Following the 2018 NatWest 6 Nations, Wales winger George North has moved up to third in the list of the Top 10 try scorers in the history of the Championship.
Both of North’s two tries in this year’s NatWest 6 Nations came against Italy in round four, lifting his overall tally to 17 and allowing him to leapfrog former England winger Ben Cohen in the standings.
Click here for the final 2018 NatWest 6 Nations table
North’s appearance against France on the final day was his 33rd in the Championship, which gives him a very healthy scoring ratio since making his debut in Rugby’s Greatest Championship against the same opposition in 2011.
At the age of 25, there are still plenty of years ahead of North for him to try and overhaul the current record try scorer, former Ireland centre Brian O’Driscoll.
One of only two players to score two hat-tricks in the Championship, O’Driscoll scored 26 tries in 65 games, an appearance record he shares with Italy captain Sergio Parisse.
The first of these came against Scotland in February 2000, although it was his treble against France in Paris a month later that really announced him as a force to be reckoned with.
The final score of his record haul was at Wales in 2013 before he retired a year later, having inspired Ireland to a Championship victory.
Sitting between him and North in second place is Shane Williams, who scored 22 tries for Wales, including six in their 2008 Grand Slam, which led to him being voted World Rugby Player of the Year.
Now in fourth, Cohen burst on the scene in 2000 by scoring twice against Ireland on his Championship debut and he eventually finished with 16 tries in just 29 appearances.
There is a three way tie in fifth that includes another active player on the list, although the fact that Ireland’s Tommy Bowe is retiring at the end of the season means he won’t be adding to his 14 tries.
Level with him is the former England duo of Will Greenwood and Jason Robinson, two members of Sir Clive Woodward’s 2003 Grand Slam winners.
Ireland’s Shane Horgan is just below them in eighth with 13 tries, while Vincent Clerc’s 11 make him the highest-scoring Frenchman.
The four other players to have hit double figures in terms of tries in the Championship are Stuart Hogg (Scotland), Jonathan Joseph (England), Ronan O’Gara (Ireland) and Aurelien Rougerie (France).
