You don't need to know your rucks from your mauls to realise that Rugby 2005 captures the swinging fortunes of a match better than any other. The fluid and adaptable feel to the gameplay puts this above the rest of all other average sports sims, giving you a mix of tactical and rewarding options throughout a match.

It does have some faults though, including a mostly useless tutorial (if we stepped out on a real pitch after the training, we'd be less use than a blind referee) and fiddly controls for picking up the ball or pulling off a tackle.

These fumbles are annoying, and occasionally ruin the careful flow of a match, but when you're knee-deep in the action and ten yards from a winning try, you forget about them. This is well worth a try, and the definitive rugby game on the PS2 (which isn't saying too much, given how under-represented the sport is on the PS2).

Overall 70%
By uncovering the rapid excitement at the core of the sport, Rugby 2005 has converted even us Pro Evo 4 fanatics. It's just a shame that this isn't as polished as it could be.