Jonny Wilkinson - A special sportsman

After watching the haunting Jonny Wilkinson interview just prior to the game this morning it struck me what a humble, modest special sportsman Jonny is. He may not be blessed with natural ability but his pure determination will see Jonny go down as one of the great fly halves the world has ever seen. I was amazed at how modest the guy is when he was saying how embarrised he was with some of the media coverage he gets over his teammates. Some players say things in interviews and don't mean them, when Jonny was saying that he plays for his teammates dreams of lifting the world cup you know he means it. Wilko is a true hero, most players would have quit the game if they had the amount of injuries Jonny had. I honestly think the Wilko should go down as the greatest sportsman Great Britain has ever produced both for the success he has achieved, for the fact he has been the best player in the world and for the modesty of the guy.

Just to add I found it quite humbling watching the interview.

If you want to show a young lad what a true sportsman should be, look no further than Jonny.

When you think of the injuries he's suffered as well...

And heck! Even the French love him!

i agree with most of your points wrfc but saying 'He may not be blessed with natural ability' is crazy!
To earn an england cap at the age of 18 requires a fantastic amount of talent and even then he was a centre. He had a good turn of pace, albeit that has gone now, he had and still has a good jink and step and his tackling was ferocious, again that has slightly curtailed nowadays but a great deal of his injuries came from him laying his body on the line and smashing much bigger players.
Yes he is known for his incredible commitment and dedication for his kicking which mainly came through hard work but you cannot be so naive to say he isnt talented. He may not have the 'goose step' and offload of cooper or the running ability of carter but he is the 2nd highest points scorer of all time is always England's go-to-guy and has accumulated over 90 caps he is a sporting great and one of the most talented and lauded fly halfs of all time

Can't agree more about Jonny. Absolutely one of the greatest athletes and sportsman I have had the privalege to see play - in any sport. Talent, yes. But committment. Enjoyment. Team-first. Great.

That interview was inspiring. Exactly the type of interview I want my kids to see. Do you know if that is available on you tube or somewhere similar?

I didn't see the interview but he has always come across as a true gent, very humble and nice human being, just like Neil Jenkins is.
That's the best compliment I can give him

Always really liked, respected and admired JW as a player. An unassuming and consummate gentleman. A standard for all Sportsmen to aspire to. He is only overshadowed by one man still playing the game. Felipe Contepomi. It was sheer joy to watch my two favourite players in modern times - play together for Toulon.

The following article helps describe what makes Felipe so special. Rugby is secondary to him. To be the complete sportsman, you must have more strings to your bow. It gives you perspective and makes you a better, more rounded and smarter player. Still ruthless at the high end - as we saw today, but who and what he is - gives him that edge.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/2011/aug/19/england-argentina-world-cup


I would say that Johhny & Felipe are great friends outside of rugby. They are special.

Gibson,I'd say Shane Jennings would be pretty peeved if he heard what you were saying! I love Wilko,a true gent I remember seeing him in Thomond a few years ago and how he spent a long time signing autographs and posing for photos with people. A talented player and as alluded to above a humble fella.

have to say wilkinson is the english player i respect the most, he comes across as a humble and modest man and he seems very honest- also have to say toby flood and ben youngs come across well in interviews (and annoyingly so does ashton)

but yes JW will be remembered as a great, and as for the comment about natural skill i think any player who gets to his level has alot of natural skill and alot of sheer detirmination i mean how many injuries has he had, yet he struggled on when many would have called it a day

When I was serving up in the North East I met Johnny in Newcastle airport about a week or so after England won the WC in 03.

There was no airs and graces about him he was just in the lounge like the rest of us and chatted etc signed few autographs.

It made we think our many or the prima dona footballers would be like that if they had just won the WC - Not many I suspect.

I also read an interview with him during that period in the local rag and one of the reasons he liked Newcastle and turned down quite a few high profile moves was because of the annonimity living and playing in Newcastle allowed.

He is the English version of our Ray no bigger compliment.

It’s extremely hard to dislike Wilkinson, he’s always come across as a top bloke. And not in a “Dan Carter is such a good player and good looking chap but you just have to hate him out of jealousy” kind of way.

As a youngster he was miles better than anyone in and around his age group both with the boot and ball in hand. Always been humble but something that doesn't come across in interviews past or present is his sense of humour.



His book was crap though.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/rugby_union/15055405.stm

Leave him alone

Agree...he deserves it too. Good to see that for some of our sports heroes life is really very simple...go out and enjoy it.

McCaw has similar traits for us. Always humble and deflects praise to his team mates and puts up without reacting to all the CR&%$p thrown his way.

May I add that Dan Carter also comes across as a very humble man. Its a pity though, the days of humble rugby players may well come to an end if they let their new found 'celebrity' get to them.

As for football, amazingly David Beckham is someone I admire. Very humble in interviews and very genuine. Might come across as a bit of a poser due to his modelling, but the guy is one of the few football players who actually visibly cared intensely about playing for his country.

Taylorman and Thunder have just nailed it.

Its not background. It's how you carry yourself in Life, given what you have.

Sport helps develop that. Something we all share and love.

Don't let the corporate basterds wear that down.


Believe.

I have to be honest, I'm a bit out of touch when it comes to English rugby cause I just don't see enough of it, and I see even less of Jonny now he's over in France. However, when I read through the injury list he's had, I really admire him for carrying on and continuing to be so positive about his sport. It's very difficult for athletes to get back into things when they suffer injuries, but to go through the amount he has, that takes special dedication and courage I think, and for that he has to be admired. When I've seen him on interviews, he comes across as a private, quiet man and seems to handle the media pressure placed on him very well. I was super impressed when I saw him speaking very good French after a Toulon match once too!

can someone post a link to the interview?

Heres a link to the interview, I'm not 100% sure its the recent one shown on Saturday.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uf0G75eClrM

The fact that he speaks French so brilliantly shows how determined and meticulous he is off the field. He embraces and respects other cultures and languages, whereas a football player would just expect everyone else to speak English for them. His last try for Toulon was an absolute beauty as well, a glimpse of his old running game.

Love the man, would be speechless if I ever met him. Glad he's English, wish he'd played for the Glaws.

Wilkinson nice guy but I would rather go for a pint with Greenwood.

Pity he is now Poopie !