Martin Johnson
Encyclopedia
Martin Osborne Johnson CBE
(born 9 March 1970) is an English former rugby union
player who represented and captained England
and Leicester
. He is mostly known for captaining England to victory in the World Cup
in 2003. He became the new England team manager on 1 July 2008, replacing the previous manager Brian Ashton
. He is regarded as one of the greatest locks to have ever played. He toured three times with the British and Irish Lions
, becoming the only man to have captained them on two separate tours. He also led his club Leicester Tigers
to back-to back Heineken Cup
victories and won the league six times. Despite no coaching experience, he was appointed team manager of the national England Rugby Union side in April 2008, but left the post in November 2011.
in the West Midlands
, the second of three brothers — his younger brother Will plays back row forward. At the age of seven, his family moved to Market Harborough
, Leicestershire
,where Martin attended Ridgeway Primary School, Welland Park School
and Robert Smyth School
.
as a tight end or defensive end. In 1989 he was approached by former All Black
Colin Meads
to try out for the King Country
side in New Zealand.
Johnson's trial run was successful and he played two seasons for King Country. In 1990 he was even selected for the New Zealand under-21 side which went on a tour of Australia playing a side that included another of the all-time great lock forwards, John Eales
.http://www.smh.com.au/sport/the-fitz-files/ka-mate-ka-mate-come-on-johnno-youre-no-kiwi-20110527-1f88x.html
In 1997 with the retirement of Dean Richards
, Johnson was made club captain but only captained the side when Richards was not playing. In 1997 Leicester won the Pilkington Cup
and reached the final of the Heineken Cup
.
Johnson retired from international rugby in January 2004 but continued to play for Leicester until 2005. With his captaincy (lasting 1997 to 2003) the Leicester Tigers won four Zurich Premiership
titles and two Heineken Cups.
in January 1993 under dramatic circumstances. He was due to play in another game when he was unexpectedly summoned to Twickenham
to replace the injured Wade Dooley
. With barely any proper preparation (he had a last-minute line-out session with his new teammates before the game), Johnson was thrown into the deep end. An early clash of heads with French prop Laurent Seigne momentarily left Johnson dazed, but he recovered and went on to play superbly as England won 16–15. He then went on to become part of the side that won the 1995 Grand Slam. He was also called up to the 1993 Lions tour as a replacement, playing twice.
Lawrence Dallaglio
was appointed England captain by new England coach Clive Woodward
. However, Johnson took the captaincy in 1999 after Dallaglio was caught in a honey trap by the News of the World
. Under Johnson's leadership, England moved away from being a forward-dominated side and towards the 15-man rugby that Woodward wanted them to play. He was again asked to captain the Lions tour to Australia in 2001, becoming the only man to captain them twice. The tour was hugely successful financially; however, they lost 2–1 to a seasoned Australian side captained by John Eales
and coached by Rod Macqueen.
of South Africa. The Lions convincingly won the first test at Newlands 25–16 with Neil Jenkins kicking five penalties and Matt Dawson and Alan Tait scoring tries. Despite scoring three tries in the second test at Durban, the Springboks suffered from some woeful goal kicking and failed to land any penalties or conversions, whilst for the Lions Neil Jenkins once again kicked 5 penalties to level the scores at 15–15 before Jerry Guscott dropped a goal for an 18–15 lead for the Lions. The Lions then held off a ferocious South African fightback, Lawrence Dallaglio putting in a magnificent try-saving tackle, to win the match 18–15 and take the series. The third test at Ellis Park proved a match too far for the Lions squad and they lost 35–16.
The tour was a triumph for the Lions management of Fran Cotton (Manager), Ian McGeechan (Head Coach), Jim Telfer (Assistant Coach) and especially the Captain Johnson. It was the last occasion on which the Lions returned victorious from a tour as it was followed by defeats in Australia in 2001, New Zealand in 2005 and South Africa in 2009.
