Tom Shanklin
Tomos George Llewellyn Shanklin (born 24 November 1979 in Harrow, London) is a former Welsh rugby union player who played outside centre for Cardiff Blues and Wales. He played club rugby for London Welsh and then Saracens, before joining Cardiff Blues in 2003.
| Birth name | Tomos George Llewellyn Shanklin | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date of birth | 24 November 1979 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Harrow, London | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 15 st 0 lb (95 kg) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| School | The Howard of Effingham School | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The son of Jim Shanklin, who won four caps for Wales, Tom played for Wales at Under 19, Under 21 and Wales A levels and made his first international appearance for the senior side against Japan in Tokyo.
Wales
Shanklin made his debut in the Six Nations Championship against France in 2001; 32 years previously his father, Jim, had won his first international cap against the same opponents.
At first Shanklin was regarded as a "super sub" in the Welsh side, but later established himself in the starting line-up. He produced some notable performances in the 2004 Autumn internationals, scoring eight tries in the four games. This included four tries against Romania and a spectacular try against New Zealand. He was sometimes played as a wing, but started all the 2005 Six Nations matches in his preferred position at centre.
He was selected for the 2005 British and Irish Lions tour to New Zealand, but suffered a knee injury early in the tour which meant that he had to be replaced. As a result, he also missed the majority of the 2005–06 season.
On 21 April 2009, Shanklin was named as a member of the British and Irish Lions for the 2009 tour to South Africa.[1] But on 7 May it was announced that he would miss the tour because he required reconstructive surgery on his shoulder that would keep him out for 16 weeks.[2]
Shanklin won 70 caps for Wales (56 starts and 14 appearances as a substitute). He scored 20 tries, placing him 5th-equal (with Gerald Davies and Gareth Edwards) on the list of record try-scorers for Wales.
Following a fourth knee operation in February 2011, on 21 April Shanklin announced his immediate retirement from all forms of the game.[3]
References
- BBC Sport : Lions Squad Announced
- "Shanklin ruled out of Lions tour". BBC Sport. 2009-05-07. Retrieved 2009-05-07.
- "Injury forces Cardiff Blues centre Tom Shanklin to quit". BBC Wales. 21 April 2011. Retrieved 21 April 2011.