Impact players: Test rugby's greatest non-starters

The Waratahs scored more points in the last 20 minutes of matches than any other team in Super Rugby this year, a massive compliment to the quality of their bench.

This stat also reinforces the importance of tactical substitutions in the modern game.

Players like Will Skelton, Silatolu Latu and Peter Betham all had a huge impact during the season.

Last year when the All Blacks completed an unbeaten season, they outscored opponents’ 183-53 in the last 30 minutes of 14 Test matches.

The bench counts in modern rugby, but who are the greatest bench internationals? Think of players who might be more remembered for their feats as a non-starter than a starter.

Piri Weepu
Piri Weepu played 71 Tests for the All Blacks, but only completed a full game on three occasions. He made a world record 46 appearances off the bench.

His poise under pressure and versatility made him an ideal man for a crisis. During the 2011 World Cup, where he actually started most games, he kicked 23 points to help New Zealand win their quarter final against Argentina; Weepu was the All Blacks’ fourth goal-kicking option. Weepu was then was a major factor in the semi-final triumph against Australia.

His most notable bench performance was in Brisbane in 2008 when he scored a try against Australia which helped New Zealand win a gripping Test 28-24. A year earlier against South Africa, Weepu played a role in creating the winning try in a 26-21 win in Durban.

Ollie le Roux
The giant 136kg prop from South Africa played 43 of his 54 Tests off the bench. A colossus in the scrum, le Roux became a crowd favourite for his explosive runs. A member of the 1995 World Cup winning team, le Roux’s international career spanned nine years.

Ronan O’Gara
Fierce competition from David Humphreys and Johnny Sexton meant that O’Gara played 43 of his 130 Tests matches off the bench. Ireland’s all-time leading point scorer, with 1083, often changed games with his goal-kicking when he was introduced into the action. As early as 2001 he kicked two penalties to help Ireland beat England 19-13 at Twickenham.

In 2003 he kicked Ireland into the quarter finals of the World Cup after slotting two penalties in a 16-15 win against Argentina. In the 2011 World Cup, O’Gara landed two penalties to help Ireland close out a famous 15-6 win over Australia at Eden Park.

O’Gara was a durable and consistent performer who added value starting or warming the benches.

Beauden Barrett
Barrett has won all 19 Tests he has played, appearing as a substitute 17 times. He has scored 64 points and made memorable contributions in All Black victories.

Against South Africa in Johannesburg last year he scored a 30-metre solo try that won the All Blacks the Rugby Championship. In the same game he pulled of a try saving tackle on Willie le Roux.

Barrett scored off the bench with his first touch in Test rugby against France.

Viliame Ofahengaue
‘Willie O’ started 29 of his 41 Tests matches, but the powerful number 8 and flanker was later used in his career as an impact player with real success.

Perhaps his most memorable cameos were against the All Blacks in 1998. Australia swept the series 3-0 and Ofahengaue made a noticeable difference in all three games.

Sébastien Chabal
A hulk of a man, Chabal played 29 of his 62 Tests off the bench for France. An inconsistent performer, Chabel was capable of being truly world class in sporadic bursts, which made him ideal to introduce from the bench.

Owen Finegan
Finegan was a big man with nimble hands, a player almost ahead of his time with his rare combination of powerful running and subtle offloading. He played 21 of his 55 Tests off the bench and often caused headaches for the opposition when they were tiring in the second-half.

Finegan’s most famous bench performance was in the 1999 World Cup final against France. He gave the last pass to Ben Tune for Australia’s first try and then scored the second with a typically bustling run.