6ft 5 inches, 270lb and ran 100m in under 11s….couple all that with his natural rugby brain and his almost freakish agility he was pretty much unstoppable at his peak. Considering he suffered from a rare kidney condition which meant he was very rarely at 100% fitness on the field….a very special individual indeed.
At 6 feet 5 inches (1.95 metres) and 275 pounds (125 kg), Jonah Lomu was exceptionally large for a wing player. Blessed with great speed (he ran 100 metres in 10.7 seconds) and power, he was difficult to stop and often ran over opponents.
NFL offered him huge money and called him a one in a billion athlete . Lomu refused to play in the US, preferring his tranquil environment in New Zealand and Tonga.
Jonah was not in his prime in 1999 - he was now by this stage on a dialysis machine on a monthly basis. In his book he claims that when making his runs it took him ages to recover and it felt like he was carrying an extra 50kg load on his back! The closest we will ever get to compare Jonah to his prime was the 1995 rugby season - he was unstoppable!!!!
Jonah was the youngest ever All Black to debut at the age of 19 yrs 45 days in 1994 and was diagnosed with Nephrotic Syndrome (Kidney Disease) in 1995, underwent a Kidney transplant in 2004 but was never able to recapture his previous form throughout the remainder of his career. Jonah was never 100% fit during his Professional career which makes you wonder how scary a prospect a 100% fully fit Jonah would've been. Yet he single-handedly destroyed England's hopes in the Semi Final of the 1995 Rugby World Cup. His size, agility, strength and speed, allowed him to produce feats on the Rugby field which had never been seen before and he did it against the best players in the world at the Rugby World Cup. He changed the way Rugby was played and is rightly acknowledged as the first Global Rugby Superstar in the Professional era. The All Blacks will be playing a one off test against Fiji (Who made the Quarter Finals at the 2023 Rugby World Cup) in San Diego on the 19th July.
Jonah had 3 plans, after gimme the ball! 1. I'll sidestep them, run past them! 2. I'll outrun them! 3. Stuff it, if 1 & 2 don't work I'll go through them! In tackling him, he had great balance, speed and strength, and he used his tree trunks pumping to forestall anyone trying to take his legs out! He had explosive acceleration and once at speed he was hard to stop. Most of these games he was sick, getting dialysis and later teams used to dedicate 2 or 3 players to slow him down which meant there were gaps for others to score. RIP Big Man For another GOAT, take a look at the female Jonah who is probably a more complete rugby player, NZ's Portia Woodman Wickcliffe, nice lady, built strong and fast. She tackles hard, scrummages fearsomely to rip the ball off the opposition, takes off at speed to score, and gently shoves any incoming tackler to the ground or tosses them off. Portia is imposing, slowing a bit now, terrifies the opposition, another GOAT
Its worth adding that in the later clips you saw he was never fully fit!! He had serious kidney issues which were the cause of his untimely death. So how good would he have been if he was healthy?????
Jonah was feared by many of his opponents on the field. Very difficult to take down, explosive and extremely fast. To put it in perspective. Usain Bolt ran 100m in 9.58sec. In Jonah's autobiography it says he ran 100m in 10.65sec weighing 270 pounds...which is just insane for someone his size!!! 🤯 Jonah also played his entire professional rugby career at around 80% due to kidney disorder....he was never at 100% full strength, which is also crazy...imagine if he was?!?!
Jonah was the nicest bloke. We all loved him. My kids as all kids idolised him. He is the reason rugby went professional. He was the first rugby superstar. He was a global rugby legend. To see him play live was an experience. I took my kids to every game at our hallowed grounds Eden Park. Our rugby fortress. And yep, you want to get the ball as close to the sticks as possible to convert the try and get as many points as possible. 5 for a try. 2 for the conversion kick. 3 for a penalty kick.
Remember Gents in Rugby a player can wrestle the ball from another player so while you like to get around under the posts not at risk of turn over or fumble.
I met Jonah a few times through a good friend of mine who is a former All Black captain & one thing that stood out to me was how humble, quiet & reserved he was for someone who was an awesome & intimidating athlete, he was very down to earth too...R.I.P Jonah Lomu
Numbers worn by Rugby players denote their position in the team. 1, 2, and 3 (powerful, heavy guys) are front row (of the scrum) forwards, 4, and 5 (tall and powerful in lineouts) are second row forwards, 6, 7, and 8 (strong, mobile, non-stop tacklers and link players) back row forwards. 9 is the scrum half (often the smallest in the team), 10 Fly Half (these two are backs who are he links between forwards and 10 is often the main playmaker), 12 and 13 the centres (three-quarters), are the attacking and defensive) midfield; fast and powerful. 11 and 14 are the wings, these are are the attacking greyhounds of the team but they must be able to defend their channel as well and kick from hand. 15 Full back, the last line of defence but also an extra attacker who can come into the 'three-quarter line. They need to have good anticipation, be brave, great hands and pace, and kick well in defence and attack. Jonah Lomu was an 11, a left wing.
To really understand what this legend went through. You have to watch and react to Jonah Lomu (All Blacks) Tribute HD. The true story of this great man.