, where they won crucial matches against South Africa, Wales and France, beating Australia in the final to win the cup with an extra time drop goal..
in the 2004 New Year
honours
and was second in the BBC Sports Personality of the Year
awards behind Jonny Wilkinson
. Johnson's testimonial match
and farewell to competitive rugby, held at Twickenham
on 4 June 2005, was one of the biggest rugby events of the year. It was historic in another way as the match marked the return of All Blacks
legend Jonah Lomu
after a recent kidney transplant
. Johnson's XV defeated Lomu's 33–29. All proceeds from the match went to children's and cancer charities.
On 24 October 2011, at the IRB Awards
in Auckland
, Johnson was inducted into the IRB Hall of Fame
alongside all other Rugby World Cup-winning captains and head coaches from the tournament's inception in 1987 through 2007 (minus the previously inducted John Eales
).
head rugby coach, Andy Robinson
, was to be sacked and Johnson was one of many names speculated by the press as his replacement. The Rugby Football Union
eventually selected Brian Ashton for the role.
In April 2008 Johnson was appointed England team manager, and England started the Autumn internationals by beating the Pacific Islands 39–13. That was followed with a loss to Australia, then a 42–6 defeat South Africa and then another loss this time 32–6 against New Zealand at Twickenham.
England had four wins under Johnson going into 2009; in the 2009 Six Nations Championship
they beat Italy 36–11, France 34–10 and Scotland 26–12 but were defeated by Ireland by 14–13 and to Wales by 23–15. They did however come second in the 2009 Six Nations ahead of 2008 Champions Wales and scored the most points and tries in the tournament.
England participated in the 2010 Six Nations
tournament, winning their first two games against Wales and Italy, losing against Ireland, drawing with Scotland and losing their final game against France, allowing the French to win a Grand Slam
.
In 2011, Johnson led a new-look England side to win the 2011 Six Nations
title, despite losing 24-8 to Ireland on the final weekend of the competition where they were denied the Grand Slam. He resigned on 16th November 2011.
, Johnson is a supporter of the San Francisco 49ers
and worked as a studio analyst for ITV
at Super Bowl XLI
on 4 February 2007.
England
Lions
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 9 March 1970) 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...
player who represented and captained 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...
and Leicester
Leicester Tigers
Leicester Tigers is an English rugby union club that plays in the Aviva Premiership.Leicester are the most successful English club since the introduction of league rugby in 1987, a record 9 times English champions - 3 more than either Bath or Wasps, the last of which was in 2010...
. He is mostly known for captaining England to victory in the World Cup
2003 Rugby World Cup
The 2003 Rugby World Cup was the fifth Rugby World Cup and was won by England. Originally planned to be co-hosted by Australia and New Zealand, all games were shifted to Australia following a contractual dispute over ground signage rights between the New Zealand Rugby Football Union and Rugby World...
in 2003. He became the new England team manager on 1 July 2008, replacing the previous manager Brian Ashton
Brian Ashton (rugby player)
William Brian Ashton MBE is a former rugby union player and the former Head Coach of the England and Ireland national rugby union teams.-Biography:...
. He is regarded as one of the greatest locks to have ever played. He toured three times 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...
, becoming the only man to have captained them on two separate tours. He also led his club Leicester Tigers
Leicester Tigers
Leicester Tigers is an English rugby union club that plays in the Aviva Premiership.Leicester are the most successful English club since the introduction of league rugby in 1987, a record 9 times English champions - 3 more than either Bath or Wasps, the last of which was in 2010...
to back-to back Heineken Cup
Heineken Cup
The Heineken Cup is one of two annual rugby union competitions organised by European Rugby Cup involving leading club, regional and provincial teams from the six International Rugby Board countries in Europe whose national teams compete in the Six Nations Championship: England, France, Ireland,...
victories and won the league six times. Despite no coaching experience, he was appointed team manager of the national England Rugby Union side in April 2008, but left the post in November 2011.
Early life
Johnson was born in SolihullSolihull
Solihull is a town in the West Midlands of England with a population of 94,753. It is a part of the West Midlands conurbation and is located 9 miles southeast of Birmingham city centre...
in the West Midlands
West Midlands (county)
The West Midlands is a metropolitan county in western central England with a 2009 estimated population of 2,638,700. It came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972, formed from parts of Staffordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire. The...
