Injury forced Rugby Union’s ‘Raging Bull’ Phil Vickery to announce retirement
Former England captain and the main member of England’s 2003 World Cup winning squad, Philip John Vickery has announced his retirement from international and domestic rugby. The 34-year-old player played 73 Test matches for England
and also played 5 matches for British and Irish Lions in his international rugby career.
He had a neck-related injury and had undergone four neck operations in recent times but somehow always managed to recover and continue playing with passion, but after the recent setback, he was told that if he continues to play
rugby then the risk of a serious injury would be too great, which forced him to retire from rugby.
After announcing his retirement, he said that he looks back on his career with a lot of happy memories. He said that he is not afraid of fighting back or proving people wrong but there comes a stage when you have to listen and
trust in the experts, and it is based on medical reasons that he has been forced to retire.
He added that his love and passion for the game is still there, which is the most disappointing thing for him. He said that he wanted to end his career playing with the Wasps.
The 6’3’’ tall player was born in Barnstaple in 1976. He started taking interest in sports as a youngster, and began playing rugby at the age of 12 in his school. He was very lucky as only at the age of 16 years, he gained his
first representation at a national level, when he was selected for the England Schools U-16s group.
He started his domestic career in 1995, where he played for Gloucester. He played 145 matches for them and scored 20 points. After playing eleven years for Gloucester, he joined the London Wasps in 2006. During his career for the
Wasps, he played 45 matches and scored 5 points. He also got a chance to play for England U21s and Colts in 1996-97.
Vickery started his international Test career in 1998, when he was selected in the England national team for the match against Wales. He also got the honour of captaining England in 2002, when he was made captain for the tour of
Argentina, leading his side to victory against the Pumas. He played 73 matches for his country and scored 10 points as well. The major achievement of his career was winning the 2003 World Cup.
Many stars from international rugby really appreciate his services for England and for rugby.
England’s manager and Phil’s former captain Martin Johnson said that he was a great player and one you always wanted to play a game of rugby with.
Wasps’ Director of Rugby Tony Hanks said that he thinks Phil will go down as one of the greats of his generation and they cannot replace Phil but they do need to replace a spot in the squad. There is an intention to have Phil involved
with the Wasps in some way.
Phil himself said that he wants to remain associated with the Wasps in some way. He said that rugby has given him an awful lot and he still loves the game.
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