Wednesday, December 05, 2007
Jason Robinson - A tribute to Billy Whizz
At Twickenham on Saturday, Robinson took to the field with a standing ovation for the great man. When he left in the 68th minute it was much the same. The crowd showed respect to the man with possibly the quickest feet in the game, who served his club and country with so much pride throughout his distinguished career.
Robinson has decided that now is the time to settle down completely and spend more time with his family. He's had a long career and despite having an excellent year for England, and more recently, showing how dangerous he still is for the Barbarians, has decided that now is the right time to bow out.
Billy Whizz, as he's affectionately known, started as a youngster with Rugby League side Wigan. He soon showed what a dangerous player he was, and later went on to become one of Great Britain's greatest try scoring legends.
His transition to Rugby Union was a smooth one, unlike many others who have struggled to make the change. His electrifying speed and fast feet made him one of the most lethal counter attackers the world has ever seen.
In terms of his future, he candidly mentions how coaching isn't something he'd want to get into.
"I can see myself doing some kind of ambassador role maybe some stuff in the community, perhaps with children, but theres no chance of coaching at a higher level. Ive seen what coaches go through - most go bald."
A character, a true gentleman, and a legend of the game who will be sorely missed, but will always be remembered.
Rugby League:
- Wigan 1992-2000 (281 games, 171 tries)
- 12 Great Britain Caps (8 tries)
- 7 England Caps (4 tries)
- Super League Winner 1998
- Championship Winner 93,94,95,96
- Challenge Cup Winner 1993, 1995
-
Young Player of the Year 1993
- Sale Sharks 2000-2007 (112 games, 33 tries)
- 51 England Caps (28 tries)
- 5 Lions Caps
- World Cup Winner 2003
- Challenge Cup Winner 2002, 2005
- Premiership Winner 2006
- World Cup Finalist 2007
-
Barbarians vs South Africa Winner 2007
Time: 03:00
Posted at 9:26 am | 49 comments
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Viewing 49 comments
Alex Davies December 05, 2007 10:13 am
Good video, legendary player, nice integration of the interviews, but leaves me begging for more. There have got to be more clips of him out there that could have been integrated in.
Anonymous December 05, 2007 10:37 am
Some of the best footwork ever married to incredible strength for his size. best of luck from Wales you will be missed Robinson we LOVE you!
Anonymous December 05, 2007 10:38 am
would have to agree with the comment above.. there is of course the try against wales that he setup for will greenwood
Anonymous December 05, 2007 10:44 am
what a ledge...wish i had feet like that!
GMC December 05, 2007 10:48 am
To see more of Robinson in action simply click on the 'Jason Robinson' label. That'll bring up other clips that have been tagged with his name.
Anonymous December 05, 2007 11:47 am
What a phenomenal player, truely unique - and a great bloke as well.Any chance that a clip of Robinson in his early union days could be found - there was a try he scored against Romania where he beat virtually the entire team!
Alex December 05, 2007 12:15 pm
Possibly the only likable English rugby player...
Anonymous December 05, 2007 1:31 pm
and it all could have been sooo much different , his mother is Scottish isn't she ? Could hve played for us (Scotland)The only English player I've every admired , I tell our u16 etc at our club if you should only pick 1 player to emulate , Jason Robinson is the player to be most like
Anonymous December 05, 2007 2:21 pm
Thanks for the vid - but this is just the one they showed on Sky Sports isn't it? That's why they miss out some crackers, they didn;t want to use ITV and BBC footage I reckon. I bet the rugbydump guys could put something better together. If you do could you use footage that is a little further away? All the close up stuff's fine but it's a bit confusing - you can't really see what's going on. Cheers guys!
GMC December 05, 2007 3:04 pm
Agreed, but this is still better than nothing I guess. It's more about acknowledging his greatness than coming up with the perfect video I reckon. I'll never forget that try he scored in the World Cup Final in 2003. Great pass from Jonny, and then pure gas to get to the line. Classic!
