Anthony Watson: Former England and Lions rugby star retires aged 30 on medical grounds
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Anthony Watson says he is content with what he has achieved in rugby after retiring from the sport on medical grounds. The 30-year-old Leicester wing, who played in five British and Irish Lions Tests, won 56 England caps and was part of three Six Nations title-winning squads, has been unable to overcome a back issue that surfaced in January 2024.
His final game was for Tigers against Gallagher Premiership opponents Sale Sharks on December 1, and Watson said: "As I walked off against Sale I knew there was a chance this might be the last one. "I was in so much pain, I'd taken a lot of painkillers just to get to that point in the game. I was rooming with Polly (Handre Pollard) the night before, and I woke up at 4am because I was in so much pain and I had to take more pain meds to go back to sleep.
"And then I didn't want to let the team down, so I played the day after - albeit, barely played. I had no influence on the game. After that it was straight back to the surgeon to see what he suggested. "He tried another injection, and that would bring it to eight or nine injections. I would hate to think how many I've had, and it wasn't as successful as we wanted it to be.
"Beyond that he was 'I don't think it's safe anymore to carry on playing'. It was taken out of my hands and I'm quite grateful it was done that way. "It's hard to say I have dealt with it already because I haven't. What gives me peace of mind is knowing I did everything I could do, and that's the way the cookie crumbles.