, the second of three brothers — his younger brother Will plays back row forward. At the age of seven, his family moved to Market Harborough
Market Harborough
Market Harborough is a market town within the Harborough district of Leicestershire, England.It has a population of 20,785 and is the administrative headquarters of Harborough District Council. It sits on the Northamptonshire-Leicestershire border...
, Leicestershire
Leicestershire
Leicestershire is a landlocked county in the English Midlands. It takes its name from the heavily populated City of Leicester, traditionally its administrative centre, although the City of Leicester unitary authority is today administered separately from the rest of Leicestershire...
,where Martin attended Ridgeway Primary School, Welland Park School
Welland Park School
Welland Park Community College, or Welland Park School as it is better known is a secondary school in Market Harborough, Leicestershire for students aged 11 to 14. The school holds specialist Technology College status.-School history:...
and Robert Smyth School
Robert Smyth School
The Robert Smyth School is a school in Market Harborough, Leicestershire, England for 14-19 year olds. It is situated in the north of the town, on Burnmill Road, close to St Luke's .-History:...
.
Early career
Johnson briefly played American football for the Leicester PanthersLeicester Panthers
The Leicester Panthers were a British American Football team, formed in 1984 and disbanded in 1996 who played home games at Saffron Lane sports centre. In the time they played, they recorded only one losing season, and won the league final in 1996, the year they dissolved the team...
as a tight end or defensive end. In 1989 he was approached by former All Black
All Blacks
The New Zealand men's national rugby union team, known as the All Blacks, represent New Zealand in what is regarded as its national sport....
Colin Meads
Colin Meads
Sir Colin Earl Meads, KNZM, MBE , is a former New Zealand rugby union footballer. He played 55 test matches , most frequently in the lock forward position, for New Zealand's national team, the All Blacks, from 1957 until 1971.Meads is widely considered one of the greatest players in history...
to try out for the King Country
King Country Rugby Football Union
The King Country Rugby Football Union is a constituent union in the New Zealand Rugby Union. It is located in the central North Island of New Zealand...
side in New Zealand.
Johnson's trial run was successful and he played two seasons for King Country. In 1990 he was even selected for the New Zealand under-21 side which went on a tour of Australia playing a side that included another of the all-time great lock forwards, John Eales
John Eales
John Eales AM is an Australian former rugby union player and the most successful captain in the history of Australian rugby.-Early life:...
.http://www.smh.com.au/sport/the-fitz-files/ka-mate-ka-mate-come-on-johnno-youre-no-kiwi-20110527-1f88x.html
Club career
In late 1990, Johnson returned to England because his New Zealand girlfriend, and later wife, Kay, wanted to travel. He played for Leicester Tigers from 1989 to 2005.In 1997 with the retirement of Dean Richards
Dean Richards (rugby player)
Dean Richards is a former England and British & Irish Lions rugby union player. He had a long playing career with Leicester Tigers, and played 48 times for England and six times for the British & Irish Lions.-Club career:...
, Johnson was made club captain but only captained the side when Richards was not playing. In 1997 Leicester won the Pilkington Cup
EDF Energy Cup
The Anglo-Welsh Cup, currently known for sponsorship reasons as the LV Cup , is an English and Welsh rugby union knock-out cup competition featuring the twelve Aviva Premiership clubs and four Welsh Regions...
and reached the final of the Heineken Cup
Heineken Cup
The Heineken Cup is one of two annual rugby union competitions organised by European Rugby Cup involving leading club, regional and provincial teams from the six International Rugby Board countries in Europe whose national teams compete in the Six Nations Championship: England, France, Ireland,...
.
Johnson retired from international rugby in January 2004 but continued to play for Leicester until 2005. With his captaincy (lasting 1997 to 2003) the Leicester Tigers won four Zurich Premiership
Guinness Premiership
The English Premiership, also currently known as the Aviva Premiership because of the league's sponsorship by Aviva, is a professional league competition for rugby union football clubs in the top division of the English rugby system. There are twelve clubs in the Premiership...
titles and two Heineken Cups.
International career
Johnson had made his test debut against FranceFrance national rugby union team
The France national rugby union team represents France in rugby union. They compete annually against England, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales in the Six Nations Championship. They have won the championship outright sixteen times, shared it a further eight times, and have completed nine grand slams...
in January 1993 under dramatic circumstances. He was due to play in another game when he was unexpectedly summoned to 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...
to replace the injured 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,...
