Jason Leonard
Encyclopedia
Jason Leonard OBE
(born Barking, London
, 14 August 1968), also known as "The Fun Bus", is an English former rugby union
prop forward who held the world record for winning the most international caps until 2005, when it was surpassed by Australia's
scrum-half George Gregan
. He also held the record for total international appearances when his five caps
with the British and Irish Lions
were included until 17 June 2006, when it was overtaken by Gregan. Leonard has 119 caps (114 for England
) to Gregan's 139 with Australia, but Leonard's record as the world's most-capped forward still stands. As an England player, Leonard won the highest international accolades possible: Grand Slams
(1991, 1992, 1995 and 2003) and the 2003 Rugby World Cup
. He also won a British and Irish Lions Test series (on the 1997 tour of South Africa).
and his school teams as a youth, and as his playing talents became recognised, interest was shown by London club Saracens
, where he later moved. Later still, he moved to Harlequins
, where he stayed until his professional retirement in May 2004, making a total of 219 appearances and ending on a winning note as his team won the European Parker Pen Challenge Cup. He would have made a far greater number of club appearances if it had not been for the constant international demands of England and the British and Irish Lions.
. Leonard describes in his autobiography that the crowd were throwing oranges (among other things) at the England players. The most interesting object he saw on the pitch was a bathroom tap. England eventually won the game 25-12; it proved a baptism of fire for the young Leonard.
Leonard played his whole England career in a largely dominant pack and in his early career played with established forwards such as Brian Moore, Wade Dooley
, Dean Richards, Mick Skinner, Mike Teague
and Peter Winterbottom
. The England pack of this era helped England Rugby win much success, often playing a limited 10-man game which suited the large and physical England forwards. During this period, England won back-to-back Grand Slams in 1991 and 1992. Despite losing the opening pool match to New Zealand 18-12, England made it to the Rugby World Cup Final in 1991, losing 12-6 to pre-tournament favourites Australia. In that game, England played open rugby, like they had in the Five Nations in 1990, although it was the forward-dominated 10-man game which earlier in 1991 had won them the Five Nations Grand Slam, as well as the quarter-final against France and semi-final against Scotland. The front row of Leonard, Brian Moore and Jeff Probyn
was fearsome, and the England scrum was famously solid, with this trio able to more than hold their own against any front row in world.
Against Wales in 1992, Leonard suffered a neck injury: he experienced a numbing sensation in his right arm, but had no idea he had ruptured a vertibrae in his neck, so played out the remainder of the match. Later, he required emergency surgery, where bone from his hip had to be grafted into his neck. Leonard's career was in grave doubt, after only 10 tests. Due to brilliant surgery and his rehabilitation regime, however, he made a full recovery, winning his 11th cap against Canada at Twickenham that autumn without missing an England test. It is worth noting that in those days when the RFU was an amateur sporting body, Leonard was only compensated with a mere £800.
In 1993, Leonard was selected for his first British and Irish Lions tour to New Zealand.
no longer England head coach, the RFU appointed well-known and highly successful Bath coach Jack Rowell
as his replacement. There was much speculation amongst many established England players as to what changes the new coach would bring to the England setup, particularly one with such close ties to a successful Bath Rugby Club. Rowell claimed he would rid England of the cautious, forward-dominated 10-man game which had done so well for them earlier in the decade, and play running rugby more similar to Bath's. Leonard kept his place in the England team, which now included several new players such as Mike Catt
, Ben Clarke
, Victor Ubogu
, Steve Ojomoh
(all Bath players) and Tim Rodber
. In the 1995 Five Nations, Leonard won a record (for a prop) 38th cap for England, playing against Scotland, and the victory meant his third Grand Slam.
England held high hopes for the upcoming Rugby World Cup in South Africa. At the World Cup, England were drawn in Pool B, generally regarded as one of the easier groups in the competition. However, England experienced setbacks, gaining only narrow victories over Argentina (24-18) and Italy (27-20). In England's final pool match against Western Samoa, Leonard was rested and his record of 40 consecutive England caps ended. England won that match 44-22 and also won the subsequent quarter-final against Australia 25-22, before losing the semi-final to New Zealand 29-45 and finishing the tournament in fourth place.
