One of New Zealand's favourite sporting heroes Jonah Lomu died unexpectedly in Auckland this morning.

The All Blacks' star suffered from a rare kind of kidney disease for which he'd received a kidney transplant in 2004 and had been on dialysis for the past 10 years. He'd also experienced a range of health problems since his retirement in 2002.

“On behalf of the Lomu family, I can confirm that Jonah Lomu died this morning, most probably about 8 or 9. The family are obviously devastated, as are friends and acquaintances," said former All Blacks doctor John Mayhew. “The family have requested privacy at this stage, they are obviously going through a terrible time. It was totally unexpected. Jonah and his family arrived back from the United Kingdom last night and he suddenly died this morning.

Lomu made his World Cup debut in South Africa aged 19, breaking a 90-year record as the All Blacks youngest ever Test player. It was during the same World Cup where Jonah became a household name, not only in New Zealand but around the world, for his rampaging try against England which was recently voted as the greatest try in World Cup history. Why not watch it and judge for yourself?