Jason Leonard

Jason Leonard (born 14 August 1968) is an English former rugby union player.

He won a then-record 114 caps for England men’s rugby team during a 14-year international career.

A prop, Leonard played club rugby for Barking RFC, Saracens and Harlequins.

He began playing for his home club, Barking and his school teams as a youth, and as his playing talents became recognised, interest was shown by London club Saracens, where he moved in 1989.

Leonard won his first cap on 28 July 1990, against Argentina in Buenos Aires.

At the age of 22 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 War.

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 that suited the large and physical England forwards.

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.

He played in England teams which won four Grand Slams (1991, 1992, 1995 and 2003) and the 2003 Rugby World Cup, and played for the British & Irish Lions on three tours, winning five more caps.

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.

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 vertebra 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.

In 1993, Leonard was selected for his first British and Irish Lions tour to New Zealand.

With Dick Best 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 1995 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.

He was part of the Lions squad that won the test series during their 1997 tour of South Africa.

He was awarded the MBE for services to rugby in 2002, and an OBE after England's Rugby World Cup success.

Since his retirement in 2004, Leonard has been active in the governance of rugby.

Following a year at Saracens, he moved to Harlequins, where he stayed until his professional retirement in May 2004, making a total of 290 appearances for the team.

In 2008, Leonard joined Besso Group, and has since worked as a senior advisor for the established Lloyd's broker.

Leonard has launched his own special event service, the FunBus.

Leonard's lengthy career straddled both the amateur and professional eras and he had a job as a carpenter.

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.

He was also inducted to the World Rugby Hall of Fame in 2014.

He was President of the RFU (2015–2016), and Chairman of the British & Irish Lions (2019–2022), succeeded by Ieuan Evans.