. With barely any proper preparation (he had a last-minute line-out session with his new teammates before the game), Johnson was thrown into the deep end. An early clash of heads with French prop Laurent Seigne momentarily left Johnson dazed, but he recovered and went on to play superbly as England won 16–15. He then went on to become part of the side that won the 1995 Grand Slam. He was also called up to the 1993 Lions tour as a replacement, playing twice.
Lawrence Dallaglio
Lawrence Dallaglio
Lorenzo Bruno Nero "Lawrence" Dallaglio, OBE is a retired English rugby union player and former captain of the English national team. He played as a flanker or number eight for London Wasps and never played for another club, having arrived at Sudbury as a teenager...
was appointed England captain by new England 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...
. However, Johnson took the captaincy in 1999 after Dallaglio was caught in a honey trap by the News of the World
News of the World
The News of the World was a national red top newspaper published in the United Kingdom from 1843 to 2011. It was at one time the biggest selling English language newspaper in the world, and at closure still had one of the highest English language circulations...
. Under Johnson's leadership, England moved away from being a forward-dominated side and towards the 15-man rugby that Woodward wanted them to play. He was again asked to captain the Lions tour to Australia in 2001, becoming the only man to captain them twice. The tour was hugely successful financially; however, they lost 2–1 to a seasoned Australian side captained by John Eales
John Eales
John Eales AM is an Australian former rugby union player and the most successful captain in the history of Australian rugby.-Early life:...
and coached by Rod Macqueen.
Lions Tour 1997
Johnson was selected to captain the 1997 British Lions tour1997 British Lions tour to South Africa
The 1997 British and Irish Lions tour to South Africa was a series of matches played by the British and Irish Lions rugby union team in South Africa.This tour followed the Lions' 1993 tour to New Zealand and preceded their 2001 tour to Australia....
of South Africa. The Lions convincingly won the first test at Newlands 25–16 with Neil Jenkins kicking five penalties and Matt Dawson and Alan Tait scoring tries. Despite scoring three tries in the second test at Durban, the Springboks suffered from some woeful goal kicking and failed to land any penalties or conversions, whilst for the Lions Neil Jenkins once again kicked 5 penalties to level the scores at 15–15 before Jerry Guscott dropped a goal for an 18–15 lead for the Lions. The Lions then held off a ferocious South African fightback, Lawrence Dallaglio putting in a magnificent try-saving tackle, to win the match 18–15 and take the series. The third test at Ellis Park proved a match too far for the Lions squad and they lost 35–16.
The tour was a triumph for the Lions management of Fran Cotton (Manager), Ian McGeechan (Head Coach), Jim Telfer (Assistant Coach) and especially the Captain Johnson. It was the last occasion on which the Lions returned victorious from a tour as it was followed by defeats in Australia in 2001, New Zealand in 2005 and South Africa in 2009.
Rugby World Cup 2003
The 2003 Grand Slam season was followed by a successful warm up tour to New Zealand and Australia. Among the highlights of a successful tour was the 6-man England scrum (with 2 back row forwards in the sin bin), which held off pressure from the All Blacks, when Johnson famously told his comrades in the scrum to "get down and shove". When asked about what was going through his head in the scrum he replied "my spine". In England's 20–17 victory over Australia, Johnson also performed at a monumental level, leading the former Australian captain, John Eales (who retired in 2001), to commend his display as 'among the best ever by a lock forward'. They took this into the 2003 World Cup2003 Rugby World Cup
The 2003 Rugby World Cup was the fifth Rugby World Cup and was won by England. Originally planned to be co-hosted by Australia and New Zealand, all games were shifted to Australia following a contractual dispute over ground signage rights between the New Zealand Rugby Football Union and Rugby World...
, where they won crucial matches against South Africa, Wales and France, beating Australia in the final to win the cup with an extra time drop goal..
