LONG READ Who is the Gallagher Prem's greatest overseas import?

As Wallabies star Len Ikitau prepares to make his Exeter debut this weekend, hoping to make a big impression on the Prem, RugbyPass runs down the top 10 overseas signings in the league’s history.

10. Ludovic Mercier (Gloucester)

Critics of Mercier, who was never capped by France, complained all he amounted to was a left boot. But what a left boot. He got so much loft on his kicks the posts at Kingsholm had to be heightened. The ‘Ludo’ cry from the Shed became part of Kingsholm folklore.

It delivered 855 Premiership points for the Cherry and Whites in his two spells at the club, helping Gloucester to finish top of the league in 2003 – only for Wasps to gazump them in the first Premiership final. Mercier’s boot also played a major part in that season’s Powergen Cup win and the European Challenge Cup triumph three years later.

9. Thomas du Toit (Bath)

A little premature? This is only the South African prop’s third season in the Prem, agreed; Francois Louw was around for a lot longer at The Rec, it’s true. But Du Toit’s importance in the awakening of the sleeping giant of English rugby and its rise to champion status again cannot be overstated. Props who can play on both sides of the scrum at elite level are rare beasts; props who can wreak the havoc the 21st 6lb tank does are priceless. Besides doing the day job so destructively, he has also scored 21 tries in his 52 appearances in all competitions for Bath – an unheard strike rate for a prop.

8. Va’aiga Tuigamala (Newcastle)

Rugby union’s first £1m man ushered in the dawn of professionalism in English club rugby and made Kingston Park the hottest ticket when he switched codes from Wigan in 1997. The move spelled a permanent return to union for the former All Blacks wing after he had dipped his toe back in with a winter at Wasps.

Inga The Winger won the league with both clubs. The definition of muscular Christianity, he followed his faith after retirement in becoming an undertaker before his untimely death three years ago at the age of 52.

7. Jacques Burger (Saracens)

Not the biggest international name to have pulled on a Saracens shirt but there has been none braver. Totally devoted to the cause, Burger’s disdain for his own personal safety made him a favourite with fans and teammates alike. The Namibian flanker was part of two Premiership final-winning teams in 2011 and 2015, either side of a knee injury so serious he missed almost two years of rugby. He carried metal plates and screws around in his kit bag as a reminder of what he had gone through. Hard. As. Nails.

6. Sebastian Chabal (Sale)

With his wild look and all-action style, the Caveman became a cult hero in the North West. Brought to Sale from Bourgoin by his fellow Frenchman Philippe Saint-Andre in 2004, Chabal helped deliver the Premiership title two years later. If the sight of his hulking figure arriving for training in a Smart car amused his teammates, the sight of him stepping off the team bus was less of a laughing matter for Sale’s rivals. The powerful lead the No 8 supplied, as an attacking piledriver and defensive hitman, transformed the team. He spent five years with the Sharks in all, before returning to France.

5. Trevor Leota (Wasps)

Blockbusting Samoan whose eight seasons at Wasps brought a hat-trick of titles between 2003 and 2005 and a world of pain for unwary ball carriers. One of the most ferocious tacklers in the league’s history, Leota should have come with an accompanying health warning. It was as if someone had selected a box of dynamite at hooker.

If his lineout throwing was never quite in the same league and his nutritional discipline unreliable, the pros of a side with Leota in it always outweighed the cons. During his time at Wasps, Warren Gatland rated him the best hooker in the world on his day.

4. Alesana Tuilagi (Leicester)

The Tuilagi dynasty as a whole made an incredible contribution to the Tigers with five brothers playing for the club but Alesana was arguably the kingpin, edging it over Manu by virtue of the sustained impact he made over his eight years at Welford Road. It’s one thing being big, it’s another being skilful but when you are as big and skilful as Tuilagi that spells double trouble. Top try scorer in the league in 2011, the 6ft 4in, 18st 6lbs Samoan international wing was part of three title-winning Leicester squads and five that reached Twickenham finals during a golden era for the club.

3. Schalk Brits (Saracens)

A box of tricks and bundle of joy who brought an extra dimension to the all-conquering Saracens side of the 2010s with his unique skillset. The Number 2 on his back was for guidance only. The smiling South African was a hooker, yes, but he had so much more to his game. He had the brains of a half-back playmaker and the footwork of an outside back as well as incredible durability. He was still playing for Saracens at the age of 37 and would later come out of retirement to help South Africa win the 2019 Rugby World Cup aged 38. He won four Premiership titles in all – as well as being part of two European triumphs in a Sarries career spanning more than 200 games.

2. Pat Lam (Newcastle/Northampton/Bristol)

A dynamic No 8 and inspirational leader in his playing days, Lam has since become the godfather of Bears-ball as head coach at Bristol, lighting up English rugby in both capacities. The Aucklander, who went to three World Cups with Samoa, spent five seasons in the Premiership as a player, sandwiching a European Cup-winning stint at Northampton in between two spells at Newcastle where he picked up a domestic winners’ medal. Now in his ninth season in charge at Ashton Gate, Lam has Bristol back amongst the challengers again as the most watchable team in the league.

1. Nick Evans (Harlequins)

Had he not been around in the same period as Dan Carter, Evans would have won far more than his 16 All Blacks caps. Harlequins have been the fortunate beneficiaries from that unfortunate piece of timing for the past 17 years.

In his nine seasons as a player at the Stoop, Evans played 208 Premiership games and racked up 1,656 league points – including 20 in the 2012 final victory over Leicester when he was the architect of the club’s first title. Since retiring in 2017, he has been part of the Quins coaching team and, as its attack strategist, played a key role in the side’s swashbuckling 2021 triumph.

So, has our writer got it right, feel free to list your Top 10, or players who should be included in the comments?