A player who will go into rugby folklore as one of the finest exponents of backline play, not only in his native Ireland, but throughout the world; born and educated in Belfast, Gibson represented Campbell College and then crossed the Irish Sea to study and play for Cambridge University.

He won the first of his 69 caps for his country in 1964 and went on to score 112 points in every possible department – a testimony to his incredible array of talents.

He represented the British Lions on 5 tours; a record only equaled by his fellow countryman Willie John McBride. Forever the enigma as to whether he was best positioned at 10 or 12, Gibson was played at centre between Barry John and John Dawes, during the 1971 tour to Australia and New Zealand, and although Barry John was often seen as the catalyst for the backs, Gibson’s mercurial genius often gelled some of the best interplay of the tour.