In November 1996, Leonard skippered England for the first time, against Argentina at Twickenham. The game was very close, with Argentina taking a narrow lead close to full time. From a rolling maul, Leonard scored a try to level the scores, and a Mike Catt penalty won the game 20-18. The try remains Leonard's only score for England.
In the 1996-1997 season, Leonard began to play for England at tighthead prop (number 3) to make room for Leicester Tigers loosehead prop (number 1), Graham Rowntree
, and in 1997, Leonard was selected for his second British and Irish Lions tour, this time to South Africa.
In September 1997, the RFU appointed Clive Woodward as head coach. The Autumn internationals saw England playing Australia, South Africa and New Zealand. Against Australia, Leonard found himself selected at loosehead prop again, with Wasps' Will Green winning his first cap at tighthead. For the remaining two tests, Leonard was moved back to tighthead. The ability to scrummage effectively on either side of the scrum proved to be one of Leonard's great assets.
' boot and a last-minute try by Scott Gibbs
. This, however, was to be the first of four consecutive near-misses.
In the 1999 World Cup, England were drawn in Pool 2 with New Zealand, Italy and Tonga, but were knocked out of the tournament at the quarter-final stage by South Africa.
The new Millennium saw Leonard break several records; he surpassed Rory Underwood
as England's most capped player with his 86th cap against Argentina in November 2000, and 12 months later against Romania he overtook former New Zealand captain Sean Fitzpatrick
as the world's most capped forward in his 93rd appearance.
For the 2000 Autumn internationals, Leonard was dropped to the bench and replaced by Graham Rowntree. In 2001, although England had scored 28 tries in their first four Six Nations matches, they lost the fifth to Ireland after the match had been rescheduled. 2001 also saw a tour of the British and Irish Lions, coached by Graham Henry
, to Australia. The Wallabies won the Test series 2-1, but it was very much a game of two halves, as the Lions had convincingly won the first Test and were in the driving seat at half-time during the second Test in Melbourne. After this, England began to notch up regular victories against the big guns of the Southern Hemisphere (New Zealand, South Africa and Australia), culminating in the 2003 World Cup.
On 15 February 2003, Jason Leonard made history as the first ever front-row forward to make 100 international appearances when he started against France in a Six Nations clash. He was also the first Englishman and overall third (after Philippe Sella
and David Campese
) to achieve this feat. Unfortunately the burly prop forward had suffered a sad bereavement with the loss of his former club colleague Nick Duncombe
prior to the match, and the match itself was a disappointing affair as he had to leave the field after 33 minutes following a hamstring injury. However, he subsequently recovered to play a key role in securing the Grand Slam with a win over Ireland at Landsdowne Road. In August 2003 Leonard captained England for the second time in a crushing 43-9 victory over Wales at the Millennium Stadium
in Cardiff, and it was his versatility along with his proven ability and experience which earned him a spot in the World Cup Squad at Rowntree's expense.
Despite being regarded as the third-choice prop behind Phil Vickery
and Trevor Woodman
in the pecking order Leonard made appearances in all seven matches of the tournament, including the semi-final against France during which he overtook Sella as the world's most-capped player. He appeared in his second World Cup final as an extra-time substitute for Vickery and played a key role in reducing the scrummage penalty count which was high during normal time. The then coach Clive Woodward
would later write in his autobiography that Leonard's introduction was the key substitution which helped England win the match. Having been awarded an MBE
for services to Rugby earlier, his award was upgraded to an OBE after the tournament.
Leonard played one more match for England in the subsequent Six Nations Championship against Italy before announcing his retirement as the most-capped forward of all time. His farewell appearance came for the Barbarians
against England in a match at Twickenham
, being substituted after 67 minutes. He scored only his second international try in this match, meaning that he ended his career scoring as many tries against England as he had for them.
