Playing Pundits: Jeremy Guscott

Guscott made his international bow against minnows Romania in 1989, announcing his arrival with a hat-trick of tries.

He made the Lions tour to Australia later that year, slotting into the team in the second and third Tests as the northern hemisphere side recorded a famous series victory.

The Bath-born centre’s World Cup highlight comes from the first of this three tournaments, where England reached the final.

Guscott started but England were edged out 12-6 by Australia, with Wallabies prop Tony Daly scoring the only try of the game.

A second Lions tour in 1993 was followed by a second World Cup in 1995 – with a year decimated by injury in 1994 in between – but England were bulldozed out in the semi-finals thanks to Jonah Lomu’s brilliance.

Guscott found himself out of favour with England following the tournament but still made a third Lions tour in 1997, where his drop goal in the second Test proved decisive in a fantastic series win over South Africa.

In 1999, he played in his final World Cup in a struggling England team that was going through a transitional phase.

His last appearance came against Tonga during the tournament, where he scored an interception try and received a standing ovation from an adoring crowd.