Former England captain Will Carling has admitted there was a sense of the inevitable moments before his side were taken apart by Jonah Lomu and the All Blacks in the 1995 World Cup.
Lomu's stunning four-try performance in the semi-final in Cape Town marked its 25th anniversary last week, prompting many from the game to reflect on the Test and the winger.
Carling remembered Lomu's presence was already being felt before the teams had even taken the field.
"Lining up in that very narrow tunnel in Cape Town I looked back,'' Carling told The Guardian.
"There were four All Blacks and suddenly I saw Jonah. You’re trying to think you can still deal with this. But part of you goes: 's***'."
Carling's next memory was from 20 minutes into the match and he said all he remembers feeling was "your World Cup is over".
"I was thinking: ‘Christ, this is embarrassing.’ I was proud of the way we came back but Lomu was unstoppable.
"I remember he scored in a corner. But before he went over I hit him as hard as I could. He hardly moved. There hasn’t been, in 25 years, a guy as powerful as him. That’s incredible."
The All Blacks went on to win the semi-final 45-29 but would lose the final a week later to hosts South Africa 15-12.
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