In 2007, the Barking-born carpenter and record-breaking prop forward was at last inducted into the International Rugby Hall of Fame
.
Leonard is involved in several charities. In Jan 2009 he became Lead Ambassador of the Wooden Spoon Society
, a charity for disadvantaged children and young persons that has its roots founded in rugby. In 2011, he became President of Sparks (charity)
, the children's medical research charity which funds pioneering research into conditions affecting the health of babies, children and mums-to-be.
Until 05th August 2011, when it was renamed "Southend City on Sea", a class 357 EMU
train (number 357 003) operated by c2c
on the London, Tilbury and Southend line
had the nameplate "Jason Leonard". The line serves his hometown of Barking
, Essex
.
He and his longtime partner Sandra have three children.
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(born Barking, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, 14 August 1968), also known as "The Fun Bus", is an English former rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
prop forward who held the world record for winning the most international caps until 2005, when it was surpassed by Australia's
Australia national rugby union team
The Australian national rugby union team is the representative side of Australia in rugby union. The national team is nicknamed the Wallabies and competes annually with New Zealand and South Africa in the Tri-Nations Series, in which they also contest the Bledisloe Cup with New Zealand and the...
scrum-half George Gregan
George Gregan
George Musarurwa Gregan AM is an Australian rugby union halfback who has made more appearances for his national team than any other player in the sport's history....
. He also held the record for total international appearances when his five caps
Cap (sport)
In sports, a cap is a metaphorical term for a player's appearance on a select team, such as a national team. The term dates from the practice in the United Kingdom of awarding a cap to every player in an international match of association football...
with the British and Irish Lions
British and Irish Lions
The British and Irish Lions is a rugby union team made up of players from England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales...
were included until 17 June 2006, when it was overtaken by Gregan. Leonard has 119 caps (114 for England
England national rugby union team
The England national rugby union team represents England in rugby union. They compete in the annual Six Nations Championship with France, Ireland, Scotland, Italy, and Wales. They have won this championship on 26 occasions, 12 times winning the Grand Slam, making them the most successful team in...
) to Gregan's 139 with Australia, but Leonard's record as the world's most-capped forward still stands. As an England player, Leonard won the highest international accolades possible: Grand Slams
Grand Slam (Rugby Union)
In rugby union, a Grand Slam occurs when one team in the Six Nations Championship manages to beat all the others during one year's competition...
(1991, 1992, 1995 and 2003) and the 2003 Rugby World Cup
Rugby World Cup
The Rugby World Cup is an international rugby union competition organised by the International Rugby Board and held every four years since 1987....
. He also won a British and Irish Lions Test series (on the 1997 tour of South Africa).
Club rugby
His lengthy career straddled both the amateur and professional eras and he had a job as a carpenter. He began playing for his home club, BarkingBarking RFC
Barking RFC is an English rugby union team currently playing in National League 1.- Park Modern Old Boys:The club was founded in 1930, under the name of Park Modern Old Boys. In 1926 the Park Modern School in Barking was founded and the headmaster decided that the school would play rugby, despite...
and his school teams as a youth, and as his playing talents became recognised, interest was shown by London club Saracens
Saracens F.C.
Saracens are a professional rugby union team based in St. Albans, England – although they play their home games at Vicarage Road, in Watford. They are currently members of the Aviva Premiership, the top level of domestic rugby union in England...
, where he later moved. Later still, he moved to Harlequins
Harlequin F.C.
The Harlequin Football Club is an English rugby union team who play in the top level of English rugby, the Aviva Premiership. Their ground in London is Twickenham Stoop...
, where he stayed until his professional retirement in May 2004, making a total of 219 appearances and ending on a winning note as his team won the European Parker Pen Challenge Cup. He would have made a far greater number of club appearances if it had not been for the constant international demands of England and the British and Irish Lions.
