Six Nations: Dan Parks announces retirement from Scotland team
Dan Parks watches a training session from the stand at Murrayfield today. Picture: Ian Rutherford/TSPL
DAN PARKS stunned Scottish rugby on Tuesday by announcing his retirement from the international game with immediate effect.
The 33-year-old decided to call it a day after he was left out of the 22 players selected for Sunday’s match against Wales in the RBS Six Nations Championship. The starting line-up will be announced today, with Edinburgh’s Greig Laidlaw replacing Parks at No 10 and Glasgow’s Duncan Weir providing cover on the bench.
Parks was dropped after a poor performance in Saturday’s dispiriting Calcutta Cup defeat, during which he had a clearance kick charged down by England stand-off Charlie Hodgson to gift the visitors the only try of the game.
After the players were informed of the team selection by coach Andy Robinson, Parks took no part in training at Murrayfield yesterday. He watched grim-faced from the stand while talking on his mobile phone.
Team-mates said it became an emotional day when their colleague informed them of his decision, with many of them paying tribute to their friend, before Parks headed back to Wales where he will continue his club career with Cardiff Blues. Ironically, his Scotland team-mates will be following him to the Principality in two days’ time ahead of their match at the Millennium Stadium.
In a statement released by the Scottish Rugby Union yesterday, Parks indicated that he might have retired before this season’s RBS Six Nations Championship had it not been for injury to Ruaridh Jackson, who had replaced him as the preferred starting stand-off.
“I was thinking about it, but the first game of the Six Nations was against England, the auld enemy, Jacko was injured and being able to play against England was huge for me as there was a sense of unfinished business,” Parks said.
“On reflection after the game, after talking it over with my family, girlfriend and close friends, I’ve come to the decision that now is the right time to retire from the international game.
“There are some really talented guys coming through – Jacko, Greig [Laidlaw] and Duncan [Weir] – and, although I’m sad to be finishing my international career, I have some fantastic memories of playing for Scotland and what that has meant to me.”
The 13-6 defeat by England last Saturday was Parks’ 67th international appearance.
While the Scotland team as a whole were criticised for their inability to score a try, the Cardiff Blues player was lambasted more than any other.
Scotland coach Andy Robinson picked Parks for the Calcutta Cup match because Glasgow’s Jackson was injured, but many in Scottish rugby thought he should have gone with Laidlaw, who came off the bench.
And, just a week after he named Parks as the man to steer Scotland to a hoped-for victory in the Calcutta Cup, the Scotland coach said the player had made the right decision at the right time.
There is expected to be only one other change to Robinson’s starting XV, with Edinburgh tighthead prop Geoff Cross taking the place of Euan Murray, who refuses to play on Sundays for religious reasons.
There may be another change besides Weir on the bench, with Glasgow’s Stuart Hogg, who can play full-back or centre, coming in instead of team-mate Graeme Morrison.
Parks has bounced back before after being written off and, even when it became clear yesterday that he was not in Robinson’s plans for the Wales game, there were few who thought he would fall out of the international reckoning entirely. The criticism he has received since Saturday must have played a part in his decision but yesterday he chose to emphasise the positive side of his involvement with the Scotland team, which began when he was capped in 2004 while with Glasgow. “I’ve no regrets at what has been an amazing career for me. I’ve got my favourite moments for Scotland – uppermost being the 2007 Rugby World Cup,” he continued. “That was my first World Cup, something that as a youngster you would always aspire to play in, and it was just such a happy, exciting, positive time. It was also where I met my girlfriend, Laetitia.
“Other memorable moments have been the two wins against England at home [2006 and 2008], the win against South Africa at Murrayfield, the two wins in Argentina in 2010 and one in 2008 and the Ireland game in 2010, which was a great occasion. I’ve made some incredible friends in Scotland and in the Scotland team and a lot of those friendships were forged in Glasgow.
“There are a lot of people within Scottish rugby who have been good to me. I would like to thank Matt Williams, Frank Hadden, Andy Robinson and all the various assistant coaches over the years, alongside the medical, fitness, kit, administrative and media staff who have helped me. I was proud of myself in the way I came back from trouble off the pitch in order to regain my position firstly within the Glasgow team and then the Scotland team.
“I also want to thank the loyal fans of the Scotland team. It’s been a rocky road for me at times, but at the end I’ve always given 100 per cent to play at my best and succeed for Scotland.