New Zealand produced many GOAT,s that wil not easily be matched,, Dan Carter, Richie McCaw, Christian Cullen, but their rivalry against Springboks are on another level,,, its like everyone steps up their game 5 notches when they play each other,,,, and yet they are all great friends off the pitch
Love seeing Americans getting into rugby! You guys should check out Christian Cullen - The Paekākāriki Express. In my opinion, the best attacking fullback to ever play. Not a big guy but pure speed with skill. He played with Jonah Lomu during an amazing All Blacks era.
11:50 His greatest try for the All Blacks, in my opinion. (I followed his entire career, growing up in New Zealand, and saw him play for the All Blacks against Samoa in my home town in 1996.) This try is amazing because he receives the ball quite flat-footed, almost standing still, and he has to collect it from off his bootlaces with a defender right in his face. The strength needed to throw that defender off while having very little forward momentum is crazy. Then the acceleration - he was the fastest of the whole team over the first ten metres. Faster than the guys who weighed 30 kilograms less than he did. But the craziest part is when defenders start to collide with him from all angles. One of them approaches from Lomu's right, running quite hard. That's a blindside flanker - one of the burliest and most athletic of the forward pack. He's hit Lomu from the side, hard, and all that's happened is that the flanker crashes to the ground while Lomu continues forward. Imagine the strength to bounce a guy hitting you from the side while contending with 2 or 3 other defenders, all while having to protect the ball. The guy was a freakish specimen. Big, strong, fast, agile, and with incredible balance. Literally the scariest ball-runner in the history of rugby.
There is very little consideration when it comes down to Rugby’s goat. I’d say that if you asked 200 players and fans…. You’d hear Lomu’s name 185 times. Maybe more. That’s not to say that there aren’t other greats still playing or retired. But overwhelmingly I’d bet you hear his name far more. Dude was a beast and could run a sub 4 second 40 yard sprint standing 6’4” or 6’5” while weighing in at around 265 pounds. He could either out run you or run through you. Personally, I’d prefer if he’d just go ahead and out run me. I have a family and don’t need that level of running me over to be seen by them. Dude was amazing and despite his ability he retained his humbleness. This world is far worse off without him in it. But such a better place for having him pass through. RIP to the Legend.
The goat debate, is different in rugby, yes Mr lomu is the greatest and most influential players in the history of the sport, he was in maybe the reason, rugby player's a big and fast, Mr lomu is like the Michael Jordan of rugby without the states.
these are pretty tame highlights, what you'll learn about rugby union is that it has several different invested parties who own particular content. What you are watching now are "World Rugby" highlights, they are the global governing body for the sport but they don't own it, they only own the rights to the "Rugby World Cup" and the "World Rugby 7s". there are 2 other international tournaments one is owned by the "6 nations" the other by "SANZAR", and then the club game has different governing and rights ownerships for each individual tournament, like the URC, Premiership Rugby, Top14, etc and then another level like the European Champions Cup Championship. it leads to each entity having a very narrow base of what footage they actually own so most official footage of rugby ends up being really quite basic and not really representative of a players entire career.
Jonah was that good that often a large part of the game plan was just get him the ball! I remember my Dad showing me a news paper article in the early 90's about him as a school kid saying how quick he was for his size and that he could really be a great player one day... boy was that true.
You noted his distinctive haur style but what you might not be able to discern, he used to shave a couple of lines in his left eyebrow, representing his number 11.
It’s his size power and speed. He was a winger like a wide receiver. That’s why his opposite looks small, cause wingers are made for speed. This man would dwarf a cornerback, and would truck them to. 6ft 5, 270 pounds, 4.24 sec 40 yard dash, 10.5 sec 100 metres
This was Lomu's top ten world cup tries. Lord of the wings for example has a lot more entertaining tries than this. Also, the smallest position on the field is scrum-half (no.9). They're the link between the forward and the backs, got to be agile and able to run, pas and kick all day, running to the base of every ruck when on attack, and often playing sweeper on defense. Left wings are often heavier, more powerful ball runners than right wingers, but th positions wing most closely resemble in americna football are probably a combination fo reciever and cornerback Though would also be similar to punt return and a running back.
Some say Jonah has same similarities and has been compared to NFL player Bo Jackson. Size, speed , power and agility. The girth of Jonahs' thighs made it hard for players to wrap their arms around to tackle him especially when he's in full motion. It's like yeah nah I'm good. 😂
Smallest position is scrum half (9) or winger (11, 14). Scrum half is the guy who is positioned at the back of the forwards and transitions the ball from the forwards to the backs; He also puts the ball into the scrum. Winger runs the ball and has to be super quick. They tend to be 5'9". As you can see, some wingers are massive but they tend to be small and skinny. Scrum halves are always tiny. They need to be able to pass the ball perfectly from the ground and "fit" into the gaps at the back of rucks/ mauls/ scrums.
He was kinda a big reason rugby went professional: he was rugby's first superstar, known by people who weren't rugby fans. The powers that be didn't want to lose hime to rugby league or NFL, and realised they couldn't just pay hime, as their own rules said they couldn't. So, overnight, rugby became professional.
RE Putting the ball down for a try before being tackled -Sometimes the player may not want to risk the ball being knocked out of their hands before they can ‘touch it down’ and therefore not being able to score the points. 😊
Come to New Zealand and get tickets to Super Rugby either at Eden Park (Auckland) or Sky Stadium (Wellington). Late summer, so the weather will be okay.
