Felix Jones forced to retire due to neck injury

thomond2006

http://www.munsterrugby.ie/news/21426.php#.VjD1AssnyHs

Very sad news of another premature retirement due to injury. All the best to Felix. He really stood out as a player who never shirked the physical side of the game despite sustaining many serious injuries during his time with Munster. In recent seasons he had become a rock of the backline and a leader on the pitch.

bilston

thomond2006 wrote: »

http://www.munsterrugby.ie/news/21426.php#.VjD1AssnyHs


Very sad news of another premature retirement due to injury. All the best to Felix.

FFS that's an absolute shocker!

Devastating for him.

All the best to him in his retirement.

hardCopy

Really sad to hear.

Teferi

Really sad to hear.

stephen_n

Just saw it on Facebook and was shocked, didn't even know he was injured. Very sad to see any player forced into retirement, hopefully he walks away with no long term damage though.

sydthebeat

jesus thats out of the blue!!

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

Sad news.

Who will we argue about now?

tbm

Ah jaysus that's awful!

shootermacg

Bad news indeed, wishing him the very best in the future!

Utah_Saint

shocking news. I wish him all the best for the future.

I honestly didn't know much about him until Joe brought him through the Ireland setup. Anytime I saw him play he really impressed me. Had serious gas to beat his man...

.ak

Woah, that's terrible news.

Was it related to his old neck injury?

Cookiemunster

.ak wrote: »

Woah, that's terrible news.

Was it related to his old neck injury?

He injured his neck again against Glasgow last month.

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

He's the only FB listed on Munster Rugby's squad page. Will Zebo be fully converted to FB now?

Teferi

TICKLE_ME_ELMO wrote: »

He's the only FB listed on Munster Rugby's squad page. Will Zebo be fully converted to FB now?

You'd imagine he'll be there full-time now unless one of the Argies coming over is a 15.

Cookiemunster

TICKLE_ME_ELMO wrote: »

He's the only FB listed on Munster Rugby's squad page. Will Zebo be fully converted to FB now?

Conway, Zebo and Hurley can play FB. I think Ronan O'Mahony has played there too.

Stheno

Sad news, hope he has no long term damage

Zzippy

Awful news, hopefully (rugby aside) the injury doesn't hamper him and he has no lasting pain. Goes to show how fickle the sport can be.

Brewster

Shocked to hear this. I wish him every good wish for the future, whatever it may hold.

TICKLE_ME_ELMO

Cookiemunster wrote: »

Conway, Zebo and Hurley can play FB. I think Ronan O'Mahony has played there too.

You'd be looking at Conway or Zebo for the future though, Hurley is 31.

It's a shame for Ireland because after Kearney, Jones is the only "real" FB I can think of. If Kearney was to miss the 6 Nations, for example, Jones would have been the automatic replacement, don't you think?

Pudsy33

**** sake that's awful. We have had far too many early retirements recently, with Ferris, McLaughlin and now Jones. Really really sad. I never really suscribed to the idea that rugby needs big changes to keep players safe but it make you wonder.

connemara man

Terrible news, hopefully he can have a good life outside of Rugby

phog

Terrible news for Jones. He was more than a FB for Munster as he had taken on a leadership role and had captained us a few times last season. He was also well liked by Joe.

Best of Luck to him in whatever his future holds for him.

tbm

Yes, Jones would have almost certainly been the second choice 15 for Ireland. Schmidt is a fan.

As has been said, I just hope their nipping something in the bud and he's not in too much pain.

awec

Well this news sucks.

colster

Terrible news. Hopefully the injury isn't too bad and he makes a speedy recovery.

subfreq

Gutted for him. Always enjoyed watching him play in Blue, Red and Green.

Hyperbullet

Reading his statement is heartbreaking. I don't think he expected it himself. All the best to the guy, he deserves to be successful off the field, considering he gave everything on it.

wp_rathead

He did so well to comeback from the horror injury vs Connacht all those years ago...
Did a documentary recently about wheelchair access in Ireland - with Shane Byrne and Jamie Heaslip (and I think David Wallace)

Am I mistaken to say he was in a band aswell when younger? Maybe he has a career in music?

Wish him all the best

rrpc

Puts the discussion on the Ireland thread in perspective. These guys aren't machines and this kind of thing is happening far too often to relatively young players.

As others have said, I hope this has no long term impact on his life after rugby.

90 caps for Munster says it all really.

errlloyd

Munster lost a fullback, Ireland lost a squad man, but my school just lost the only international we've produced in decades. Always been a huge fan of his. Sad tidings

Tomtom364

wp_rathead wrote: »

He did so well to comeback from the horror injury vs Connacht all those years ago...
Did a documentary recently about wheelchair access in Ireland - with Shane Byrne and Jamie Heaslip (and I think David Wallace)

Am I mistaken to say he was in a band aswell when younger? Maybe he has a career in music?

Wish him all the best

hermatige green, barry murphys band

Pink Fairy

I'm still in shock, just wondering will he be kept within the setup in a coaching capacity

seachto7

wp_rathead wrote:

Am I mistaken to say he was in a band aswell when younger? Maybe he has a career in music?

Yeah, Hermitage Green. He jacked it in when the rugby took over. Maybe he could go back to it. They seem to be doing well for themselves.