The Shaft December 05, 2007 5:07 pm
Robinson is god. In his day he would have owned Habana. If you disagree with me you are definately gay.
Man Walking Dog December 06, 2007 2:12 am
Never knew the fellow personally. I heard he had a mean step. Up and down like. One foot and then the next. Very menacing. It would often taunt small children.
Anonymous December 06, 2007 10:50 am
was a shame they didnt show the world cup final try he scoredl
Anonymous December 06, 2007 11:36 am
i dunno i think i agree with the comment above that he could of owned Habana...of course there is no contest with regard to top speed but his footwork and strength could take anyone one on one.
Anonymous December 06, 2007 12:52 pm
I think robinson is a more complete player than habana. that step of his... amazing..
GMC December 06, 2007 2:35 pm
I agree that Robinson is/was a great player with devastating attacking abilities, but I don't think you could ever call him a 'complete player'.
Anonymous December 06, 2007 3:36 pm
Great player, and a true gentleman.As good as Habana? The stats dont say so. But thats beside the point - he was a joy to watch, and thats enough.
elrolo December 06, 2007 4:25 pm
"as good as habbana, the stats don't say so" ????if you mean tries that doesn't count for much because of the teams they played for. Sale Sharks must have half the try rate as blue bulls. the number of people beaten is more by Robinson. He was also beter technically with positioning , catching and kicking. i would also say habanna doesn't have much on him with acceleration either.
FORDY December 06, 2007 4:57 pm
A great tribute to an amazing rugby player. Personally I believe we will sorely miss him as rugby fans and England supporters. BYE BYE BILLY WHIZZ!!!:)
FORDY December 06, 2007 4:57 pm
A great tribute to an amazing rugby player. Personally I believe we will sorely miss him as rugby fans and England supporters. BYE BYE BILLY WHIZZ!!!:)
Dave December 06, 2007 5:12 pm
Habana=super quick at top speed, Robinson=super quick in speed of mind and body. Theres no other words for it, he is an absolute legend, and im sure even Habana would put his hand up and agree with that one. Habana takes oppurtunities given to him, e.g. turnovers, Robinson makes chances (and tries) out of nothing. Amen to Robinson, and lets hope we see more people like him in years to come - the only person blessed with a sidestep even anywhere close to his is Shane Williams.
Anonymous December 06, 2007 6:21 pm
Jason robinson is the the is proberly the most skillful player that there ever was in world rugby. A true legend, and he will be for the years to come.
David December 06, 2007 7:04 pm
Great player, and nice guy.Probably the only likeable England player!Got nervous everytime I saw him get the ball against the Boks.
David December 06, 2007 7:21 pm
To all those trying to make comparisons between Robinson and Habana, you can't!They are both talented players, who can create tries out of nothing; but completely different! Robinson had the jinx at full pace, which could beat just about anyone.Habana has explosion from a standstill position, with the ability to run around anyone.
Chyanqu December 06, 2007 8:17 pm
funny that a bloke using the handle "the shaft" is judging who is/isn't gay
Chris P December 06, 2007 9:47 pm
amazing playervery glad he smartened up and came to union, the league stuff is rubbishand comparing him to habana?ability isnt measured in just speed fellaslook how long robinson has been around, the things he knows, the tricks he hassure habana gets good tries, but hes way out in the wing, he gets an overlap and nobody can stop himwhereas robinson would catch the ball, and if he decided to run it, he was forced to beat the entire team as appose to beating one or 2 guysand when he was at the wing, he did the exact same as habana, except with alittle more flair, robinson enjoyed the nice grubbers, where as if habana cant run around them, he doesnt have much else he can doalso robinson is an amazing defensive player, where as habana was made look to silly in the world cup by the american wingerwe'll look at habana if/when hes been around for 16 years, but until then, its all about Billy Whizzi agree with what was said about rugbydump making a video, please do, it would be much better than this one
Stauve December 07, 2007 2:34 am
Farewell Jason Robinson. English rugby will never forget what you brought to it.