If your looking for more you have to watch the best game of rugby ever played. Tri Nations/Bledisloe Cup 2000 - Australian ruby at its peak vs New Zealand Rugby with the Goat, Lomu. Find the whole match and understand why they call this the game they play in heaven.
3:01 In American football if you cross the line of the endzone or catch the ball in there it is a touchdown. In Rugby you have to actually touch it down. Not drop it down, it has to be entirely in your possession. So if you run in you have not yet scored. You can still be tackled or have the ball stripped from you and it is not a try (touchdown).
Pretty sure a few NFL teams back then offered ten million+ dollar deals for Jonah to play for them. You can see why, around 6'5, around 280lbs pure muscle and could still outperform most modern nfl/rugby players in a sprint and play at high pace for 40 minutes straight no issues.
You're right. The Dallas Cowboys & Denver Broncos were both interested in Lomu back in the mid-late 90s...this was after the 1995 rugby world cup season. It was the Cowboys that eventually offered Lomu 10million which he obviously rejected. In his autobiography it mentions that based on his 100m sprint time, his NFL 40 time would probably be somewhere between 4.24 and 4.30sec. 🤯🤯
Usualy the smallest îs Nr.9,scrum half,the guy that puts the ball in the scrum,and he is almost always fallowing the guy with the ball,incase he is going down he gets the ball and chooses where to pass,or he can run with the ball, he is usualy under 5.6ft ore under, around 165lbs
A great wing taken too soon 😢, however he had weaknesses too, if you could turn him his size and weight worked against him, I don't remember him making telling tackles either. The Springboks used 2 man tackles against him and stopped him scoring a try against them.
With regard to your comment about grounding the ball for the try before being hit it just makes sense not to risk 5 points to perhaps make it easier for the 2 from the kick. Imagine losing the ball in the tackle and scoring nothing despite being over the try line.
These are impressive, but there are far more impressive ones from his club rugby tries. If you wish to see really great things then have a look at Lord of The Wings. As for putting the ball down to score, the ball isn’t dead until it is placed on the ground, so until then the player can be tackled and it’s better to get 5 points than risk losing those to make the conversion kick easier.
You don't take a hit in the try area coz you could end up fumbling it if you take a hit. Way safer just putting it down prior to taking a hot. Some super strong tacklers will actually get hold of you and hold you up.. As in falling on their own back making it impossible to touch the ball down
If you hang onto the ball trying to improve your position, you can get smashed and either lose the ball or taken out of play. Your not just running over the line, you have to ground the ball.
Because its not worth keep getting hit for no reason when the kick taker is good enough to score from there, they have a good goal kicker so it's not worth the risk of any injury
I dont know about the greatest of all time. As a wing it would be hard to think who would be better than him…but the game exists out of more than just the wings. I dont think we have the same discussion regarding sports that you guys do. Everyone knows he’s a legend, a true great. But I cant remember ever having a “goat” conversation with anyone about anyone. Except an american. And then I made him admit that the greatest basket ball player of all time was Larry Bird.
If you want a moving thing with Lomu have a look at his funeral still bring a tare to my eye ruclips.net/video/ovd3v0CPXJA/видео.html . Its well worth a look and this is a great farewell to a great guy !
You will find most if not all will agree , Jonah is the GOAT , There is no Jordan LeBron thing here , Its Just Jonah , maybe more than likely another player will step up, bur even then Jonah will always hold top spot
Think of your Samoan players in NFL, they qre like Lomu. Pacific islanders are hig n strong. Each player of the 15 have their roles. Uf you want to watch soeed. Look up Christian Cullen. That kidis fast.
NFL players don't have the stamina or endurance to play Rugby. They stop after every play and have a separate team for offence and defence. Rugby players play offence and defence, some for 80 mins, without many stoppages and only a half time break. At the same time Rugby players don't have the size or explosive power to be successful at American Football.
Not his best video coz it's highlights of his best tries in a world cup comp that plays only once every 4 yrs. Pls react to "Jonah Lomu - Lord of the wings" video.
For me, there is only one other that sits at the top table with Jonah, the much troubled superstar that was Rupeni Caucaunabuca. Go check out one of his many highlight reels.
R.I.P Jonah Lomu. He was the beginning of bulky bigger wingers. Made debut at '95 world cup where Springboks was the only team that could stop him also the yr south Africa layer their 1st world cup and wo their 1st world cup. Jonah Lomu always said SA teams were the only teams that he never could get around. James Lowe is so not the best winger ever. Have a look at cheslin kolbe, kurt-lee arendse, Mapimpi and so many more better them James Lowe. Lowe is overrated
Hi there, Thnx for another entertaining Reaction-Vid.... Just want to give U an interesting factoid Jonah Lomu has never scored a Try against South African, Springboks, tht's why in this entire Hilights-Package U never see NZ Playing SA.... Despite being a South African & being a Big Supporter of SA-Rugby there's a NZ-Player U need to check-out tht's on Par with Lomu & tht's Christian Cullen Plz Guys do Ur-Selves a favour & Check-Out & do Reaction-Vid on Christian Cullen.... Really looking forward to tht Reaction-Vid!!!!
