Taking sport too seriously

120. JPR Williams (Rugby union, 1970s) Perhaps the Welsh rugby of the 1970s has built up undue legendary status, and these chaps weren't all that - certainly if you ever watch replays of full matches from that time, they look like slightly disorganised little boys next to today's well-oiled machines. But JPR Williams, a practising doctor and rampaging full-back, junior tennis star, is one of the most romantic figures in all sport, and the footage I've seen shows a dazzling Corinthian, so I'll go with that. 119. Peter Shilton (Football, 1960s-1990s) Part of the nearly-England teams of 1986 and 1990 and a man whose career lasted the best part of 30 years, a bit of a sporting phenomenon - still England's record appearance maker. He was a great goalkeeper at a time when there were plenty of other good goalkeepers about - I wonder if his size would inhibit him in this day and age - probably not. 118. Ronnie O'Sullivan (Snooker, 1990s-2000s)   Aah the obn...

130. Colin McRae (Rally Driving, 1990s-2000s) The youngest person and the first Brit to be the World Champion in the genuinely thrilling sport of Rally Driving, which always strikes me as a far more interesting way to test people's driving ability than going round and round a track, but there we go. 129. Lawrence Tynes (American Football, 2000s) The most successful British (well, somewhat British) player of the American game, having won two Super Bowls, and kicked last minute winning field goals in play-off games. I do like a bit of NFL, but it does bother me the way everyone's job is compartmentalized. They do all this training and have all this athleticism and yet they do one job, and are not even all on the field all the time. This guy's a kicker. He just kicks. It must require absolute nerves of steel, but I wonder if he ever wishes he could do something different. 128. Lyn Davies (Athletics, 1960s-1970s) Britain's greatest ever long jumper, and until...

140. Chris Paterson (Rugby, 1990s-2000s)   A slightly rogue choice, this. Paterson was unfortunate to be part of a terrible era for Scottish rugby, and also unfortunate to be comparatively slight in an era when rugby players became monsters. He was a fantastically versatile player though - a flying winger to start with, a full back, a fly half. He also made a remarkable 36 consecutive kicks at goals without missing in 2007-08 which, considering he hadn't even started out as a placekicker, was all the more impressive. Never played for the Lions, but for me deserved to be a rugby star, and one of the most quietly impressive players of the professional era. 139. Fatima Whitbread (Athletics, 1980s) Aah, the glory days of athletics. I remember the feats of Fatima Whitbread well - a double Olympic medalist, a world champion and a world record holder. A prestigious record who had two great rivalries, one with Tessa Sanderson, the other with East German Petra Felke, and if you were...

150. Wayne Rooney (Football, 2000s) Wayne wasn't going to make the list. Something was telling me he didn't deserve it, that he hadn't yet achieved greatness. Then I looked at the facts. Five Premier Leagues, one Champions League, Player of the Season, probably player of the tournament at Euro 2004, on his way to being England's record goalscorer. The fact he's only 27 doesn't mean he hasn't had a full career. Particularly about Rooney, and why I think he's a better player than given credit for, is that he's not a straightforward striker. He scores loads of goals (albeit not as many as Van Persie, say) but he also sets up huge amounts. He's already in the Top 10 in the Premier League's all time "Assists" table. More than any other fantastic footballer, when he's off form, he looks like he's never played the game before, the ball bouncing off his shins, careering into opponents, raging at his powerlessness. But he de...

160. Beth Tweddle (Gymnastics, 2000s)    Another reality TV-winning gymnast, and the very first British gymnast to be a serious force. She may only have got one Olympic bronze, but is a three time world champion, and the first to win European and World medals. Obviously, that kind of pioneering success means money and support for the others that came after her. 159. James Braid (Golf, 1900s-1920s) This splendid fellow, one of the Great Triumvirate who established modern golf, they say, seems to follow me around. Born in Fife, five times winner of the Open Championship, he then became the professional of Walton Heath golf club (which is right by where my grandmother's house was). Hell, he even won something called the Tooting Bec cup. 158. Denis Law (Football, 1960s-1970s)   Alex Ferguson's favourite player, the least celebrated now of the great Manchester United threesome of the 60s, Denis Law admirably maintains the look and manner of a jaunty end-of-the-pie...