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A retirement call has come from Manuel Carizza. The 34-year-old will play his final match of rugby on Saturday for Lyon against the Glasgow Warriors in the European Champions Cup.
He explained his decision to end his playing career to Rugby Rama:
“I am a little tired. I do not see myself playing all of the season because I have less energy. I would like to maintain the respect of my teammates, the staff, and to finish feeling well, enjoying it. Together we have decided on this date”.
Carizza joined Lyon this season as a medical joker for the injured Virgile Bruni. It saw him wearing the colors of a third Top 14 club and extending his professional career which began in 2005.
The move came after three years playing for Racing 92. During his time with the Parisian club, Carizza won the Top 14 title. His 2016 title was his second after he was also a French champion with Biarritz in 2006.
From 2005-2012 he played for Biarritz, winning the 2012 Challenge Cup and appearing in the 2006 and 2010 Champions Cup Finals. He joined Racing 92 from 2012-2013 before moving south. In 2013-2015 he played for Western Province in the Currie Cup and the Stormers in Super Rugby. Then from 2015-2018 he returned to Racing 92.
For his country, Carizza was a vital player over a long period. He earned 46 caps, firmly holding down a starting position in the second-row during the Santiago Phelan tenure.
Under the Daniel Hourcade regime he had fewer opportunities though was an extremely surprising omission from from RWC 2015. The tournament would have been his second Rugby World Cup. His final two caps were in the 2015 Rugby Championship with him being a stand-out against New Zealand in Christchurch. Miraculously Hourcade left him out of RWC 2015.
Carizza is to enjoy his final match before having vacation with his family. For the time being he is to remain in France.