England career 1990-1994
Leonard won his first cap in a 'friendly' on 28 July 1990, against Argentina at Buenos Aires. At the age of 21 he was the youngest prop forward to ever play for England. The visitors were made to feel unwelcome, however, as the game was played on the 8th anniversary of the Falklands WarFalklands War
The Falklands War , also called the Falklands Conflict or Falklands Crisis, was fought in 1982 between Argentina and the United Kingdom over the disputed Falkland Islands and South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands...
. Leonard describes in his autobiography that the crowd were throwing oranges (among other things) at the England players. The most interesting object he saw on the pitch was a bathroom tap. England eventually won the game 25-12; it proved a baptism of fire for the young Leonard.
Leonard played his whole England career in a largely dominant pack and in his early career played with established forwards such as Brian Moore, Wade Dooley
Wade Dooley
Wade Dooley is a former England rugby union international who played lock forward. He played for his country 55 times and was known as the "Blackpool Tower", as a result of being 6 feet 8 inches tall and a police officer with Lancashire Constabulary in Blackpool.Dooley was born in Warrington,...
, Dean Richards, Mick Skinner, Mike Teague
Mike Teague
Michael Clive Teague is a former England and British Lions rugby union footballer.-Early life:Teague was born and raised on a pig farm a few miles outside Gloucester...
and Peter Winterbottom
Peter Winterbottom
Peter James Winterbottom , is a former England rugby union footballer who played as an openside flanker. He was England's most-capped openside until being overtaken by Neil Back in 2003...
. The England pack of this era helped England Rugby win much success, often playing a limited 10-man game which suited the large and physical England forwards. During this period, England won back-to-back Grand Slams in 1991 and 1992. Despite losing the opening pool match to New Zealand 18-12, England made it to the Rugby World Cup Final in 1991, losing 12-6 to pre-tournament favourites Australia. In that game, England played open rugby, like they had in the Five Nations in 1990, although it was the forward-dominated 10-man game which earlier in 1991 had won them the Five Nations Grand Slam, as well as the quarter-final against France and semi-final against Scotland. The front row of Leonard, Brian Moore and Jeff Probyn
Jeff Probyn
Jeff Probyn is an English former Rugby Union player.The Askeans, Streatham and Wasps prop was selected in England's squad for the 1987 Rugby World Cup, but Probyn did not make his international debut until 1988, at the age of 31, against France...
was fearsome, and the England scrum was famously solid, with this trio able to more than hold their own against any front row in world.
Against Wales in 1992, Leonard suffered a neck injury: he experienced a numbing sensation in his right arm, but had no idea he had ruptured a vertibrae in his neck, so played out the remainder of the match. Later, he required emergency surgery, where bone from his hip had to be grafted into his neck. Leonard's career was in grave doubt, after only 10 tests. Due to brilliant surgery and his rehabilitation regime, however, he made a full recovery, winning his 11th cap against Canada at Twickenham that autumn without missing an England test. It is worth noting that in those days when the RFU was an amateur sporting body, Leonard was only compensated with a mere £800.
In 1993, Leonard was selected for his first British and Irish Lions tour to New Zealand.
England career 1995-1997
With Dick BestDick Best
Dick Best is a former rugby union coach, and current journalist. He coached the England national team and was a coach on the 1993 British Lions tour to New Zealand and Director of Rugby at London Irish....
no longer England head coach, the RFU appointed well-known and highly successful Bath coach Jack Rowell
Jack Rowell
Jack Rowell OBE is a former coach of rugby union sides including Bath and England.-Coaching:Between 1978 and 1994 Rowell coached Bath during their golden era, winning eight John Player/Pilkington Cups and five League Championships....
as his replacement. There was much speculation amongst many established England players as to what changes the new coach would bring to the England setup, particularly one with such close ties to a successful Bath Rugby Club. Rowell claimed he would rid England of the cautious, forward-dominated 10-man game which had done so well for them earlier in the decade, and play running rugby more similar to Bath's. Leonard kept his place in the England team, which now included several new players such as Mike Catt
Mike Catt
Michael John "Mike" Catt OBE is a South African-born former English rugby union footballer who played for London Irish and Bath. He earned 75 international caps for England and played in three World Cup Finals, in 1995, 2003 and 2007...
