Ankle injury forces Australian international Craig Fitzgibbon to hang his boots – Rugby News
Yorkshire based English club, Hull, has confirmed the season and career ending injury to their Australian international utility forward player, Craig Fitzgibbon. Officials at the club have made the announcement in a statement released on their website on Wednesday, September 7.
Fitzgibbon, who already announced his plans to hang up his boots at the end of the ongoing Super League season, sustained a season-ending ankle injury in last Saturday’s 50 – 18 win over the Castleford Tigers. Earlier this week, he went through a series of tests on his ankle, which revealed ligaments damage on the front of his ankle and a fracture on its backside.
Club resources have confirmed that the versatile forward Fitzgibbon will undergo a surgery later in the week.
Hull FC Chief Executive Officer, James Rule, has expressed his disappointment on the unplanned departure of the international second row forwards player from the game. He added, “Craig is a giant in the game. He has made an enormous impact on our club both on and off the field and he will leave a legacy of professional that we will continue to benefit from in the coming years.”
Rule further added, “On behalf of the Directors, staff, coaches, players and fans, I would like to thank Craig for his contribution to Hull and wish him and his family all the best in his future endeavours.”
The New South Wales born Fitzgibbon made his professional Rugby League debut for Steelers in 1998. He played 20 games for Steelers in the season and scored 84 points for them. Later he joined St Georges for a season, where he made 15 appearances and scored 66 points.
The 34-year-old Fitzgibbon joined Sydney Roosters in 2000, where he remained until the end of the 2009 season. He played 228 games for the Roosters and scored 1454 points, and achieved the honour of the National Rugby Leagues leading Points scorer.
Fitzgibbon made his international debut for Australia in 2002 and has represented them internationally on 19 occasions. He has also represented County Origin, New South Wales and most recently the Exiles.
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