RWC 2015: 10 emerging players to watch at the World Cup, including Jonny May, Nehe Milner-Skudder and Liam Williams

The Rugby World Cup creates a platform to shoot breakthrough names to the big time, but who will make the leap at England 2015?

Jack de Menezes
Thursday 17 September 2015 06:42 EDT
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Wales full-back Liam Williams
Wales full-back Liam Williams (Getty Images)

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Every World Cup sees someone breakout and make a name for themselves on the greatest stage of them all.

Jonah Lomu did it in 1995, Bryan Habana did in 2007 and a select few have joined them in the seven previous tournaments to date. Identifying them before they go on the achieve the dizzying highs of World Cup success takes some doing, with an unknown name almost certain to come out of left-field and state their candidacy for the player of the tournament award.

But some players will head into the tournament, which gets underway on Friday as hosts England take on Fiji, with a certain expectation on their shoulders, and the following 10 players will be integral to success if their respective countries are to go all the way.

While the forwards do the majority of the hard work, it's normally the backs who end of hitting the headlines, so a split of eight backs and two forwards in our top 10 is reflective of who we expect to steal the limelight rather than perform beyond their capabilities.

Click on the gallery below to see our 10 emerging players to watch at this year’s tournament.

Who do you believe will make a name for themselves at the 2015 Rugby World Cup? Leave your thoughts in the comment box below.

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