Typical South African omitting facts. SA had to change way they played to prevent Jonah getting the ball. Jonah did run through 5 springboks and ended up carrying one on his back as they tried stopping him. Jonah was also NEVER playing at full health or fitness. Jonah also never scored a try against Wales. However he stopped many tries and also like other players, passed ball to players who scored…it’s called try assists
@@HeeniKeke You took my reply to seriously. 😎 My friend. There was always an enormous amount of respect from SA fans towards Jonah. A lot of young people in the country trusted him as a role model, the highest accolade
Not the GOAT at all ( he played in the crossover from amateur to professional and often faced opponents who were nowhere near being top athletes, and isn't the greatest All Black of all time), but there has never been a player with that aura before or since. He was like a glimpse in to what a modern rugby Union player (the guys like him always played Rugby League at the time) looks like, years before it happened.
@@HeeniKeke I do not contradict myself at all. He was the first professional player in Union. He therefore looked like a man amongst boys and he would often be seen trucking 180lb centres and smashing 170lb wings. He was "wow factor" because Union had never seen anything like it. All of the guys like him played League. That aura has stuck through the years, and because of his unfortunate early passing, this added to it. The truth is that Ritchie McCaw and Dan Carter are the greatest All Blacks of all time. Ma Nonu trucking actual professional athletes is far more impressive than running over Mike Catt and Jeremy Guscott. Even Dupont would truck those guys. Bryan Habana is arguably the greatest wing of all time, and even scrum halves like Faf De Clerk are bigger (muscle mass wise), faster and stronger than #8s from the mid 1990s. He is an icon of the game, but he is simply not the GOAT by any measure at all.
@@handsolo1209 Your contempt is apparent, and you would be in the smallest percentage of people internationally who believe that Jonah wasn’t the GOAT and legend.
@@HeeniKeke No, my honesty is apparent, and I would be in the smallest percentage who actually have watched the game and accept reality. Also, you obviously are not the sharpest knife in the drawer, because I already said that Lomu is a legend, just that he is not the GOAT. It is simply a fact that he is not the greatest wing, not the greatest All Black and that he did play amongst a lot of amateurs.
@@handsolo1209 There is no such thing as “the” GOAT…as many players can fit this bill, and many more will have this title besides their names. Jonah Lomu IS widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential players in the history of the sport, and is regarded as one of the GOATs. Even Bryan Habana recognised Lomus skill, talent and ability…Habana took longer to achieve what Jonah did …Lomu scored 15 tries in 11 matches. Habana's 15 tries have come from 15 matches. Lomu failed to score in three of his 11 matches. Habana has failed to score in seven of his 15 matches. I definitely don’t put Habana down as he is a class player, but spare the comparisons calling a completely fit player against a player who medically shouldn’t have been able to play. Rating and comparing players from different years or decades is pointless. Things change in sports through the years…things evolve. Jonah is absolutely one of the GOATs and the Rugby Hall of Fame and rugby fans and players throughout the world will always remember this incredible man. Your comments about a rugby great who has passed on are disgusting.
Johan created so many try's (touchdown equiv) to other players as well as his own. a fraction off the 100m soirnt world champion in speed and as big as a world heavyweight boxer
6ft 5 inches, 270lb and ran 100m in under 11s….couple all that with his natural rugby brain and his almost freakish agility he was pretty much unstoppable at his peak. Considering he suffered from a rare kidney condition which meant he was very rarely at 100% fitness on the field….a very special individual indeed.
Playing with his kidney problem what a legend 💯
His stats are terrifying. So big so fast
The Gentle Giant also possessed impeccable balance
A Unique Specimen
A Humble Spirit❤
At 6 feet 5 inches (1.95 metres) and 275 pounds (125 kg), Jonah Lomu was exceptionally large for a wing player. Blessed with great speed (he ran 100 metres in 10.7 seconds) and power, he was difficult to stop and often ran over opponents.
NFL offered him huge money and called him a one in a billion athlete .
Lomu refused to play in the US, preferring his tranquil environment in New Zealand and Tonga.
The correct video to watch for Lomu is. Lord of the Wings
Absolutely
Yes, this one is nothing like his best.
Jonah was not in his prime in 1999 - he was now by this stage on a dialysis machine on a monthly basis. In his book he claims that when making his runs it took him ages to recover and it felt like he was carrying an extra 50kg load on his back! The closest we will ever get to compare Jonah to his prime was the 1995 rugby season - he was unstoppable!!!!
Jonah was the man that put professional rugby on the map and he was so humble as well
Jonah was the youngest ever All Black to debut at the age of 19 yrs 45 days in 1994 and was diagnosed with Nephrotic Syndrome (Kidney Disease) in 1995, underwent a Kidney transplant in 2004 but was never able to recapture his previous form throughout the remainder of his career.
Jonah was never 100% fit during his Professional career which makes you wonder how scary a prospect a 100% fully fit Jonah would've been. Yet he single-handedly destroyed England's hopes in the Semi Final of the 1995 Rugby World Cup.
His size, agility, strength and speed, allowed him to produce feats on the Rugby field which had never been seen before and he did it against the best players in the world at the Rugby World Cup. He changed the way Rugby was played and is rightly acknowledged as the first Global Rugby Superstar in the Professional era.
The All Blacks will be playing a one off test against Fiji (Who made the Quarter Finals at the 2023 Rugby World Cup) in San Diego on the 19th July.
