Dallaglio: calling it quits

I think Dallaglio has jumped before he was pushed to be honest. His performances at the World Cup didn't justify his place.

Dewi Morris
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Stuart Barnes and Dewi Morris paid tribute to Lawrence Dallaglio after the Wasps and England star confirmed his retirement plans.

Dallaglio has announced his England retirement with immediate effect and will also call time on his club career at the end of the season - and while Sky Sports pundit Barnes was quick to pay tribute to him, he suggested the number eight might have quit international rugby earlier.

Barnes told Sky Sports News: "Lawrence Dallaglio will be remembered when he retires as a magnificent England player and as a great club player - perhaps the greatest club player of them all.

"He could have retired a couple of years ago, but he has such great self-belief and thinks he can step up for England.

"When he was recalled by Andy Robinson he wasn't made the main man. When Brian Ashton recalled him for the World Cup, he wasn't made the main man. And then because of the aura he has about him, he ends up - not always through his own fault - causing trouble.

"It's all or nothing with him and because of his willpower he wouldn't officially retire because he thought he'd get picked as he was better than anyone else.

"That's in the make-up of the man and it's not egotistical or big-headed - it's what has made him a great player. He now feels he has got to go so he can concentrate on Wasps and forget about the England thing."

Jumped

Fellow Rugby Club pundit Morris also hailed Dallaglio's contribution to rugby, but thinks Brian Ashton would not have picked him for future squads anyway after remarks he made about the England coach in his recent book.

Morris said: "I think he's jumped before he was pushed to be honest. His performances at the World Cup didn't justify his place and I said before the squad was announced that Dallaglio should have stayed at home.

"As it happened, England did very well. But if you write a book afterwards and call England a pub side, then Brian Ashton would need very thick skin to go back and pick Dallaglio.

"I would agree with Stuart that he is one of the greatest Wasps players of all time, and probably one of the greatest back-row forwards England has ever seen.

"But he's done it and got the t-shirt and now it's time to go."

Legacy

Barnes insisted Dallaglio's greatest legacy was the way he transformed the fortunes of his club side, but indicated the Heineken Cup might be his best chance of bowing out with a trophy.

He added: "From Wasps' point of view, he has taken the club from occasional winners to becoming the most powerful team in England - two European Cups, three leagues on the trot - he's taken Wasps to places they never believed they could be.

"They've had great coaches, but Dallaglio is the man that has been symptomatic. He has dragged this team into a world where they believe they can beat anyone.

"He's got a problem because Wasps are a long way down the league now and with a lot of their players being involved with England it's going to be tough.

"We will have to see Lawrence inspiring a lot of the younger players at the end of his career. It will be hard for Wasps to make the top four, so I think Europe represents their best chance and what better way for Dallaglio to finish than with a back-to-back European Cups?"