“This is not the end of me as a rugby player. My international career is over but I want to keep playing club rugby. I always enjoyed my time in Glasgow. It’s one of [the] great cities I’ve visited, so who knows what will happen in the future.”
Robinson thanked Parks for the contribution and said he approved of its timing. “I have really enjoyed working with Dan,” he said. “He wasn’t in my first Scotland squads but, through his own determination, hard work, skill and competitive spirit, he forced his way back into selection. It’s never an easy decision to make but I feel Dan has made the right decision and thank him for his contribution over the years.”
Edinburgh scrum-half Mike Blair, a regular partner in internationals, spoke of the shock felt by the playing squad when they heard the news. “The reaction of all the guys when Parksy announced his retirement said it all – stunned silence and emotion,” he said. “Dan is a hugely popular and respected member of the squad and his contribution to some of Scotland’s most famous victories cannot be underestimated.”
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Comments
There are 67 comments to this article
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Lord Longstaff
Friday, February 10, 2012 at 03:07 PMComment removed by moderator
SeniorandSenior
Thursday, February 9, 2012 at 08:21 AMIs it just me, or are Scottish fans very negative and just a little bit mean? Ok, so we don't win that often, such is life. It says something for Dan Parks that he's taken all this and played for as long as he has. Now he's gone you're starting on Christ Cusiter, one of not many british lions in the squad and a true great of Scottish rugby.
The Lord
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 03:16 PMsame old same old same old..........................................................we will get MASHED by the Welsh backs. Lamont v Roberts only one winner there!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Oli382
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 02:14 PMDan Parks is a confidence player Full of confidence = excellent Lacking confidence = awful When Glasgow were on a high, his form carried into the blue shirt and he could keep the best teams pinned in their 22 with pin point accurate kicks. Man of the match performances When Glasgow were playing poorly or when he wasn't playing regularly for Cardiff, his form carried into the blue jersey and he looked like he didn't have a clue what was going on. Slated. Simple.
daffy_b
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 02:08 PMCannot belive Cusiter is starting after his woefully slow and inaccurate ball deliveries last week. Disappointed with no change at 12,13 as the current pairing will be all too predictable for Davies and Roberts to deal with.
bellebrise
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 02:06 PMDonaldinho, thanks for your comment. Good Points. Let me be clear in that I am not pro-Parks because I do not like the kicking game reminiscent as it is of the 10-man rugby approach. Dull, dreary, and with no possibility of blossoming into exciting open running. You are quite right in what you say about opportunity cost - if you are kicking you are not passing. Passing means tries. Anti-Parks should not mean Parks hater. This is about approach, "game plans" and style. Our backs are better than the stats say but their talent has been stultified by the kicking game, and the crash ball in the centres. I would like to see the ball go to the wings and the attacks start from there. We need an all round stand-off who can read the game and make the right decisions and release the backs at speed. Stats do not explain everything but do offer some interesting facets. The team to meet Wales averages 5 points in total per match, so we need not be too optimistic. I so want to be shown that there are indeed "lies, damned lies, and statistics".
Doc Martin
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 02:01 PMWhos picking this team???? We finally get Laidlaw in the team, but without somebody with the ball skills in at 12, that is invariably where the play will break down. If you want Lamont in the team (put him on the wing, esp as the Welsh have some huge wingers) and get Evans in the centre. Why is Hogg not at 15? What does he need to do? Groundhog day anyone?