Jonah had 3 plans, after gimme the ball!
1. I'll sidestep them, run past them!
2. I'll outrun them!
3. Stuff it, if 1 & 2 don't work I'll go through them!
In tackling him, he had great balance, speed and strength, and he used his tree trunks pumping to forestall anyone trying to take his legs out!
He had explosive acceleration and once at speed he was hard to stop.
Most of these games he was sick, getting dialysis and later teams used to dedicate 2 or 3 players to slow him down which meant there were gaps for others to score.
RIP Big Man
For another GOAT, take a look at the female Jonah who is probably a more complete rugby player, NZ's Portia Woodman Wickcliffe, nice lady, built strong and fast. She tackles hard, scrummages fearsomely to rip the ball off the opposition, takes off at speed to score, and gently shoves any incoming tackler to the ground or tosses them off. Portia is imposing, slowing a bit now, terrifies the opposition, another GOAT
Its worth adding that in the later clips you saw he was never fully fit!! He had serious kidney issues which were the cause of his untimely death. So how good would he have been if he was healthy?????
Definitely the GOAT ,did all this at around 80% fitness.
Had a huge impact on the game when he appeared,now there are a lot of huge fast players but he was the first and as such was really noticeable.
Jonah was feared by many of his opponents on the field. Very difficult to take down, explosive and extremely fast. To put it in perspective. Usain Bolt ran 100m in 9.58sec. In Jonah's autobiography it says he ran 100m in 10.65sec weighing 270 pounds...which is just insane for someone his size!!! 🤯 Jonah also played his entire professional rugby career at around 80% due to kidney disorder....he was never at 100% full strength, which is also crazy...imagine if he was?!?!
Jonah = goat
6.5ft
Weight 280pounds
Runs 100m in 10.4sec
Jonah was the nicest bloke. We all loved him. My kids as all kids idolised him. He is the reason rugby went professional. He was the first rugby superstar. He was a global rugby legend. To see him play live was an experience. I took my kids to every game at our hallowed grounds Eden Park. Our rugby fortress. And yep, you want to get the ball as close to the sticks as possible to convert the try and get as many points as possible. 5 for a try. 2 for the conversion kick. 3 for a penalty kick.
No debate necessary...Lomu was the GOAT! A joy to watch, even as he was destroyed team ❤️
Remember Gents in Rugby a player can wrestle the ball from another player so while you like to get around under the posts not at risk of turn over or fumble.
Jonah Lomu is THE GOAT 🐐 💯
I met Jonah a few times through a good friend of mine who is a former All Black captain & one thing that stood out to me was how humble, quiet & reserved he was for someone who was an awesome & intimidating athlete, he was very down to earth too...R.I.P Jonah Lomu
Numbers worn by Rugby players denote their position in the team. 1, 2, and 3 (powerful, heavy guys) are front row (of the scrum) forwards, 4, and 5 (tall and powerful in lineouts) are second row forwards, 6, 7, and 8 (strong, mobile, non-stop tacklers and link players) back row forwards.
9 is the scrum half (often the smallest in the team), 10 Fly Half (these two are backs who are he links between forwards and 10 is often the main playmaker), 12 and 13 the centres (three-quarters), are the attacking and defensive) midfield; fast and powerful. 11 and 14 are the wings, these are are the attacking greyhounds of the team but they must be able to defend their channel as well and kick from hand. 15 Full back, the last line of defence but also an extra attacker who can come into the 'three-quarter line. They need to have good anticipation, be brave, great hands and pace, and kick well in defence and attack.
Jonah Lomu was an 11, a left wing.
To really understand what this legend went through. You have to watch and react to Jonah Lomu (All Blacks) Tribute HD. The true story of this great man.
New Zealand produced many GOAT,s that wil not easily be matched,, Dan Carter, Richie McCaw, Christian Cullen, but their rivalry against Springboks are on another level,,, its like everyone steps up their game 5 notches when they play each other,,,, and yet they are all great friends off the pitch
Love seeing Americans getting into rugby! You guys should check out Christian Cullen - The Paekākāriki Express. In my opinion, the best attacking fullback to ever play. Not a big guy but pure speed with skill. He played with Jonah Lomu during an amazing All Blacks era.
Spent most of his career competing whilst having kidney disease and on dialysis between games
11:50
His greatest try for the All Blacks, in my opinion. (I followed his entire career, growing up in New Zealand, and saw him play for the All Blacks against Samoa in my home town in 1996.)
This try is amazing because he receives the ball quite flat-footed, almost standing still, and he has to collect it from off his bootlaces with a defender right in his face. The strength needed to throw that defender off while having very little forward momentum is crazy. Then the acceleration - he was the fastest of the whole team over the first ten metres. Faster than the guys who weighed 30 kilograms less than he did. But the craziest part is when defenders start to collide with him from all angles. One of them approaches from Lomu's right, running quite hard. That's a blindside flanker - one of the burliest and most athletic of the forward pack. He's hit Lomu from the side, hard, and all that's happened is that the flanker crashes to the ground while Lomu continues forward. Imagine the strength to bounce a guy hitting you from the side while contending with 2 or 3 other defenders, all while having to protect the ball.
The guy was a freakish specimen. Big, strong, fast, agile, and with incredible balance. Literally the scariest ball-runner in the history of rugby.
