Most Points in Rugby Union History

Carter has the record the most conversions (293) and the most penalties (281) in international rugby. Farrell is second on the charts, with conversions (201) and penalties (268). He has also kicked the all-time most conversions at Rugby World Cups (58). Wilkinson leads the charts with thirty-six drop goals, sixteen ahead of Diego Dominguez. Six other players on the list kicked more drop goals than Carter (8), but that is because of New Zealand’s dominance. 

The All Blacks often thrashed the opposition. The Kiwis have won the second-most World Cups and the most Rugby Championships titles. the most There was no need to kick drop kicks because the games were never tight, and the Kiwis scored tries where other teams would kick at goal or take drop kicks. The closest any player came to Wilkinson is Hugo Porta, who ranks twenty-third for most points in international rugby. 

Porta kicked an astonishing twenty-eight drop kicks in only sixty-six Tests. Wilkinson played ninety-seven Test matches. Carter averaged the most points per game (14.27). More than any kicker with five hundred or more points in international rugby. The former Crusaders standoff was one score away from being the only player to reach one thousand, six hundred points. Fellow New Zealand flyhalf, Andrew Merhtens, has the second-highest points-per-game average. He averaged 13.81 points over seventy Test matches. 

Carter is one of only two players to be named the International Rugby Board (IRB) Men’s Player of the Year three times (2005, 2012 & 2015). He was not only a kicking ace, but he also scored many superb tries. Such was Carter’s brilliance, the second Test match between New Zealand and the British & Irish Lions in 2005 is named after him because of his virtuoso display. 

Image Credits: David Rogers/Getty Images

The All Blacks walloped the Lions 48-18 at the Cake Tin in Wellington. The first-five finished the match with thirty-three points. Ieuan Evans, the great Wales and Lions winger, in an interview with AllBlacks.com described Carter’s display as “one of the greatest all-round performances anyone’s ever seen.” The pivot’s second half tally of twenty-two points was four more than the previous individual New Zealand total in a Lions Test. 

The then 23-year-old had only played a handful of matches at flyhalf, but he scored two sublime tries, and set up Tana Umaga’s try. Carter played a one-two with the Umaga before racing sixty metres down the field, beating three players before offloading to Umaga. He kicked five penalties and added four conversions. 

Image Credits: David Rogers/Getty Images

The Guardian rugby journalist Robert Kitson described Carter’s display as “the definitive flyhalf display of the modern era” and “forever feature in the pantheon of great individual performances.”

Wilkinson played opposite Carter, but was substituted in the second half for Stephen Jones, who is eighth on the top 10 list of highest points-scorers. Speaking to Sky Sports in 2020, Carter said that the second Lions Test was the closest he got in his career to playing the “perfect game.”

“You’re always striving for the perfect game,” he said. “For me, that was probably the closest I got in my 112 Test matches for the All Blacks. You’ll never say that you’ve played the perfect game…but that was as close as I got.”

Australia (377) was statistically Carter’s favourite team to play, the most points scored versus one team in twenty-seven Tests. He scored the most tries against Wales (five in nine Tests). Moreover, he holds the records for most points against England (178), France (163), and South Africa (255).