Tom Croft with his daughter Victoria after Leicester's 2016 Champions Cup quarter-final against Stade Francais. Dan Sheridan / INPHO
Dan Sheridan / INPHO / INPHO
TWO-TIME BRITISH & IRISH Lion tourist Tom Croft announced his retirement from rugby on Thursday, declaring his decision to be a massive one as it has been his life since he left school.
The 32-year-old flanker — capped five times by the Lions and on 40 occasions with England — made his debut for his one and only club Leicester Tigers shortly after his 20th birthday and has won four Premiership titles with them.
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However, having bounced back from a fractured vertebra in his neck in 2012 and a cruciate ligament injury in the 2013/14 campaign, he has been advised to hang up his boots.
“I’ve played alongside and against some incredible players and made many lifelong friends in the game,” said Croft, who scored two tries on his debut for the Lions against South Africa in 2009. He started in two Tests on that tour and in one against Australia four years later.
“Unfortunately, I have also suffered some reasonably significant injuries and now, after seeking advice on a neck injury, I have to announce my retirement as a player. Leaving the game has been a massive decision for me, it is all I’ve known since leaving school.
“But with the issues I’ve had fitness-wise over the last few years and with my wife and two young kids at home it’s the right time to hang the boots up and move on to the next chapter,” Croft told the club website.
Croft in possession during the the first Test against Australia on the 2013 Lions tour. PA Archive / PA Images
PA Archive / PA Images / PA Images
Leicester chief executive Simon Cohen paid a handsome tribute to Croft, who turned out more than 170 times for the Tigers.
“Crofty displayed a unique talent as one of the quickest forwards in the game,” he told the club website.
“His impact when he first came into senior rugby, then when he got into the England team and in his debut tour for the Lions in 2009 said everything about an exceptional talent.”
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Tom Croft retires at 32 after two tours and three Test starts for the Lions
TWO-TIME BRITISH & IRISH Lion tourist Tom Croft announced his retirement from rugby on Thursday, declaring his decision to be a massive one as it has been his life since he left school.
The 32-year-old flanker — capped five times by the Lions and on 40 occasions with England — made his debut for his one and only club Leicester Tigers shortly after his 20th birthday and has won four Premiership titles with them.
However, having bounced back from a fractured vertebra in his neck in 2012 and a cruciate ligament injury in the 2013/14 campaign, he has been advised to hang up his boots.
“I’ve played alongside and against some incredible players and made many lifelong friends in the game,” said Croft, who scored two tries on his debut for the Lions against South Africa in 2009. He started in two Tests on that tour and in one against Australia four years later.
“Unfortunately, I have also suffered some reasonably significant injuries and now, after seeking advice on a neck injury, I have to announce my retirement as a player. Leaving the game has been a massive decision for me, it is all I’ve known since leaving school.
“But with the issues I’ve had fitness-wise over the last few years and with my wife and two young kids at home it’s the right time to hang the boots up and move on to the next chapter,” Croft told the club website.
Leicester chief executive Simon Cohen paid a handsome tribute to Croft, who turned out more than 170 times for the Tigers.
“Crofty displayed a unique talent as one of the quickest forwards in the game,” he told the club website.
“His impact when he first came into senior rugby, then when he got into the England team and in his debut tour for the Lions in 2009 said everything about an exceptional talent.”
– © AFP 2017
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End game? Rugby Leicester Tigers tom croft