Captain plans to shift narrative away from what fixture means to rivals and rouse Twickenham crowd by proving that identity matters just as much to home team
Barry John, who has died aged 79, is regarded as one of the finest fly-halfs ever to play rugby. The elusiveness of his running and the pinpoint accuracy of his kicking have persuaded many judges that among the rich pantheon of great Welsh No 10s of the past century – Cliff Jones, Cliff Morgan, David Watkins, Phil Bennett and Jonathan Davies – the thin man from Cefneithin deserves the crown.
Barry John truly was rugby’s original superstar. There were great players before him and after him, but very few punctuated the wider public consciousness like John did. He played in such a way that he forever changed the expectations for what a fly-half could and should be.