Honours
He was awarded the CBEOrder 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...
in the 2004 New Year
New Year
The New Year is the day that marks the time of the beginning of a new calendar year, and is the day on which the year count of the specific calendar used is incremented. For many cultures, the event is celebrated in some manner....
honours
British honours system
The British honours system is a means of rewarding individuals' personal bravery, achievement, or service to the United Kingdom and the British Overseas Territories...
and was second in the BBC Sports Personality of the Year
BBC Sports Personality of the Year
The BBC Sports Personality of the Year is an awards ceremony that takes place annually in December. Devised by Paul Fox in 1954, it originally consisted of one titular award. Several new awards have been introduced, and , eight awards are presented. The oldest of these are the Team of the Year and...
awards behind Jonny Wilkinson
Jonny Wilkinson
Jonathan Peter "Jonny" Wilkinson OBE is an English rugby union player and member of the England national team. Wilkinson rose to acclaim from 2001 to 2003, before and during the 2003 Rugby World Cup and was acknowledged as one of the world’s best rugby players...
. Johnson's testimonial match
Testimonial match
A testimonial match or testimonial game, often referred to simply as a testimonial, is a practice in some sports, notably football and especially in the United Kingdom, where a club puts on a match in honour of a player for service to the club....
and farewell to competitive rugby, held 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...
on 4 June 2005, was one of the biggest rugby events of the year. It was historic in another way as the match marked the return of All Blacks
All Blacks
The New Zealand men's national rugby union team, known as the All Blacks, represent New Zealand in what is regarded as its national sport....
legend Jonah Lomu
Jonah Lomu
Jonah Tali Lomu, MNZM is a New Zealand rugby union player. He had sixty-three caps as an All Black after debuting in 1994. He is generally regarded as the first true global superstar of rugby union. He has had a huge impact on the game...
after a recent kidney transplant
Kidney transplantation
Kidney transplantation or renal transplantation is the organ transplant of a kidney into a patient with end-stage renal disease. Kidney transplantation is typically classified as deceased-donor or living-donor transplantation depending on the source of the donor organ...
. Johnson's XV defeated Lomu's 33–29. All proceeds from the match went to children's and cancer charities.
On 24 October 2011, at the IRB Awards
IRB Awards
The IRB Awards are given out annually by the International Rugby Board, the worldwide governing body for rugby union, for major achievement in the sport. They were first awarded in 2001...
in Auckland
Auckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
, Johnson was inducted into the IRB Hall of Fame
IRB Hall of Fame
The IRB Hall of Fame is a hall of fame operated by the International Rugby Board that recognises special achievement and contribution to the sport of rugby union. The IRB Hall of Fame covers players, coaches, administrators, match officials, institutions and other individuals...
alongside all other Rugby World Cup-winning captains and head coaches from the tournament's inception in 1987 through 2007 (minus the previously inducted John Eales
John Eales
John Eales AM is an Australian former rugby union player and the most successful captain in the history of Australian rugby.-Early life:...
).
Coaching career
In November 2006 it was rumoured the then EnglandEngland 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...
head rugby coach, Andy Robinson
Andy Robinson
Richard Andrew 'Andy' Robinson OBE is an English rugby union coach and retired player. He is currently the head coach of Scotland.Robinson played as an openside flanker for Bath, England and the British and Irish Lions...
, was to be sacked and Johnson was one of many names speculated by the press as his replacement. The Rugby Football Union
Rugby Football Union
The Rugby Football Union was founded in 1871 as the governing body for the sport of rugby union, and performed as the international governing body prior to the formation of the International Rugby Board in 1886...
eventually selected Brian Ashton for the role.
In April 2008 Johnson was appointed England team manager, and England started the Autumn internationals by beating the Pacific Islands 39–13. That was followed with a loss to Australia, then a 42–6 defeat South Africa and then another loss this time 32–6 against New Zealand at Twickenham.
England had four wins under Johnson going into 2009; in the 2009 Six Nations Championship
2009 Six Nations Championship
The 2009 Six Nations Championship, known as the 2009 RBS 6 Nations because of the tournament's sponsorship by the Royal Bank of Scotland, was the tenth Six Nations Championship, an annual rugby union competition contested by the six major Northern Hemisphere rugby union national teams...
they beat Italy 36–11, France 34–10 and Scotland 26–12 but were defeated by Ireland by 14–13 and to Wales by 23–15. They did however come second in the 2009 Six Nations ahead of 2008 Champions Wales and scored the most points and tries in the tournament.