JGEP

By all accounts he was a leader in the group and demonstrated how a professional should conduct themselves.

Hope the injury only affects his sporting endeavors in a professional capacity and doesn't preclude him from taking part socially.

Best of luck to him in whatever direction his new career takes him.

QuinDixie

very hard for someone young, living their dream of playing pro rugby, to see it all gone. shocking news.
i know it is impossible to stop all these types of injuries, but the irb by reducing the number usable subs in a game to three, would help.

pickarooney

QuinDixie wrote: »

very hard for someone young, living their dream of playing pro rugby, to see it all gone. shocking news.
i know it is impossible to stop all these types of injuries, but the irb by reducing the number usable subs in a game to three, would help.

You'll have to explain that one

CatFromHue

less subs means the guys have to get fitter and, in theory, they'll get smaller too.

if they get smaller then, in theory, the hits won't be as hard

bmwguy

CatFromHue wrote: »

less subs means the guys have to get fitter and, in theory, they'll get smaller too.

if they get smaller then, in theory, the hits won't be as hard

No offence, but that is one of the craziest things I have ever read.

CatFromHue

well when you think about a coach can, and regularly does, subs over half his team every game.

there's usually 5 subs that come on for the big lads in the pack of 8.

that means there's guys out there who regularly never finish a game, and these guys tend to be the big guys.

the big guys tend to hit harder than the littler guys.

if the big guys have to play 80 mins 25-30 times a season they're going to change how they train to make them fitter and less big.

QuinDixie

CatFromHue wrote: »

well when you think about a coach can, and regularly does, subs over half his team every game.

there's usually 5 subs that come on for the big lads in the pack of 8.

that means there's guys out there who regularly never finish a game, and these guys tend to be the big guys.

the big guys tend to hit harder than the littler guys.

if the big guys have to play 80 mins 25-30 times a season they're going to change how they train to make them fitter and less big.

well explained, but it would also help the weaker teams, who do not have the same pick but may have 12 - 18 credible players.

rrpc

CatFromHue wrote: »

less subs means the guys have to get fitter and, in theory, they'll get smaller too.

if they get smaller then, in theory, the hits won't be as hard

May I introduce you to the following formula:

Force = Mass x Velocity squared.

A little bit lighter and a little bit faster. Except the little bit faster is squared.

QuinDixie

rrpc wrote: »

May I introduce you to the following formula:

Force = Mass x Velocity squared.

A little bit lighter and a little bit faster. Except the little bit faster is squared.

bring back rucking, reduce subs, enforce the offside rule, and get strict on proper tackling.
Its not rocket science.

CatFromHue

I don't think the guys are going to get much faster after dropping a few kgs tbh.

Podge_irl

There is a certain logic behind the limited subs reducing the size of players, but it's simply not a runner due to the specialised nature of positions on a rugby pitch. As things stand you really do need a full replacement front row for it to be safe for them to come on.

Anyway, sorry to hear about Jones. Didn't even realise he had had another injury but you don't want to mess around with neck injuries. I was not a huge fan a few years ago but he has shown himself to be a very dependable player with a bit more skills than I originally realised. Real shame.

eyeball kid

Shocked to read this. I'm sure he's devastated. Wish him all the best for the future.

Stheno

Podge_irl wrote: »

There is a certain logic behind the limited subs reducing the size of players, but it's simply not a runner due to the specialised nature of positions on a rugby pitch. As things stand you really do need a full replacement front row for it to be safe for them to come on.
.

Agree

eyeball kid wrote: »

Shocked to read this. I'm sure he's devastated. Wish him all the best for the future.

I found his statement very upsetting, particularly this:

To accept I will not play with my teammates again is beyond upsetting

Let him recover, and assess his options for his future. God knows where he's at at the moment.

CatFromHue

Podge_irl wrote: »

There is a certain logic behind the limited subs reducing the size of players, but it's simply not a runner due to the specialised nature of positions on a rugby pitch. As things stand you really do need a full replacement front row for it to be safe for them to come on.

it is just a bit of a nice thought experiment to do but 20 years ago being on the bench for a rugby team meant you got to catch up on some reading as you weren't coming on.

I think Warren Gatland has some ridiculously high number of games where he sat on the bench for NZ but never got to play in a capped game, it's something like 40 or 50!

gally74

I always remember him from this game himself and McFadden were electric

http://www.irishrugby.ie/mobile/rugby/5316.php

pickarooney

Surely playing on when you're tired is the most likely way to pick up an injury? Baffling logic to me.

How and ever, awful news for Jones. Hope he'll be OK.

CatFromHue

well you'd train to have more endurance and so that would prob mean you wouldn't be as big in the first place.

pickarooney

You'd have players picking up knocks and strains and being forced to play on, aggravating injuries.
Very few modern players are unfit or unable to last 80 minutes. Young players would get much less playing time and exposure to high intensity games. Sean Cronin could hang up his boots. Mike Ross, arguably our unfittest player, hasn't missed a game in years. How is making him lose a few kilos going to help him?

Conor Murray would play 80 minutes every game. Healy would be finished as he'd have to play whole games or not even got out. Sexton is forever getting injured. Do we send the unfit slob off to the army till he hardens up?

Exactly how many of our recent injuries were caused by the player being too big?