, Ben Clarke
Ben Clarke
Ben Clarke , is a former England international rugby union player.Clarke played for Bath Rugby from 1992 to 1996, before joining Richmond F.C. as the first £1-million player...
, Victor Ubogu
Victor Ubogu
Victor Eriakpo Ubogu is a former Bath and England rugby union player. He also played, whilst still at university, for Moseley....
, Steve Ojomoh
Steve Ojomoh
Stephen Oziegebe Ojomoh, known as Steve Ojomoh , is a Nigerian-born English former rugby union footballer and a current coach. He played as a flanker....
(all Bath players) and Tim Rodber
Tim Rodber
Timothy Andrew Keith Rodber formerly a rugby union footballer who played at Number eight, flanker or lock for Northampton Saints, England, and the British and Irish Lions...
. In the 1995 Five Nations, Leonard won a record (for a prop) 38th cap for England, playing against Scotland, and the victory meant his third Grand Slam.
England held high hopes for the upcoming Rugby World Cup in South Africa. At the World Cup, England were drawn in Pool B, generally regarded as one of the easier groups in the competition. However, England experienced setbacks, gaining only narrow victories over Argentina (24-18) and Italy (27-20). In England's final pool match against Western Samoa, Leonard was rested and his record of 40 consecutive England caps ended. England won that match 44-22 and also won the subsequent quarter-final against Australia 25-22, before losing the semi-final to New Zealand 29-45 and finishing the tournament in fourth place.
In November 1996, Leonard skippered England for the first time, against Argentina at Twickenham. The game was very close, with Argentina taking a narrow lead close to full time. From a rolling maul, Leonard scored a try to level the scores, and a Mike Catt penalty won the game 20-18. The try remains Leonard's only score for England.
In the 1996-1997 season, Leonard began to play for England at tighthead prop (number 3) to make room for Leicester Tigers loosehead prop (number 1), Graham Rowntree
Graham Rowntree
Graham Christopher Rowntree is a former English rugby union player. He played loosehead prop for Leicester Tigers and England. He was capped 54 times for England, despite having to compete for his position with the world's second most capped player, Jason Leonard.Rowntree was born in...
, and in 1997, Leonard was selected for his second British and Irish Lions tour, this time to South Africa.
In September 1997, the RFU appointed Clive Woodward as head coach. The Autumn internationals saw England playing Australia, South Africa and New Zealand. Against Australia, Leonard found himself selected at loosehead prop again, with Wasps' Will Green winning his first cap at tighthead. For the remaining two tests, Leonard was moved back to tighthead. The ability to scrummage effectively on either side of the scrum proved to be one of Leonard's great assets.
England career 1998-2003
Leonard continued to be an England regular under Woodward. In 1999, England competed in the Rugby World Cup, hosted this time by Wales. World Cup matches were also played throughout the rest of the British Isles and in France. England had shown signs of improvement under Woodward, who had been looking to play a more expansive game, but were denied a Grand Slam prior to the World Cup due to Neil JenkinsNeil Jenkins
Neil Jenkins MBE is a former rugby union football player and current coach. He played fly-half, centre, or full back for Pontypridd, Cardiff, Celtic Warriors, Wales and the British and Irish Lions. Jenkins is Wales' highest ever points-scorer and is the third highest on the List of leading Rugby...
' boot and a last-minute try by Scott Gibbs
Scott Gibbs
Scott Gibbs is a former rugby footballer who represented Wales and the Lions in rugby union and Wales and Great Britain in rugby league...
. This, however, was to be the first of four consecutive near-misses.
In the 1999 World Cup, England were drawn in Pool 2 with New Zealand, Italy and Tonga, but were knocked out of the tournament at the quarter-final stage by South Africa.