England participated in the 2010 Six Nations
2010 Six Nations Championship
The 2010 Six Nations Championship, known as the 2010 RBS 6 Nations due to the tournament's sponsorship by the Royal Bank of Scotland, was the 11th series of the Six Nations Championship, an annual rugby union competition between the six major Northern Hemisphere rugby union national teams...
tournament, winning their first two games against Wales and Italy, losing against Ireland, drawing with Scotland and losing their final game against France, allowing the French to win a Grand Slam
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...
.
In 2011, Johnson led a new-look England side to win the 2011 Six Nations
2011 Six Nations Championship
The 2011 Six Nations Championship, known as the 2011 RBS 6 Nations due to the tournament's sponsorship by the Royal Bank of Scotland, was the 12th series of the Six Nations Championship. The annual northern hemisphere rugby union championship was contested by England, France, Ireland, Italy,...
title, despite losing 24-8 to Ireland on the final weekend of the competition where they were denied the Grand Slam. He resigned on 16th November 2011.
Personal life
A fan of American footballAmerican football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
, Johnson is a supporter of the San Francisco 49ers
San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers are a professional American football team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team was founded in 1946 as a charter member of the All-America Football Conference and...
and worked as a studio analyst for ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...
at Super Bowl XLI
Super Bowl XLI
Super Bowl XLI was an American football game that featured the American Football Conference champion Indianapolis Colts and the National Football Conference champion Chicago Bears to decide the National Football League champion for the 2006 season...
on 4 February 2007.
As a player
LeicesterLeicester Tigers
Leicester Tigers is an English rugby union club that plays in the Aviva Premiership.Leicester are the most successful English club since the introduction of league rugby in 1987, a record 9 times English champions - 3 more than either Bath or Wasps, the last of which was in 2010...
- PremiershipGuinness PremiershipThe English Premiership, also currently known as the Aviva Premiership because of the league's sponsorship by Aviva, is a professional league competition for rugby union football clubs in the top division of the English rugby system. There are twelve clubs in the Premiership...
1994–95, 1998–99, 1999–00, 2000–01, 2001–02 - Heineken CupHeineken CupThe Heineken Cup is one of two annual rugby union competitions organised by European Rugby Cup involving leading club, regional and provincial teams from the six International Rugby Board countries in Europe whose national teams compete in the Six Nations Championship: England, France, Ireland,...
2001, 2002
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...
- Six NationsSix Nations ChampionshipThe Six Nations Championship is an annual international rugby union competition involving six European sides: England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales....
1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2003 - Grand SlamSix Nations ChampionshipThe Six Nations Championship is an annual international rugby union competition involving six European sides: England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales....
1995, 2003 - Triple CrownSix Nations ChampionshipThe Six Nations Championship is an annual international rugby union competition involving six European sides: England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales....
1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2002, 2003 - World CupRugby World CupThe Rugby World Cup is an international rugby union competition organised by the International Rugby Board and held every four years since 1987....
2003
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...
- New Zealand tour1993 British Lions tour to New ZealandIn 1993 the British Lions rugby union team toured New Zealand. This tour followed the Lions' 1989 tour to Australia and preceded their 1997 tour to South Africa. It was the last Lions tour in the sport's amateur era....
1993 as replacement, losing 2–1 - South African tour1997 British Lions tour to South AfricaThe 1997 British and Irish Lions tour to South Africa was a series of matches played by the British and Irish Lions rugby union team in South Africa.This tour followed the Lions' 1993 tour to New Zealand and preceded their 2001 tour to Australia....
1997 as captain, winning 2–1 - Australia tour2001 British Lions tour to AustraliaThe 2001 British and Irish Lions tour to Australia was a series of matches played by the British Lions rugby union team in Australia.This tour followed the Lions' 1997 tour to South Africa and preceded the 2005 tour to New Zealand....
2001 as captain, losing 2–1
As a manager
EnglandEngland 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...
- Six NationsSix Nations ChampionshipThe Six Nations Championship is an annual international rugby union competition involving six European sides: England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales....
2011