There is very little consideration when it comes down to Rugby’s goat. I’d say that if you asked 200 players and fans…. You’d hear Lomu’s name 185 times. Maybe more. That’s not to say that there aren’t other greats still playing or retired. But overwhelmingly I’d bet you hear his name far more. Dude was a beast and could run a sub 4 second 40 yard sprint standing 6’4” or 6’5” while weighing in at around 265 pounds. He could either out run you or run through you. Personally, I’d prefer if he’d just go ahead and out run me. I have a family and don’t need that level of running me over to be seen by them. Dude was amazing and despite his ability he retained his humbleness. This world is far worse off without him in it. But such a better place for having him pass through. RIP to the Legend.
Jonah Lomus funeral is 100% worth reacting to... the entire nation of New Zealand performing the Haka for their king.
The goat debate, is different in rugby, yes Mr lomu is the
greatest and most influential players in the history of the sport, he was in maybe the reason, rugby player's a big and fast, Mr lomu is like the Michael Jordan of rugby without the states.
these are pretty tame highlights, what you'll learn about rugby union is that it has several different invested parties who own particular content. What you are watching now are "World Rugby" highlights, they are the global governing body for the sport but they don't own it, they only own the rights to the "Rugby World Cup" and the "World Rugby 7s". there are 2 other international tournaments one is owned by the "6 nations" the other by "SANZAR", and then the club game has different governing and rights ownerships for each individual tournament, like the URC, Premiership Rugby, Top14, etc and then another level like the European Champions Cup Championship.
it leads to each entity having a very narrow base of what footage they actually own so most official footage of rugby ends up being really quite basic and not really representative of a players entire career.
Jonah was that good that often a large part of the game plan was just get him the ball! I remember my Dad showing me a news paper article in the early 90's about him as a school kid saying how quick he was for his size and that he could really be a great player one day... boy was that true.
You noted his distinctive haur style but what you might not be able to discern, he used to shave a couple of lines in his left eyebrow, representing his number 11.
Master of initiating the contact. He put hits on rather than got hit. Goat
It’s his size power and speed. He was a winger like a wide receiver. That’s why his opposite looks small, cause wingers are made for speed. This man would dwarf a cornerback, and would truck them to. 6ft 5, 270 pounds, 4.24 sec 40 yard dash, 10.5 sec 100 metres
This was Lomu's top ten world cup tries. Lord of the wings for example has a lot more entertaining tries than this.
Also, the smallest position on the field is scrum-half (no.9). They're the link between the forward and the backs, got to be agile and able to run, pas and kick all day, running to the base of every ruck when on attack, and often playing sweeper on defense.
Left wings are often heavier, more powerful ball runners than right wingers, but th positions wing most closely resemble in americna football are probably a combination fo reciever and cornerback Though would also be similar to punt return and a running back.
Some say Jonah has same similarities and has been compared to NFL player Bo Jackson. Size, speed , power and agility. The girth of Jonahs' thighs made it hard for players to wrap their arms around to tackle him especially when he's in full motion. It's like yeah nah I'm good. 😂
Smallest position is scrum half (9) or winger (11, 14).
Scrum half is the guy who is positioned at the back of the forwards and transitions the ball from the forwards to the backs; He also puts the ball into the scrum.
Winger runs the ball and has to be super quick. They tend to be 5'9".
As you can see, some wingers are massive but they tend to be small and skinny.
Scrum halves are always tiny. They need to be able to pass the ball perfectly from the ground and "fit" into the gaps at the back of rucks/ mauls/ scrums.
He was kinda a big reason rugby went professional: he was rugby's first superstar, known by people who weren't rugby fans. The powers that be didn't want to lose hime to rugby league or NFL, and realised they couldn't just pay hime, as their own rules said they couldn't. So, overnight, rugby became professional.
No exaggeration, JL's opposite number - the 14, will often be more than a foot shorter, and up to 5 stone lighter in weight
The late great Jonah Lomu was HIM. He was a big guy who could sprint like the best of him, and the guy was built like a tank.
12:32 About the hair, Jonah Lomu had R9 "haircut" before R9 had Jonah Lomu haircut, So basically Jonah Lomu haircut.
RE Putting the ball down for a try before being tackled -Sometimes the player may not want to risk the ball being knocked out of their hands before they can ‘touch it down’ and therefore not being able to score the points. 😊
Lol, we have a saying here - you hit your opponent so hard he forgets his own name.....but he remembers yours for the rest of his life.
He is the greatest RIP Jonah Lomu
Come to New Zealand and get tickets to Super Rugby either at Eden Park (Auckland) or Sky Stadium (Wellington). Late summer, so the weather will be okay.
If your looking for more you have to watch the best game of rugby ever played. Tri Nations/Bledisloe Cup 2000 - Australian ruby at its peak vs New Zealand Rugby with the Goat, Lomu. Find the whole match and understand why they call this the game they play in heaven.
No one will ever argue that Jonah Lamu was and will always be the GOAT
3:01 In American football if you cross the line of the endzone or catch the ball in there it is a touchdown. In Rugby you have to actually touch it down. Not drop it down, it has to be entirely in your possession. So if you run in you have not yet scored. You can still be tackled or have the ball stripped from you and it is not a try (touchdown).