The new Millennium saw Leonard break several records; he surpassed Rory Underwood
Rory Underwood
Rory Underwood MBE is a former English rugby union footballer who played wing for, most notably, Leicester Tigers and Bedford. He represented England and the British Lions and is a former Royal Air Force pilot....
as England's most capped player with his 86th cap against Argentina in November 2000, and 12 months later against Romania he overtook former New Zealand captain Sean Fitzpatrick
Sean Fitzpatrick
Sean Fitzpatrick MNZM is a former rugby union footballer who represented New Zealand, and is widely regarded as one of the finest players ever to come from that country. He is also the son of former player Brian Fitzpatrick....
as the world's most capped forward in his 93rd appearance.
For the 2000 Autumn internationals, Leonard was dropped to the bench and replaced by Graham Rowntree. In 2001, although England had scored 28 tries in their first four Six Nations matches, they lost the fifth to Ireland after the match had been rescheduled. 2001 also saw a tour of the British and Irish Lions, coached by Graham Henry
Graham Henry
Graham Henry is a New Zealand Rugby Union coach, and former head coach of the country's national team, the All Blacks. He played rugby union for Canterbury and cricket for Otago in the Plunket Shield. Henry was heavily criticized following the All Blacks quarterfinal exit at the 2007 Rugby World...
, to Australia. The Wallabies won the Test series 2-1, but it was very much a game of two halves, as the Lions had convincingly won the first Test and were in the driving seat at half-time during the second Test in Melbourne. After this, England began to notch up regular victories against the big guns of the Southern Hemisphere (New Zealand, South Africa and Australia), culminating in the 2003 World Cup.
On 15 February 2003, Jason Leonard made history as the first ever front-row forward to make 100 international appearances when he started against France in a Six Nations clash. He was also the first Englishman and overall third (after Philippe Sella
Philippe Sella
Philippe Sella is a French former rugby union player, who held the record for most international appearances until beaten by Jason Leonard. He became a member of the International Rugby Hall of Fame in 1999, and the IRB Hall of Fame in 2008.Sella joined Saracens in 1996 from French side Agen...
and David Campese
David Campese
David Ian Campese , also known as Campo, is a former Australian rugby union player. Campese was capped by the Wallabies 101 times, and held the world record for the most tries in test matches until Daisuke Ohata scored his 65th try playing for Japan on 14 May 2006...
) to achieve this feat. Unfortunately the burly prop forward had suffered a sad bereavement with the loss of his former club colleague Nick Duncombe
Nick Duncombe
Nick Duncombe was a promising English rugby union footballer who won two international caps before dying aged 21 of meningitis contracted while on what has erroneously been described as a warm-weather training trip to Spain with his club Harlequins...
prior to the match, and the match itself was a disappointing affair as he had to leave the field after 33 minutes following a hamstring injury. However, he subsequently recovered to play a key role in securing the Grand Slam with a win over Ireland at Landsdowne Road. In August 2003 Leonard captained England for the second time in a crushing 43-9 victory over Wales at the Millennium Stadium
Millennium Stadium
The Millennium Stadium is the national stadium of Wales, located in the capital, Cardiff. It is the home of the Wales national rugby union team and also frequently stages games of the Wales national football team, but is also host to many other large scale events, such as the Super Special Stage...
in Cardiff, and it was his versatility along with his proven ability and experience which earned him a spot in the World Cup Squad at Rowntree's expense.
Despite being regarded as the third-choice prop behind Phil Vickery
Phil Vickery (rugby player)
Philip John Vickery MBE is a former English rugby union tighthead prop and member of the England squad. He was a member of England's World Cup winning squad in 2003, playing in all seven matches in the tournament, and is a former England captain. Vickery ended his club rugby career at Wasps,...
and Trevor Woodman
Trevor Woodman
Trevor James Woodman MBE is a former English rugby union footballer. He went to Liskeard School in Cornwall and won representative honours with Cornwall Under 16s....
