Springbok legends in Champions Cup dream team

Two South African legends have formed part of an elite group who have defined three decades of the Champions Cup.

Selected by fans from across the rugby world, the 30-year Dream Team has been revealed.

Legend Cian Healy props up the list at loosehead, having played a key role in all four of Leinster’s Champions Cup triumphs.

Joining him at prop but this time at tighthead is fellow Leinster man Tadhg Furlong. The powerful front row helped power Leinster to their Champions Cup crown in 2018 as he established himself as one of the greats of the position.

The final member of the front row is Munster legend Keith Wood. The hooker’s contributions to Munster’s Champions Cup Final run in 2000, as well as his Challenge Cup in 2001 with Harlequins mean he grabs a well-deserved spot.

Bakkies Botha’s heroic efforts in all of RC Toulon’s three consecutive Champions Cup victories are more than enough to see him into the second row, while Munster’s Paul O’Connell joins him at lock thanks to his game-changing contributions to the side’s 2006 and 2008 Champions Cup wins.

The flanks that compile the Dream 15’s back row are none other than Thierry Dusautoir and Josh van der Flier. The former’s memorable stints at Biarritz Olympique and Stade Toulousain gave voters plenty of reasons to choose him, including his leadership of that victorious Toulouse side in 2010.

As for Van der Flier, the current Leinster man played a key role in getting the side to three consecutive Finals between 2022 and 2024, including a European Player of the Year award in 2022.

Grégory Alldritt completes the pack at No.8, having done the Champions Cup double with long-term club Stade Rochelais in 2022 and 2023 to round off a golden era in the club’s history.

Fellow Frenchman Antoine Dupont kicks off the Dream 15 backs at scrumhalf. With two Champions Cups, two Player of the Year awards, two Six Nations titles and four TOP 14 wins, it’s not hard to see why he’s often regarded as the greatest player of all time.

Joining him at halfback, legend Jonny Wilkinson’s double Champions Cup crown with RC Toulon in 2013 and 2014 and World Cup win in 2003 propel him into the flyhalf spot.

The centre pairing of Yannick Jauzion and Brian O’Driscoll are two more legends that make the cut. Jauzion’s 11-year spell at Stade Toulousain, including three Champions Cup titles, are rounded off nicely with a selection for the Dream 15, while O’Driscoll’s three Champions Cups and all-time try record for country Ireland (46) earn him a well-deserved spot in the line-up.

The wings are taken care of by RC Toulon legend Bryan Habana and former-Munster star Doug Howlett. Habana was part of South Africa’s formidable Rugby World Cup-winning side in 2007 and lifted the Champions Cup trophy in 2014 and 2015, while New Zealander Howlett’s first season in Europe saw him win the Champions Cup with the Irish side (2008).

And finishing the Dream 15 with characteristic flair at fullback is former Leinster star Rob Kearney. The Irishman’s 15-year spell at the Champions Cup giants resulted in four titles, rounding off a golden spell for the club and him personally.