Tom Varndell
Encyclopedia
Tom Varndell is an English
rugby union
footballer who plays on the wing for London Wasps
, England
and England Sevens
. He claims to have been clocked at 10.8 seconds for the 100 metres in his socks on grass. If correct, this suggests that Varndell could run much faster over 100 metres, rendering him as arguably one of the fastest men in World Rugby.
Varndell has played for Aviva Premiership side London Wasps
since the start of the 2009/10 season.
rugby club in Oxfordshire
before moving to Henley Hawks
where he stayed until he was 15 when he was invited by Dusty Hare
, the former England
full back, who was Leicester
's Chief Scout, to train with them. He spent two years at the Tigers' den but left to take up a scholarship at Colston's Collegiate School
in Bristol
.
. In his second appearance with the Tigers senior side, he recorded the fastest hat trick
of tries in Premiership history, doing so in a 13-minute span against Worcester. He finished the 2005-06 Guinness Premiership
regular season, top of the try list with 14.
at Twickenham
in his first full 15-man international. Then, on 1 and 2 December, he made his England Sevens debut in the Dubai Sevens
, the first tournament in the 2005–06
World Sevens Series. Varndell was the tournament's leading try scorer as England claimed the title.
In 2006, Varndell was chosen in the England Saxons
team for the 6 Nations, but after impressive displays for both Leicester Tigers
and England in the Rugby Sevens at the 2006 Commonwealth Games
, he was awarded with a two starting places on the first team, development tour to Australia. For the Elite players squad in the 2006/07 England Squad he was subsequently dropped and demoted back to the England Saxons side with new Leicester team mate, Jordan Crane
.
In September 2006, Varndell played for Leicester's feeder club, Bedford Blues
, and scored a try on his debut against Exeter Chiefs
.
In late 2007 his girlfriend Claire gave birth to a son called Taio Varndell.
Start of 2008 saw Varndell selected for the England Saxons squad. He started the first game against the Ireland A team, at Welford Road
and scored.
He was selected in the England Saxons
side that defeated Ireland A
at Welford Road
on 1 February 2008, bagging a brace in his first international since the tour to Australia 18 months prior. Saxons
coach Steve Bates
was keen for him to put pressure on first team selection.
Varndell was select for the 2008 summer tour to New Zealand
and started in the 2nd test against New Zealand in Christchurch, which England lost 44–12. Varndell did, however, score a try for his team.
He was named as a member of Martin Johnson's first England elite player squad ready for selection for the 2008/09 international season but was dropped before the start of the 2009 Six Nations.
He has contimued to play with success for the England IRB sevens team, and was a try-scoring member of the England Saxons team in this years (2009) Churchill Cup.
and had an instant impact, scoring 4 tries in his first two matches. His defensive ability is still questioned as tries have slipped past him whilst playing for Wasps.
So far in his London Wasps career he has made: 42 starts, 4 replacement appearances, Scoring: 26 tries, with a total of 130 points for London Wasps.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
footballer who plays on the wing for London Wasps
London Wasps
London Wasps is an English professional rugby union team. The men's first team, which forms London Wasps, was derived from Wasps Football Club who were formed in 1867 at the now defunct Eton and Middlesex Tavern in North London, at the turn of professionalism in 1999...
, England
England national rugby union team
The England national rugby union team represents England in rugby union. They compete in the annual Six Nations Championship with France, Ireland, Scotland, Italy, and Wales. They have won this championship on 26 occasions, 12 times winning the Grand Slam, making them the most successful team in...
and England Sevens
England national rugby union team (sevens)
The English national rugby union sevens team compete in the World Sevens Series, Rugby World Cup Sevens and the Commonwealth Games.-Honours:* 1973 International Seven-A-Side Tournament - Winners* Rugby World Cup Sevens Winners 1993* Hong Kong Sevens Winners 2002* Hong Kong Sevens Winners 2003*...
. He claims to have been clocked at 10.8 seconds for the 100 metres in his socks on grass. If correct, this suggests that Varndell could run much faster over 100 metres, rendering him as arguably one of the fastest men in World Rugby.
Varndell has played for Aviva Premiership side London Wasps
London Wasps
London Wasps is an English professional rugby union team. The men's first team, which forms London Wasps, was derived from Wasps Football Club who were formed in 1867 at the now defunct Eton and Middlesex Tavern in North London, at the turn of professionalism in 1999...
since the start of the 2009/10 season.