Anonymous December 07, 2007 12:04 pm
will be sadly missed in the north west of england. hes a great ambassador for the game. he visited my club on a number of occasions to coach the youngsters and was always approachable for a chin wag. really sound lad. when he came to union he improved so much with the technical stuff such as kicking and defensive play to not only be a great attacking player but i think the most solid fullback in the world. who else is better? montgomery? hernandez? dont think so. A true all time great. phil, manchester
mat n December 07, 2007 4:21 pm
What a legend, i remeber a few years back sale played Bristol(my home city), Britol won but Robbo was still happy to stand outside in the wet and cold and sign my picture.What a legend, words can't describe such a guy:)Thanks for the memoriesWC 03
Anonymous December 07, 2007 6:23 pm
Its stupid when people make uninformed opinions. Habana's team, the Bulls, are renowned as the most uncreative team in the S14 - his arrival made a huge difference in their try rate.And h has more than just speed; made his name at 13, and played 9 before that. Unfortunately for him, he plays in an ultra-conservative provincial team that plays forward-based rugby, and even the Boks dont fling the ball around.Robinson is a great, but lets not get carried away - we can have this debate when Habana also retires.P.S: I would rather have had the not so flamboyant Montgomery to slot my penalties and always find touch, but hey, to each his own.
Anonymous December 10, 2007 3:27 am
Respect to the one and only Billy Whiz. Comparing him to other players is pointles - he was unique. You can't teach that kind of stuff. There have been faster but we wont see that magical turn of speed and dancing feet that confuse defences ever again...probably. Not always an all rounder in defence (fearles tackler and never took his eye off the target but was vulnerable under the high balls due to his height) - watch out if he wins it though. He made something out of nothing on a regular basis, turning games around when nothings on and he was always a crowd pleaser. Rugby will miss him... Habana's turn now.
Christopher December 10, 2007 11:14 pm
Imagine a hybrid of Habana speed with Robinson's feet/moves and Chabal's size....that would be a beast.
Burger December 15, 2007 2:50 pm
Tight camera angles of the player never quite shows the skill of the player or the quality of the run. Shots from above or atleast from a bit of a distance are much better at showing the lines the player is running and the options they take to beat defenders, especially with a player like twinkletoes.
Eric the Viking December 19, 2007 11:24 pm
Maybe you should've finished the vid with jason diving over the line to score his RWC 03 final try
Aaron December 22, 2007 1:56 am
He was wearing a number 2 shirt in one of the clips strangely!
Anonymous January 06, 2008 7:34 pm
funny how Jason got the nickname Billy Whizz. a long time ago in maybe the 1970s? there was a welshman nicknamed Billy Whizz. Clive Rhys. look him up some time. blinding pace rather like robinson.
mat n January 15, 2008 6:31 pm
2 things:he got his nickname through the comic 'the Beano' where there is this kid that is faster than a f1 car and also where he is wearing a no.2 shirt is from Rugby league.
Anonymous February 23, 2008 10:55 am
Either my computer is really terrible or he really is Billy Whizz. Great player!!!
Anonymous March 12, 2008 3:57 pm
there's no use comparing robinson was brilliant full stop.
Anonymous June 12, 2008 5:10 pm
awesome video, does the legend himself justice, but do you have the will greenwood try against wales in the rwc '03, where robbo sliced thru 5 welsh defenders like they were standing still! amazing run!
evnz July 20, 2008 3:53 pm
he is definitely the best player to cross codes from league to union.the only english player i ever liked(yes im welsh)mind u though williams has got great feet aswell.but it is each to their own i suppose
Anonymous November 23, 2008 8:40 am
AWSOME PLAYER! SO SAD TO SEE HIM RETIRE!!!IMAGINE HABANA AND ROBINSON ON THE SAME TEAM! THAT WOULD B LETHAL!!!!habanas faster but robinsons better at stepping
Anonymous January 03, 2009 4:16 pm
robinson was rubbish - habana is much better - the only good thing he ever managed to achieve was to limp off during the 2007 world cup final !!!
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