AC19
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 01:32 PMSquad announced - Scotland team (sponsor RBS) to play Wales in the RBS 6 Nations Championship at the Millennium Stadium, Cardiff on Sunday 12 February, kick-off 3pm 15 Rory Lamont (Glasgow Warriors) 27 caps, 6 tries, 30 points 14 Lee Jones (Edinburgh Rugby) 1 cap 13 Nick De Luca (Edinburgh Rugby) 30 caps, 1 try, 5 points 12 Sean Lamont (Scarlets) 61 caps, 8 tries, 40 points 11 Max Evans (Castres) 25 caps, 3 tries, 15 points 10 Greig Laidlaw (Edinburgh Rugby) 3 caps 9 Chris Cusiter (Glasgow Warriors) 56 caps, 3 tries, 15 points 1 Allan Jacobsen (Edinburgh Rugby) 61 caps 2 Ross Ford (Edinburgh Rugby) 54 caps, 2 tries, 10 points CAPTAIN 3 Geoff Cross (Edinburgh Rugby) 9 caps 4 Richie Gray (Glasgow Warriors) 17 caps 5 Jim Hamilton (Gloucester) 35 caps, 1 try, 5 points 6 Alasdair Strokosch (Gloucester) 24 caps, 1 try, 5 points 7 Ross Rennie (Edinburgh Rugby) 12 caps 8 David Denton (Edinburgh Rugby) 2 caps Substitutes 16 Scott Lawson (Gloucester) 30 caps, 2 tries, 10 points 17 Ed Kalman (Glasgow Warriors) uncapped 18 Alastair Kellock (Glasgow Warriors) 37 caps, 1 try, 5 points 19 John Barclay (Glasgow Warriors) 33 caps, 2 tries, 10 points 20 Mike Blair (Edinburgh Rugby) 76 caps, 7 tries, 35 points 21 Duncan Weir (Glasgow Warriors) uncapped 22 Stuart Hogg (Glasgow Warriors) uncapped Referee: Romain Poite (France). Assistant referees: Peter Fitzgibbon and Simon McDowell (both Ireland). TMO: Giulio de Santis (Italy)
Donaldinho
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 01:08 PMBellebrise, a limited, kick-obssessed stand off with poor distribution skills can also be said to be the cause of insufficient tries from the back line. So, does that make me a parks hater or just an observer of fact? His first instinct in sight of the line was often to drop a goal. In doing so, he denied try scoring opportunities to his other backs. This skews the stats in his favour and creates the false picture you describe. Stats cant explain everything and dont adequately reflect the opportunity cost of his actions. His scoring points by kicks actually exacerbated our inability to score tries: we have to score them from fewer handling opportunities. As goalkicker you should be reasonably expected to have more points than your team too, it's how it works. And that fate is effectively decided by the coach. Parks was competent in that aspect but i dont think it proves much: the same was probably the case when Paterson kicked, so it's not unusual. As a 10 (CP wasn't) you have a wider responsibility to the team. The argument you make in his favour actually serves to highlight his massive limitations even more.
Doc Martin
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 12:30 PM#57 tomtom678 - "I cant understand why Robinson says it is the right decision (DP quiting) yet he picked 7days ago?"...... because it has taken all the heat off him and Townsend.... for the moment!
tomtom678
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 12:16 PMI cant understand why Robinson says it is the right decision (DP quiting) yet he picked 7days ago??? Also DP suggest's he played cos Jacko was unavailable, well Jacko is playing for Glasgow on Thursday this would suggest he is unavailable this weekend??
bellebrise
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 11:17 AMDan Parks did his best, we need not doubt that. The difference between his sublime kicking when he was on form was never matched by the rest of his game. However, in his games for Scotland he has scored more points than the rest of the squad put together, 266 compared to 261. The squad might be expected to score an average of 10 points per game with Parks and 5 points per game without him. (Of course, this ignores the historic presence of Paterson as he is no longer in the squad.) The backs in the squad average half a point per cap. These figures are not very accurate as a cap may be awarded for a few minutes on the pitch. Overall though, they are indicative of the huge contribution Parks has made or, if you are in the anti-Parks camp, of the way his style has cramped the scoring potential of others. Either way, they do suggest that it would be an amazing turn-round if Scotland managed to score more than a handful of points against Wales. We need to look at this carefully. Max Evans is an exciting player, but he has scored three tries in 25 appearances. Not exaclty the stuff that wins tournaments. Note please that I like him as a player and would pick him; he is simply picked as an example where the reality meets the dream and suffers by comparison. Ansbro, Jackson and Rory Lamont are the only players with more points than caps, and Ansbro is unavailable...
bring them on
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 10:56 AMGreat parting comments from Parks. True professional, and very talented player.
stellarbluesky
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 10:38 AMA sad but dignified end to a mixed career - credit to DP for his realisation of the right thing to do, and thanks for all his efforts. I'm sure Mike Blair was simply falling into the all-too-frequent and irritating misuses of 'overestimated' and 'underestimated' when he said, ' . . .his contribution to some of Scotland's most famous victories cannot be underestimated.' Overestimated, surely?
jimboweb
Wednesday, February 8, 2012 at 10:32 AMThanks to Dan for trying over the years, unfortunately our mangement didn't seem to appreciate his skills and where they fitted into a team, we should have been playing 2 kickers and not one or the other.
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