Serge Blanco
David Campese
Stat by stat
Bars are scaled to the leader in this list.
The verdict
David Campese leads 2 of 2 categories. Our all-time ranking places Serge Blanco at #10 and David Campese at #12.
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The case for Serge Blanco
The embodiment of French flair and the greatest attacking fullback of the amateur era. Blanco played the game with an improviser's instinct, counter-attacking from deep in his own half in a way that thrilled crowds and terrified defences, and he finished with 38 tries in 93 Tests — a French record when he retired that was remarkable for a fullback. His most famous moment came in the 1987 World Cup semi-final, when he finished a sweeping, last-minute counter-attack to beat Australia and send France to the inaugural final. He won Grand Slams in 1981 and 1987 as the creative fulcrum of a gifted French generation, playing with a cigarette-and-flair mystique that made him an icon beyond the sport. Where others measured the game in structure, Blanco measured it in instinct and adventure, and no fullback of his time matched his ability to turn defence into breathtaking attack.
The case for David Campese
The great entertainer of the amateur-into-professional transition, and for thirteen years the holder of the world Test try record. Campese scored 64 tries in 101 Tests, a mark that stood as the international record until 2006, and he did it with an audacity — the swerving 'goose step', the outrageous behind-the-back pass — that made him one of rugby's most watchable and infuriating players. He was the star of Australia's 1991 World Cup triumph, named player of the tournament, and his flick pass to set up a try against New Zealand in that semi-final is part of the sport's folklore. A wing or fullback who prized adventure over caution, he sometimes gambled and lost, but his willingness to attempt the impossible defined an attacking philosophy and inspired a generation. Few players have combined statistical achievement with pure showmanship as completely as Campese.