in the pecking order Leonard made appearances in all seven matches of the tournament, including the semi-final against France during which he overtook Sella as the world's most-capped player. He appeared in his second World Cup final as an extra-time substitute for Vickery and played a key role in reducing the scrummage penalty count which was high during normal time. The then coach Clive Woodward
Clive Woodward
Sir Clive Ronald Woodward OBE is an English former rugby union player and coach. He was coach of the team from 1997 to 2004, managing them to victory in the 2003 Rugby World Cup. He is currently the British Olympic Association's Director of Elite Performance.-Early life:Woodward was born in Ely...
would later write in his autobiography that Leonard's introduction was the key substitution which helped England win the match. Having been awarded an MBE
MBE
MBE can stand for:* Mail Boxes Etc.* Management by exception* Master of Bioethics* Master of Bioscience Enterprise* Master of Business Engineering* Master of Business Economics* Mean Biased Error...
for services to Rugby earlier, his award was upgraded to an OBE after the tournament.
Leonard played one more match for England in the subsequent Six Nations Championship against Italy before announcing his retirement as the most-capped forward of all time. His farewell appearance came for the Barbarians
Barbarian F.C.
The Barbarian Football Club, usually referred to as the Barbarians and nicknamed the "Baa-Baas", is an invitational rugby union team based in Britain...
against England in a match at Twickenham
Twickenham Stadium
Twickenham Stadium is a stadium located in Twickenham, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. It is the largest rugby union stadium in the United Kingdom and has recently been enlarged to seat 82,000...
, being substituted after 67 minutes. He scored only his second international try in this match, meaning that he ended his career scoring as many tries against England as he had for them.
In 2007, the Barking-born carpenter and record-breaking prop forward was at last inducted into the International Rugby Hall of Fame
International Rugby Hall of Fame
The International Rugby Hall of Fame is a hall of fame for rugby union. It was created in 1997 in New Zealand and is run as a charitable trust with an address at Chiswick in London. Most of the trustees are also inductees. IRHOF accepts new inductees every two years...
.
Miscellaneous
Leonard was banned from driving for two years in 2004 after being convicted of driving whilst three times over the legal drink-drive limit. He denied the charges.Leonard is involved in several charities. In Jan 2009 he became Lead Ambassador of the Wooden Spoon Society
Wooden Spoon Society
Wooden Spoon is a children's charity founded in 1983, when the England rugby team received the Wooden Spoon in the 5 Nations. Spoon is dedicated to helping children and young people who are disadvantaged physically, mentally or socially by using sport as a method of improving lives while...
, a charity for disadvantaged children and young persons that has its roots founded in rugby. In 2011, he became President of Sparks (charity)
Sparks (charity)
Sparks is a children's medical research charity. Their sole remit is to fund research across the whole spectrum of paediatric medicine. Their vision is a world where all babies are born healthy and stay healthy.- History :...
, the children's medical research charity which funds pioneering research into conditions affecting the health of babies, children and mums-to-be.
Until 05th August 2011, when it was renamed "Southend City on Sea", a class 357 EMU
British Rail Class 357
The British Rail Class 357 "Electrostar" alternating current electric multiple units were built by ADtranz at their Litchurch Lane Works in Derby, England, in two batches from 1999 to 2002 at a cost of approximately £292 million...
train (number 357 003) operated by c2c
C2c
c2c is a British train operating company that is part of the National Express Group. It provides passenger rail services on the London, Tilbury and Southend Railway line from Fenchurch Street railway station in the City of London to east London and the entire length of the northern Thames Gateway...
on the London, Tilbury and Southend line
London, Tilbury and Southend Railway
The London, Tilbury and Southend Railway is an English railway line linking Fenchurch Street railway station in the City of London with northeast London and the entire length of the northern Thames Gateway area of southern Essex. It is currently known as the Essex Thameside Route by Network Rail...
had the nameplate "Jason Leonard". The line serves his hometown of Barking
Barking
Barking is a suburban town in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham, in East London, England. A retail and commercial centre situated in the west of the borough, it lies east of Charing Cross. Barking was in the historic county of Essex until it was absorbed by Greater London. The area is...
, Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
.
He and his longtime partner Sandra have three children.