Dream Team: Scott Lawson – Newcastle and former London Irish and Gloucester hooker

1. Rob Vickers – For someone to move to loosehead so late in his career but to make such a good job out of it is credit to him.
2. Tom Youngs – He plays the game the right way and he’s a hard player to play against. Like Rob, he deserve a lot of credit for achieving what he has moving from centre only a few years back.
3. Euan Murray – Back in his prime when he played for the Lions in 2009, he could mix it up with the best in the world. Invaluable for Scotland over the years.
4. Scott McLeod – An enforcer who is really strong in the maul. A real physical presence in the tackle area and you need someone like that in your team.
5. Nathan Hines – I loved the way he played the game and his longevity set him apart. Subtle offloading game, too, for a big man.
6. Jason White – Player of the Year back in 2006 when Sale won the Premiership and I was fortunate enough to have him as my captain for Scotland too. A great leader who led by his actions.
7. Peter Buxton – He wasn’t known for his good looks but he was fearsome on the pitch. Someone you’d go to war with.
8. Chris Hala’ufia – I knew his reputation from playing a few times against him and when I played with him at Irish I found out it wasn’t mis-founded with some big hits in training and off the pitch too!
9. Rory Lawson – One of the few people in the game that are shorter than me so he deserves a mention for that. A good friend and someone I really enjoyed playing with.
10. Nick Robinson – On his day he could pull the strings brilliantly and have that Gloucester back line going where he wanted.
11. James Simpson-Daniel – Superb talent and a real game-breaker. Keen on his horse racing like me so he became a good friend.
12. Eliota Fuimaono-Sapolu – Turned journalist and politician but he was a pleasure to play with. The complete player who could beat you one on one, distribute or pass. Gloucester got the best out of him.
13. Mike Tindall – Very laid back and not flashy but did his job brilliantly. Formed a great partnership with Eliota for many seasons.
14. Sinoti Sinoti – His performances last year speak for themselves. He and Sinbad would be devastating together. We’ve missed him this season and we’re looking to have him back soon.
15. Glenn Metcalfe – I was lucky to play with him at Glasgow for a couple of season and although we used to joke about his age – he used to say he was 34 when he was 36 – I’ve got a lot of time for him.