Former Irish international Conor O'Shea has been forced to retire because of a persistent ankle injury. The 31-year-old London Irish captain, who featured for Ireland during the 1995 and 1999 Rugby World Cups, first sustained the injury during a Premiership match against Gloucester just under a year ago when he broke his leg and dislocated his ankle. Although O'Shea was confident he would return to action despite needing three operations during his 11 months out of the game, a consultation with his surgeon last week ended those hopes.
"I saw the consultant last week, and basically he told me if I keep on going I will run into too much difficulty in the long term," said the full-back. "I have been told that now I have got continued loading of the leg through training which will potentially lead to further degeneration of my ankle. I will be able to run, but twisting and turning and taking contact would not do my ankle any good at all. It could cause severe long-term problems."
"For me, that was not a risk worth taking. I had to think what state would I be in in 10 years from now - and from what I could gather it would not be a good state. It was the news I was expecting. To be honest, after the first operation I knew there was something a little bit wrong - but I always hoped for the best. I am hugely disappointed. It is not what I wanted to hear - but I hope new avenues will open up to me now," he added.
O'Shea made 35 appearances at full back for Ireland, scoring 6 tries since
winning his first cap against Romania in 1993. His last game in an Irish
shirt was against England at Twickenham last year.
Filed by Amanda Fennelly
