étais pas là pour faire du social, c'est pas comme aujourd'hui où même ma grand mère peut jouer,plus aucun intérêt, autant faire du curling

[@jeromesanchez1862]

You forgot Jean Barthe, (the butcher)

[@charlesabraham1474]

wheres the greatest hitter , mr world cup. the chiropractor ffs. bs list

[@nicdelange2900]

Shes rude....

[@nicdelange2900]

😂 all these tackles was ball and man together. No best or hardest rugby players. I can name a couple all over rugby country in the world that will be better..... and harder. No protection...... rugby is the hardest sport ever. Love rugby.

[@letsssgooo4618]

Now just add a bunch of dudes on roids lol. Looks funny seeing these old videos with skinny dudes

[@nicdelange2900]

😂😂😂😂😂😂 and u to old now. Enjoy ur youg men mam....

[@petet5401]

I thought this video would be something to watch.......what a disappointment! It's not even remotely accurate. Missing are the benchmark Pacific Islanders!

[@edwardstroud8245]

Soth Africans think their hard but actually just dirty cheap shots most of the time.

[@silversolver7809]

Yep, it was always so-Boks, and the French for a while too. Latest Bok 'toughness' last weekend, dirty cheap shot on Harry Byrne from behind-only got a yellow, we need reds for this kind of thuggery if rugby is to hold its head high as an honorable sport.

[@naidoo307]

Not so sure boys ,takes a bit more than cheap shots to win three Rugby world cups 😮😅

[@edwardstroud8245]

@@naidoo307 true, but I’ll say this - England should have won the last World Cup imho. Instead they came out and played a piss boring percentage game. Boks played the final like England did against kiwis in the semis - no fear and went for it. That’s a mind set in the English game at grass roots - fear of taking risks when it really counts. Interesting that the only time England have won the World Cup was under Clive Woodward, who was a back, not a bloody forward 😆

[@silversolver7809]

@@naidoo307 "takes a bit more than cheap shots to win three Rugby world cups" Oh no question there, Boks were always a top team, as well as being dirty. It aggravates me more when good teams are dirty-ie they don't need to be to win, but do it anyway. Same with the old French, a beautiful skillful side to watch, but thugs for about a decade or so.

[@markbrown-sb2zm]

Where is Henry Tuilagi, Jonah Lomu,Scott Gibbs,Jean Francois Tordo,Andre Venter, Malcolm Marx,Mark Andrews,Henry Honiball,Duane Vermeulen,Corne Krige, Dougie Heymans, Dale Santon,Wahl Bartmann,Ruben Kruger ?

[@nyquist_control]

None of the Tuilagis? Not even a single Islander? what a disappointing list, if you even want to call it that