"Right time to go" - Ireland legend retires from all rugby with immediate effect
Rugby NewsTuesday, 17 October 2023 at 14:41
Keith Earls has today confirmed his retirement from rugby with immediate effect, bringing the curtain down on a stellar and inspirational career with Munster and Ireland.
The 36-year-old calls time on his 16-year professional career following Ireland’s 2023 Rugby World Cup campaign, during which Earls won his 101st Test cap in green.
The Limerick native finishes with 36 Test tries to his name, leaving him second only behind Brian O’Driscoll in Ireland’s all-time try-scoring chart.
Earls scored 64 tries in 202 appearances for Munster and is our second-highest try-scorer of all-time. He is the only player to have won a clean sweep of Munster Academy Player of the Year (2007), Young Player of the Year (2009) and senior Men’s Player of the Year (2018) awards.
His final act in a Munster jersey saw Earls lift the URC title with Peter O’Mahony after the Grand Final win over Stormers in May. It was his third league title victory with Munster and he was also among the replacements for the 2008 European Cup final victory against Toulouse.
In an unforgettable Irish Rugby moment, Earls won his 100th cap against England at Aviva Stadium in August, leading the team out alongside his three daughters Ella-May, Laurie and Emie, before marking the occasion with a memorable try.
He made his Ireland debut 15 years previous, against Canada in 2008 at Thomond Park, where he scored just two minutes into his international career.
Earls would go on to become a legend of Irish Rugby, starting all of Ireland’s matches during the 2018 Grand Slam-winning campaign and he most recently featured at his fourth Rugby World Cup having been involved in the 2011, 2015, 2019 and 2023 editions.
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All Blacks legend Dan Carter ranks his five toughest opponents
Drawing from a range of Q&A sessions, including one with the Independent, he openly shared his top five toughest rivals with fans and fellow rugby enthusiasts.
DID YOU KNOW? In the 2015 Rugby World Cup Final against Australia, Dan Carter kicked four penalties, two conversions and a drop goal, and was named the man of the match.
#6. Thierry Dusautoir (France)
Dusautoir is a retired French rugby legend, renowned for his exceptional leadership and tenacity on the field. As a former captain of the French national team, he played a pivotal role in their 2011 Rugby World Cup Final appearance. Dusautoir's career exemplifies resilience and dedication to the sport.
CARTER SAID: "He had some blinding games in big moments — none more so than in the 2007 and 2011 World Cup games against the All Blacks."
DID YOU KNOW? He broke the record for most tackles in a match, making 38 tackles against the All Blacks in the 2007 World Cup final
4&5. Brian O'Driscoll & Paul O'Connell (Ireland)
Carter said: "Two giants of the game that have worn the green jersey were Paul O'Connell and Brian O'Driscoll. Their work rate and how they conducted themselves on and off the pitch was exemplary."
Brian O’Driscoll facts:
- He is devoted to Manchester United and his boyhood hero was Mark Hughes
- O’Driscoll’s father, Frank, played two games for Ireland and an uncle, Barry, won four caps
- His final appearance for Leinster, and for any team, was in the 2014 Pro12 Grand Final on 31 May in Leinster’s home ground, the RDS in Dublin, in which Leinster defeated the Glasgow Warriors 34-12
- His most oft-quoted line was delivered at a press conference at Croke Park before an England match in 2009: “Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit; wisdom is knowing not to put it in a fruit salad.”
- O’Driscoll was chosen as Player of the Tournament in the 2006, 2007 and 2009 RBS Six Nations Championships.
3. Jonah Lomu (New Zealand)
Carter said: "He was the toughest player. I played against him once, I was 19-year-old and tried to tackle him, kinda woke up five metres back. He changed the game of rugby."
Jonah Lomu Facts:
- He weighed 120 kg and was 1.96 metres tall, but could run 100 metres in 10.8 seconds
- In 1996, McDonald’s New Zealand named a burger after Lomu
- He’s the only rugby player ever to feature on the front cover of TIME magazine
- According to the Telegraph, Leeds were ready to make a third bid to attract All Blacks giant Jonah Lomu to England in 2001
- He played 63 tests as an All Black, scoring 37 tries
- In 2001 he helped New Zealand win the Rugby World Cup Sevens.
2. Schalk Burger (South Africa)
Carter said: “A real competitor and absolute top bloke off the field as well. His mindset was a little bit different when he was out there competing. That just made him such a tough opponent to come up against.”
1. Jonny Wilkinson (England)
CARTER SAID: “Probably because I held him in such high regard and had a huge amount of respect for him, it was Jonny Wilkinson. He was an absolute student of the game,
“It was a wild, windy test match down in Wellington, I was on the bench and I hadn’t played a test match for the All Blacks, and he just took that game and, as a 10 that wants to control a game, I’ve never seen anything like it.
“I got the best seats in the house on the bench. Part of me was going, ‘Man, do I really want to get on here because he’s just completely dominating this game’.
“Thankfully I didn’t. I made my test debut the following week, which was a much better game to remember, but I just remember sitting there going, ‘If I ever do play 10’ – I was playing 12 a lot then – ‘this is how you need to control a game’.
“I had a huge amount of respect for him and playing against him.”
Jonny Wilkinson facts:
- Wilkinson’s brother, Mark, was also a Newcastle player who made 16 appearances in the Premiership for the side between 2002 and 2005, predominantly as a centre. His father, Phil, was a rugby player and cricketer, and his mother, Philippa, played squash at county level. His grandfather, Phil, also played football for Norwich.
- When former England centre Jeremy Guscott walked into the dressing room on the day of Wilkinson’s international debut, he thought the 18-year-old had won a competition to spend the day with the national team.
- Wilkinson followed Buddhist principles and teachings to help control his perfectionist tendencies, according to an interview he gave with The Times newspaper in 2009.
- Jonny and Shelley became parents for the first time in late 2018. They keep their private life pretty much on lockdown, but according to reports, they had a little boy called James while they were still living in France.
- Wilkinson is currently a studio pundit for ITV Sport, working on their coverage of the Six Nations Championship, Rugby World Cup and other rugby events.
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