Rugby fans have been left in disbelief over the unbelievable number of tackles a world-famous US special forces operative claims to have made during a match.
Retired US Army Special Operations Sergeant Major, John McPhee, also known as ‘The Sheriff of Baghdad’, was speaking on The Joe Rogan Experience, when he recounted his time playing the sport while he lived in California.
He is a highly decorated Delta Force operator who has over 20 years of service in the US military, having gained combat experience across multiple theatres, including Afghanistan and Iraq.
Delta Force, also known as the 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta, is one of the US military’s leading special operations units, with McPhee having conducted a series of high-risk solo operations during his career, with some of those taking place behind enemy lines.
He recalled how he first came across the sport while living in Fort Bragg, northern California, and marvelled at how brutal the sport is.
‘I was at the PX [Post Exchange] and saw the Fort Bragg rugby team practises Tuesday at six,’ he said while speaking with Rogan.
Former US special forces operative John McPhee has left some rugby fans divided on social media after he claimed he had made 80 tackles during one game of rugby
He is a highly decorated Delta Force operator who has over 20 years of service in the US military, having gained combat experience across multiple theatres, including Afghanistan
‘So I just went out there for something to do. And I’m going to tell you. You think jujitsu f***s people up, go play f***ing rugby.
‘As a matter of fact, stay the f*** away from rugby. It’s f***ing brutal.
‘No helmets,’ Rogan added. ‘No nothing man,’ McPhee responded.
The retired Sergeant Major now works as a Master Instructor and Subject Matter Expert, imparting his extensive and unparalleled combat knowledge to a range of organisations, including military bodies and law enforcement, around the world.
Given his combat training, McPhee recounted that he took to rugby quickly, explaining that his coaches had marvelled at his tackling ability, explaining that he once made 80 tackles in one match.
‘It was crazy my first practice. The ball’s sitting there and one of my coaches is like: “Grab the ball and run!”
‘I just grabbed it and ran every one of these little motherf******s over and then guys were like: “Man, what college did you play in?”
‘I was like: “Uhhh, none?” I never played a day of rugby in my [life],’ he said during the podcast.
Now retired, McPhee was speaking on the Joe Rogan podcast when he recounted how he got into playing rugby while living in California
Some social media users were left divided over his comments with many balking at McPhee’s claim he made 80 tackles during a game
‘My first game was in my third practice. But in doing jujitsu and fighting people in Iraq every night, I thought rugby was kind of easy. The guy is running at me and I’ve just gotta take him down, f***ing double legs.
‘And then I started getting more tackles than anyone, and my coach, they keep stats, they were like: “80 tackles a game, how do you do that?”
‘It’s like a double leg takedown or a single leg. Maybe a trip.
‘And then one of the coaches was like: “How do you normally tackle, you get the most tackles.” I’m like double, single legs. I just taught them wrestling moves.’
Reflecting on his use of jujitsu Rogan interjected asking: ‘Why don’t they teach them that, it would seem to be a good skill?’
‘I bet the pro-level f*****s are doing that – you have to.
‘I know a lot of linemen do like cali for hand speed and stuff like that because they’ve got to win the hand fights.
‘I know that there’s a lot of sports that use a lot of disciplines so I would imagine that they would have to be having wrestling practice or take down practice, the same s*** as everyone else.’
For a Rugby World Cup match, the record number of tackles made in 80 minutes sits at 28
Professional rugby sides regularly practice disciplines like judo in training in order to hone in on their skills and knowledge around the contact area
But some fans were left divided over his claims, noting that rugby matches only last 80 minutes. That would mean he would have to make a tackle a minute, a feat that many of the world’s greatest back rowers would not even consider.
‘He lost me at 80 tackles. 80 minutes,’ one wrote on X. ‘Even the best players would have picked up some kind of injury, with that many tackles per game,’ another added.
’80 tackles in 80 minutes?’ one added.
The record for the most tackles made in a Rugby World Cup match stands at 28, with Springboks legend Pieter-Steph du Toit, France enforcer Thierry Dusautoir, Wales No 8 Taulupe Faletau and Scotland’s Jonny Gray sharing the honour.
Others agreed with parts of his comments about wrestling. Many top-level rugby teams work long hours in the gym practicing grappling and wrestling techniques as they look for ways to out-edge their opponents.
Even England’s rugby teams have in the past worked with MMA coaches as they look to bolster their knowledge and versatility around the contact area.
‘Probably more like 18,’ one fan began reflecting on McPhee’s tackle count, before adding: ‘But his point is valid. Jujitsu requires deep practice at a minimum of two weekly sessions which undoubtedly would be a contributing factor in tackling skill competency acceleration in rugby.’
Another agreed with McPhee, writing: ‘There is some truth to what he says: guys who wrestled in high school make the easiest transition to rugby of all American sports because they understand leverage, so you don’t need to teach them tackling, rucking, etc…’
