MY RUGBY WORLD

When he's not proving a world-class quizzer on The Chase, Shaun Wallace is following the All Blacks

- Joe Robinson

WHAT WAS your first memory of rugby?

I suppose it was when I was the house captain at Copland School in Wembley. Our four houses were Tudor, York, Lancaster and Windsor and I was the sport captain for York from first year through to fifth year.

We weren’t very good at rugby but nevertheless I was the captain who led them to getting thrashed. I normally played in the forwards as I was relatively tall for my age, but I didn’t like the rough and tumble of it – I preferred watching.

The last game I played was when I was 14 and I slotted a conversion – it’s still one of my greatest achievements.

What was the first game you saw? It was in 1971 when I was ten years old. The British & Irish Lions tour to New Zealand, the first time they ever won down there, John Dawes being the captain.

But my favourite player was the All Blacks scrum-half Sid Going. I don’t know why but I immediately became attached to him. It was in the days when wingers threw in at the lineouts. I also recall watching the great Gareth Edwards try for the Barbarians against New Zealand in 1973.

Then the tremendous Welsh teams of the 1970s who dominated that era of Five Nations rugby too.

Your favourite player right now?

Marcus Smith. It feels like he needs to be the main go-to guy during this England rebuild. Him and Alex Mitchell could put them in contention for the 2027 World Cup…