Early career
Varndell began playing rugby aged 8 at ChinnorChinnor R.F.C.
Chinnor Rugby Football Club is a rugby union club founded in Thame, Oxfordshire, England in 1963. They are currently playing in the National Division Three South.-History:...
rugby club in Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
before moving to Henley Hawks
Henley Hawks
Henley Rugby Club is a rugby union club based in Henley-on-Thames, that is the leading rugby club in the Thames Valley...
where he stayed until he was 15 when he was invited by Dusty Hare
Dusty Hare
William Henry "Dusty" Hare MBE is a former international rugby union footballer, who played fullback.Hare currently holds the world record for points scored in a first class rugby career with 7,337 points....
, the former England
England national rugby union team
The England national rugby union team represents England in rugby union. They compete in the annual Six Nations Championship with France, Ireland, Scotland, Italy, and Wales. They have won this championship on 26 occasions, 12 times winning the Grand Slam, making them the most successful team in...
full back, who was Leicester
Leicester Tigers
Leicester Tigers is an English rugby union club that plays in the Aviva Premiership.Leicester are the most successful English club since the introduction of league rugby in 1987, a record 9 times English champions - 3 more than either Bath or Wasps, the last of which was in 2010...
's Chief Scout, to train with them. He spent two years at the Tigers' den but left to take up a scholarship at Colston's Collegiate School
Colston's Collegiate School
Colston's School is an independent school in Bristol, England and is a member of the The Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference....
in Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
.
2004–05
Varndell returned to the Tigers in 2004, and made a quick impact in the PremiershipGuinness Premiership
The English Premiership, also currently known as the Aviva Premiership because of the league's sponsorship by Aviva, is a professional league competition for rugby union football clubs in the top division of the English rugby system. There are twelve clubs in the Premiership...
. In his second appearance with the Tigers senior side, he recorded the fastest hat trick
Hat Trick
Hat trick, hat-trick or hattrick may refer to:* hat-trick — in various sports, achieving three goals, wickets, etc. in a single match* Hattrick — online football management game** Hattrick Limited — producers of this game...
of tries in Premiership history, doing so in a 13-minute span against Worcester. He finished the 2005-06 Guinness Premiership
2005-06 Guinness Premiership
The 2005–06 Guinness Premiership was the 19th season of the top flight of the English domestic rugby union competitions, played between September 2005 and May 2006. The final was contested by the Sale Sharks and the Leicester Tigers at Twickenham. Sale Sharks won 45 – 20 to win the Premiership...
regular season, top of the try list with 14.
2005–06
Also in 2005, Varndell made his debut for both national teams within one week. On 26 November, he scored a try against Manu SamoaSamoa national rugby union team
The Manu Samoa is the men's representative side of the Samoa Rugby Union in both the 15's and the 7's for international competitions. The Samoa Rugby Union is owned by the affiliated rugby unions of Samoa. In Samoa, Manu Samoa is in honour of a famous Samoan warrior. From 1924 to 1997 Samoa was...
at Twickenham
Twickenham Stadium
Twickenham Stadium is a stadium located in Twickenham, in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. It is the largest rugby union stadium in the United Kingdom and has recently been enlarged to seat 82,000...
in his first full 15-man international. Then, on 1 and 2 December, he made his England Sevens debut in the Dubai Sevens
Dubai Sevens
The Dubai Sevens is an annual rugby union sevens tournament held in Dubai, UAE. Through the 2007 edition, it was held at the Dubai Exiles Rugby Ground, but in 2008 it moved to The Sevens, a new stadium built to host the 2009 Rugby World Cup Sevens. The 2009 competition took place between 3-5...
, the first tournament in the 2005–06
2005-06 World Sevens Series
The 2005-06 World Sevens Series was the seventh in an annual series of rugby union sevens tournaments run by the International Rugby Board since 1999-2000. The participating teams in each World Sevens Series are full national sides....
World Sevens Series. Varndell was the tournament's leading try scorer as England claimed the title.
