Jeremy GUSCOTT

Jeremy did not score a single try in the 1991 Five Nations and saw far less of the ball than he had the year before, but England's new found resolve was sufficient to make up for the Murrayfield disappointment and they won the Grand Slam for the first time since 1980. In the summer Guscott then lined up against the Aussies for the first time in a one off test in Sydney, but despite scoring a fine solo try, England were beaten by a record 40-15 margin. England maintained their forward orientated game in the 1991 World Cup, and this probably accounts for the fact that Jeremy scored just two tries, both against Italy in the Group stages. Australia were again the opponents in the final and unlike the Sydney match up earlier in the year, England dominated the game only to lose 12-6 after switching to a more expansive style when they should surely have stuck with the gameplan that had served them well up until the final.

The 1992 season saw England win a second consecutive Grand Slam, but unlike 1991 this tournament was won with ball in hand. The England backs ran in thirteen tries in total, though Guscott himself was on the score sheet just once, against Ireland at Twickenham. However, he showed his versatility by dropping a goal against Scotland at Murrayfield. No one realised at the time that the words "Jeremy Guscott" and "drop goal" would later become almost synonymous a few years later. The 1993 season proved to be a disappointment as England failed in their bid to win the elusive "Triple Slam".

However, Jeremy was once again a star for the British Lions, playing in all three tests of a losing series and forming an excellent partnership with the Welshman Scott Gibbs. One of his best performances came in a 28-10 victory over Canterbury, during which he showed that he could tackle as well as any of his antipodean counterparts. Unfortunately, a long term groin injury forced him to miss England's "revenge" victory over the All Blacks in the autumn, and all of the 1994 Five Nations as well. (Jon Collins)

After surgery and months of intensive physiotherapy, Jeremy made a welcome return to the England team in the autumn of 1994, playing in the victorious home tests against Romania and Canada. In 1995 he proved that he was back to somewhere near his best form and helped England to their third Grand Slam of the 1990s. Perhaps their most impressive victory was the 31-10 triumph over France at Twickenham, with Jeremy opening the scoring with a fine try. Guscott's game ought to have been ideally suited to the hard, fast grounds of South Africa for the World Cup of 1995, but England failed to put his talents to maximum use in their journey to the semi-finals and he did not score a try. In 1996 a somewhat introspective England team laboured their way to another Championship title with Jeremy scoring a try in a victory over Wales when he charged down a weak clearance by opposition fullback Justin Thomas. In order to accommodate new skipper Phil De Glanville, the 1996/97 season saw the break up of the Carling-Guscott partnership.

Therefore, Guscott rarely saw action on the field, and when he did it was out on the wing. His two appearances were as a replacement against Ireland and Wales respectively and he missed out on the horror show that was England's 23-20 loss to France at Twickenham. In the summer he travelled with the Lions for a third consecutive tour, this time to South Africa. He rekindled his old partnership with Scott Gibbs and the two played well without ever really threatening the South African try line. However, it was in the second test that Jeremy achieved rugby immortality when his late drop goal sealed an 18-15 win, giving the Lions an unassailable 2-0 series lead. Unfortunately, Guscott broke his arm in the third test, forcing him to miss England's quartet of matches against the Southern Hemisphere nations in the autumn. (Jon Collins)