Dallas cowboys offered him a contract
they put it down before they get tackled because they might be held up in the tackle and moved out of bounds and loose the try
I would've been JL's opposite number. I'm 5'8" and 170 pounds!!! I was super quick, but JL's 40 was 4.4 0r close too. He was 6'5" and 275 pounds bro
I'd never had stopped him, but I'd have definitely taken some of his momentum for the guys behind me..
Also… Those are just the tries he scored at the World Cup, you need to find a highlight reel with more of his club rugby
There is no debate. Jonah was a monster of a player. Even unhealthy he would make the game look easy.
Pretty sure a few NFL teams back then offered ten million+ dollar deals for Jonah to play for them.
You can see why, around 6'5, around 280lbs pure muscle and could still outperform most modern nfl/rugby players in a sprint and play at high pace for 40 minutes straight no issues.
You're right. The Dallas Cowboys & Denver Broncos were both interested in Lomu back in the mid-late 90s...this was after the 1995 rugby world cup season. It was the Cowboys that eventually offered Lomu 10million which he obviously rejected. In his autobiography it mentions that based on his 100m sprint time, his NFL 40 time would probably be somewhere between 4.24 and 4.30sec. 🤯🤯
Talking about the smallest, you guys must watch Faf de Klerk the giant slayer and Cheslin Kolbe
Faf is the giant slayer and comedian of rugby. 🇿🇦
Having youngsters watching Jonah Lomu, his hair style actually took off. Many of Kiwi kids were having the hair style. His own style. ❤
I would have paid to watch you try tackling Jonah lol.
I'm a Springbok "die hard" fan, saying LOMU is the best I've ever seen.
Jonah was amazing ❤
Usualy the smallest îs Nr.9,scrum half,the guy that puts the ball in the scrum,and he is almost always fallowing the guy with the ball,incase he is going down he gets the ball and chooses where to pass,or he can run with the ball, he is usualy under 5.6ft ore under, around 165lbs
A great wing taken too soon 😢, however he had weaknesses too, if you could turn him his size and weight worked against him, I don't remember him making telling tackles either. The Springboks used 2 man tackles against him and stopped him scoring a try against them.
They also had 5 running in on him. Jonah forced springboks to change their game just to keep ball away from him
Would be like trying to tackle a freight train.... Er good luck with that plan!
1 sentence, just 1 f'n sentence without the word 'like' would be so mature
But like why?
With regard to your comment about grounding the ball for the try before being hit it just makes sense not to risk 5 points to perhaps make it easier for the 2 from the kick. Imagine losing the ball in the tackle and scoring nothing despite being over the try line.
These are impressive, but there are far more impressive ones from his club rugby tries. If you wish to see really great things then have a look at Lord of The Wings. As for putting the ball down to score, the ball isn’t dead until it is placed on the ground, so until then the player can be tackled and it’s better to get 5 points than risk losing those to make the conversion kick easier.
Theres no debate on whoes the goat, he brought rugby to the professional era and was rugby's only ever superstar. He's the goat
he got offered a huge deal to join the Dallas Cowboys, but turned it down..he just wanted to play rugby with his mates
R.I.P. Jonah died of Kidney failure
Really need to watch the superior Lotd of the Wings vid.
It doesn't get copyright struck either 😏
Okay now watch his funerallll
You don't take a hit in the try area coz you could end up fumbling it if you take a hit. Way safer just putting it down prior to taking a hot. Some super strong tacklers will actually get hold of you and hold you up.. As in falling on their own back making it impossible to touch the ball down
If you hang onto the ball trying to improve your position, you can get smashed and either lose the ball or taken out of play. Your not just running over the line, you have to ground the ball.
Because its not worth keep getting hit for no reason when the kick taker is good enough to score from there, they have a good goal kicker so it's not worth the risk of any injury
0:19 Jordan - Lebron? Surely you mean Jordan - Bird.
If you haven’t watched the lord of the wings documentary it is great
The smallest player on a rugby field would be an adult male silverback gorilla.
I dont know about the greatest of all time. As a wing it would be hard to think who would be better than him…but the game exists out of more than just the wings.
I dont think we have the same discussion regarding sports that you guys do. Everyone knows he’s a legend, a true great. But I cant remember ever having a “goat” conversation with anyone about anyone.
Except an american. And then I made him admit that the greatest basket ball player of all time was Larry Bird.
If you want a moving thing with Lomu have a look at his funeral still bring a tare to my eye ruclips.net/video/ovd3v0CPXJA/видео.html . Its well worth a look and this is a great farewell to a great guy !
You will find most if not all will agree , Jonah is the GOAT , There is no Jordan LeBron thing here , Its Just Jonah , maybe more than likely another player will step up, bur even then Jonah will always hold top spot
Think of your Samoan players in NFL, they qre like Lomu. Pacific islanders are hig n strong. Each player of the 15 have their roles. Uf you want to watch soeed. Look up Christian Cullen. That kidis fast.
Watch Cheslin Kolbe 50 best sidesteps
NFL players don't have the stamina or endurance to play Rugby. They stop after every play and have a separate team for offence and defence. Rugby players play offence and defence, some for 80 mins, without many stoppages and only a half time break. At the same time Rugby players don't have the size or explosive power to be successful at American Football.
