Tom Shanklin fears end of career is nigh
Welsh veteran centre and wing Tom Shanklin has revealed he will not play again this season, leaving the remainder of his career very much in doubt. Shanklin has always been plagued by injury, but has a reputation as somewhat of an ironman, earning 70 caps for Wales and going on a Lions tour.
He had knee surgery in January and was expecting to be back by April, but now has said that this season is a no-go: “My knee is in pretty bad shape really and so I’m just going to see how I recover,” said Shanklin. “I’m not going to play again this season. I’m going to make sure my knee is right and I’ll take it from there. It’s quite a serious injury I’ve got.”
Shanklin’s contract with Cardiff will not be renewed at the end of this season and his injury will make it extremely difficult for him to get into the Welsh squad for the World Cup in September. So with a dodgy knee, a contract running out and an expiring international career, Shanklin will be hoping a team takes a flyer on him regaining his thunderous running power.
If not, he will no doubt explore the possibility of retirement and Wales will lose one of the cornerstones of its Grand Slam successes. “Old Father Time catches up with everybody,” Thomas told the Magners League website, and this is one opponent Shanklin can’t run through.
