There's also plenty of Lomu tries that Kirwan wouldn't have a hope of scoring.
I agree. My point was that Kirwan's try was one of the all time great tries and that Lomu couldn't score a try that great.
Dan, if your reading this you'll probably get a kick out me saying this:
While I agree Lomu scored tries Kirwan couldn't have gotten, it has to be said that with all the oppotunities he was presented, players like Kirwan could have scored *some* tries Lomu did. I've seen Kirwan run past and outmuscle three or four defenders in situations where he shouldn't be able to score. I think people look at Lomu and how he ran over people and think "he's so unstoppable". But with the space he was provided to do his thing, there were other wingers who could've scored in some of those situations, but wouldn't have done it in such an impressive display of brute force. Campese is one example, I've seen him slice through opposition defences when beat three/four defenders.
Again, people get Lomu because what he does is simple to get. It's impressive seeing a guy run all over people. But he often was provided plenty of space and there are some wingers who could score from his situation, only not in such an awesome display of power. Of course there were some tries only Lomu could have gotten, but I think it's overlooked how other wingers could have scored with an in-and-away, a side-step, a goose-step, a chip and chase etc in some situations.
As for Kirwan vs. Lomu. I love what I've seen of John Kirwan, he's one of my favourite players and for good reason - he was sensational. He had incredible pace, wonderful deceptive skills (watch him beat Campese all-ends-up in the second 1988 match) and was a far more complete player than Lomu. His case is helped by like a decade of good form. Thinking of him in Lomu's situation reminds me of a few tries I've seen him set-up. While he couldn't trample over some players, he was so strong and determined that he often drew in so many players committed to tackle him that he'd set up a try. One he would do with David Kirk where Kirk would go the blinds, pass to Kirwan, loop him, and score - the expectation from Kirk was that Kirwan could not only attract two defenders on him, but also free his arms and get a pass off. They did it for Auckland quite a bit and it worked a lot on the international stage. As far as I'm concermed, anybody who sets up tries like that is as good as someone who scores the try. In both cases, the winger in the reason the try occurred. So often I've seen Kirwan fend off one or two players, draw in two more who knew what it took to bring him down, and by having such an effect, he sets up a try. I don't think I've seen such a determined and confident winger like Kirwan.
Hard to see where Lomu has it over Kirwan to be honest...