In 2006, Varndell was chosen in the England Saxons
England Saxons
England Saxons is the current name of England's men's second national rugby union team. The team has previously been known by a number of names, such as England B, Emerging England and, most recently, England A...
team for the 6 Nations, but after impressive displays for both Leicester Tigers
Leicester
Leicester is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England, and the county town of Leicestershire. The city lies on the River Soar and at the edge of the National Forest...
and England in the Rugby Sevens at the 2006 Commonwealth Games
Rugby Sevens at the 2006 Commonwealth Games
The 2006 Commonwealth Games were the third Games at which Rugby sevens was played. It is one of the male-only sports at the Commonwealth Games, the other being Boxing. The venue for the Rugby Sevens was the Telstra Dome, on the western edge of Melbourne's Central Business District...
, he was awarded with a two starting places on the first team, development tour to Australia. For the Elite players squad in the 2006/07 England Squad he was subsequently dropped and demoted back to the England Saxons side with new Leicester team mate, Jordan Crane
Jordan Crane (rugby player)
Jordan Crane is a professional Rugby Union player, who currently plays for Leicester Tigers having moved from Leeds Tykes at the end of the 2005–06 season. Crane has also played internationally for England....
.
In September 2006, Varndell played for Leicester's feeder club, Bedford Blues
Bedford Blues
Bedford Blues is a rugby union club in the town of Bedford, England, currently playing in The RFU Championship. Bedford is one of the largest towns in England without a league football club, and one of the few towns in England where the rugby club is better supported than the football team. The...
, and scored a try on his debut against Exeter Chiefs
Exeter Chiefs
Exeter Rugby Club are a rugby union club based in Exeter, Devon.The Exeter club was formed around 1871 and played its first match in 1873. The first team has been rebranded as the Exeter Chiefs and play in a strip of Black , White ....
.
2007–08
The start of the 2007/08 season saw Varndell back on the wing in the starting 15 for Leicester's opening games in the Premiership. He scored 18 tries for Leicester during the 32 games he played in the 2007/08 seasonIn late 2007 his girlfriend Claire gave birth to a son called Taio Varndell.
Start of 2008 saw Varndell selected for the England Saxons squad. He started the first game against the Ireland A team, at Welford Road
Welford Road Stadium
Welford Road is a rugby union stadium in Leicester, England and is the home ground for Leicester Tigers. It is located between Aylestone Road and Welford Road on the edge of the city centre...
and scored.
He was selected in the England Saxons
England Saxons
England Saxons is the current name of England's men's second national rugby union team. The team has previously been known by a number of names, such as England B, Emerging England and, most recently, England A...
side that defeated Ireland A
Ireland A national rugby union team
The Ireland Wolfhounds are the second national rugby union team behind the Irish national side. They have previously competed in the Churchill Cup together with the England Saxons and the full national teams of Canada and the United States as well as selection of other nations' 1st, 2nd and 3rd...
at Welford Road
Welford Road Stadium
Welford Road is a rugby union stadium in Leicester, England and is the home ground for Leicester Tigers. It is located between Aylestone Road and Welford Road on the edge of the city centre...
on 1 February 2008, bagging a brace in his first international since the tour to Australia 18 months prior. Saxons
England Saxons
England Saxons is the current name of England's men's second national rugby union team. The team has previously been known by a number of names, such as England B, Emerging England and, most recently, England A...
coach Steve Bates
Steve Bates
Steve Bates is a former English rugby union player and current rugby coach. He played at scrum-half for London Wasps, where he formed a successful partnership with fly-half Rob Andrew...
was keen for him to put pressure on first team selection.
Varndell was select for the 2008 summer tour to New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
and started in the 2nd test against New Zealand in Christchurch, which England lost 44–12. Varndell did, however, score a try for his team.
He was named as a member of Martin Johnson's first England elite player squad ready for selection for the 2008/09 international season but was dropped before the start of the 2009 Six Nations.
He has contimued to play with success for the England IRB sevens team, and was a try-scoring member of the England Saxons team in this years (2009) Churchill Cup.
2009–10
Varndell moved to London WaspsLondon Wasps
London Wasps is an English professional rugby union team. The men's first team, which forms London Wasps, was derived from Wasps Football Club who were formed in 1867 at the now defunct Eton and Middlesex Tavern in North London, at the turn of professionalism in 1999...
and had an instant impact, scoring 4 tries in his first two matches. His defensive ability is still questioned as tries have slipped past him whilst playing for Wasps.
So far in his London Wasps career he has made: 42 starts, 4 replacement appearances, Scoring: 26 tries, with a total of 130 points for London Wasps.