Jonah v NFL=🤣
Not his best video coz it's highlights of his best tries in a world cup comp that plays only once every 4 yrs. Pls react to "Jonah Lomu - Lord of the wings" video.
You watched the wrong video
"USA v All Blacks Highlights | International Test | 2021" - just look this or make a short reaction?
dan carter was the best
For me, there is only one other that sits at the top table with Jonah, the much troubled superstar that was Rupeni Caucaunabuca. Go check out one of his many highlight reels.
Nice one, but why on earth are you wearing hats.
You talk about hair dk
R.I.P Jonah Lomu. He was the beginning of bulky bigger wingers. Made debut at '95 world cup where Springboks was the only team that could stop him also the yr south Africa layer their 1st world cup and wo their 1st world cup. Jonah Lomu always said SA teams were the only teams that he never could get around.
James Lowe is so not the best winger ever. Have a look at cheslin kolbe, kurt-lee arendse,
Mapimpi and so many more better them James Lowe. Lowe is overrated
Check out the world champions SA world cup highlights most feard rugby team in the world.
Hi there, Thnx for another entertaining Reaction-Vid.... Just want to give U an interesting factoid Jonah Lomu has never scored a Try against South African, Springboks, tht's why in this entire Hilights-Package U never see NZ Playing SA....
Despite being a South African & being a Big Supporter of SA-Rugby there's a NZ-Player U need to check-out tht's on Par with Lomu & tht's Christian Cullen Plz Guys do Ur-Selves a favour & Check-Out & do Reaction-Vid on Christian Cullen....
Really looking forward to tht Reaction-Vid!!!!
Fun fact - he never scored against the SA Springboks but he marries a SA girl!
Typical South African omitting facts. SA had to change way they played to prevent Jonah getting the ball. Jonah did run through 5 springboks and ended up carrying one on his back as they tried stopping him. Jonah was also NEVER playing at full health or fitness. Jonah also never scored a try against Wales. However he stopped many tries and also like other players, passed ball to players who scored…it’s called try assists
@@HeeniKeke You took my reply to seriously. 😎 My friend. There was always an enormous amount of respect from SA fans towards Jonah. A lot of young people in the country trusted him as a role model, the highest accolade
But still demolished the springboks defence to create many tries for other players - fun facts😂😂
Not the GOAT at all ( he played in the crossover from amateur to professional and often faced opponents who were nowhere near being top athletes, and isn't the greatest All Black of all time), but there has never been a player with that aura before or since. He was like a glimpse in to what a modern rugby Union player (the guys like him always played Rugby League at the time) looks like, years before it happened.
You contradict yourself. Yes there has never been a player like him and Jonah is regarded worldwide as the GOAT and legend all talk about.
@@HeeniKeke I do not contradict myself at all. He was the first professional player in Union. He therefore looked like a man amongst boys and he would often be seen trucking 180lb centres and smashing 170lb wings. He was "wow factor" because Union had never seen anything like it. All of the guys like him played League. That aura has stuck through the years, and because of his unfortunate early passing, this added to it. The truth is that Ritchie McCaw and Dan Carter are the greatest All Blacks of all time. Ma Nonu trucking actual professional athletes is far more impressive than running over Mike Catt and Jeremy Guscott. Even Dupont would truck those guys. Bryan Habana is arguably the greatest wing of all time, and even scrum halves like Faf De Clerk are bigger (muscle mass wise), faster and stronger than #8s from the mid 1990s. He is an icon of the game, but he is simply not the GOAT by any measure at all.
@@handsolo1209 Your contempt is apparent, and you would be in the smallest percentage of people internationally who believe that Jonah wasn’t the GOAT and legend.
@@HeeniKeke No, my honesty is apparent, and I would be in the smallest percentage who actually have watched the game and accept reality. Also, you obviously are not the sharpest knife in the drawer, because I already said that Lomu is a legend, just that he is not the GOAT. It is simply a fact that he is not the greatest wing, not the greatest All Black and that he did play amongst a lot of amateurs.
@@handsolo1209 There is no such thing as “the” GOAT…as many players can fit this bill, and many more will have this title besides their names.
Jonah Lomu IS widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential players in the history of the sport, and is regarded as one of the GOATs.
Even Bryan Habana recognised Lomus skill, talent and ability…Habana took longer to achieve what Jonah did …Lomu scored 15 tries in 11 matches. Habana's 15 tries have come from 15 matches. Lomu failed to score in three of his 11 matches. Habana has failed to score in seven of his 15 matches.
I definitely don’t put Habana down as he is a class player, but spare the comparisons calling a completely fit player against a player who medically shouldn’t have been able to play. Rating and comparing players from different years or decades is pointless. Things change in sports through the years…things evolve.
Jonah is absolutely one of the GOATs and the Rugby Hall of Fame and rugby fans and players throughout the world will always remember this incredible man.
Your comments about a rugby great who has passed on are disgusting.
Johan created so many try's (touchdown equiv) to other players as well as his own. a fraction off the 100m soirnt world champion in speed and as big as a world heavyweight boxer
NO debate... Jonah Lomu undisputed GOAT
👍🏾🤙🏾💯
Very exciting Jonah, but it is unfair to all great players to call any of them the Goat.
Really need to watch the superior Lotd of the Wings vid.
It doesn't get copyright struck either 😏