Ex-Bradford Bulls and South Sydney Rabbitohs star Sam Burgess voted worst England rugby player since 2000

It’s a line that hardly seems believable, but yes, Sam Burgess has been voted the worst England player since the turn of the century.

Despite being a hero in the 13-a-side game, Burgess continues to be slammed by those in the 15-man code even though it’s been plenty of years since the former Bradford Bulls and South Sydney Rabbitohs star graced the other code.

In fact, rugby union fans have gone so far as to name Burgess as the worst to have played for the national side since 2000, a survey from rugby union website Ruck revealed.

Of course, Burgess’ tryst with the other code didn’t exactly go to plan, with a move to Bath in 2014 seeing the Yorkshireman getting a fast track through to the England squad.

He was called up to the England national team in August 2015, becoming a dual-code international, and was a member of England’s squad for their unsuccessful 2015 Rugby Union World Cup campaign, before returning to rugby league for the 2016 NRL season.

However, it was that unsuccessful World Cup campaign that will go down as the moment that the tide turned incredibly against Burgess, with the hulking forward blamed for their early pool stage exit following a defeat to Wales – a game in which England had been dominant for 70 minutes with Burgess in the centres, before he was inexplicably taken off and replaced by George Ford.

That led to an onslaught against Ford in the centres as the Welsh overcame England with minutes to go, yet Burgess was targeted for the defeat.

It therefore wasn’t a surprise that the Yorkshireman left union for league ahead of the 2016 season before he was forced to retire in 2019 due to a chronic shoulder injury.

Burgess has since gone into coaching with the Orara Valley Axemen – a side in the bush leagues – as he awaits a dramatic return to the South Sydney Rabbitohs with the Dolphins also chasing.