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OFFICIAL - RYAN GIRDLER TO RETIRE
Apr 07 - It's official: Ryan Girdler will retire from rugby league at the end of the current season.
Ryan - one of the most exciting players in the game - has decided that 14 years in first grade football is enough.
“The illness (pleurisy) knocked me around a little bit and although the body’s bounced back obviously it’s taken a while,” he said today. Ryan played his first game of the season for Penrith last week after recovering from a bout of pleurisy.
“The fact is I’ll be 32 at the end of the year, I’m coming off contract and there are a lot of young guys here," he said. "It’s time to move on.
“I’ve really enjoyed my career and been lucky enough to do a lot of good things in it, so it’s better to go out hopefully still playing well rather than going on one or two years too long.”
Ryan hasn’t yet made up his mind what the future holds.
“I’ve been lucky enough to meet some good people on the way through and I’ve got a few business things that I intend to work on. I also want to do some traveling, hang out and give the body a rest for a couple of months.”
“Ryan is a great asset to this club and to the game,” Panthers CEO Shane Richardson said today. "In his career he has helped us win a Premiership, set a number of records and been an inspiration for a lot of young players.
“His popularity with the fans is well deserved and he will be missed.”
Ryan Girdler was born in Sydney on September 19, 1972.
He made his first grade debut with Illawarra against South Sydney at Wollongong in 1991 and played with them until 1992.
His representative career includes eight games for NSW (1999-2001), two Tri-Series games (1997), five Tests (1999-2001), four Super League Tests (1997), World Cup 2000 and the Kangaroo tour in 2003. He holds a number of records including 52 points in a State of Origin series (2000).
OFFICIAL - RYAN GIRDLER TO RETIRE
Apr 07 - It's official: Ryan Girdler will retire from rugby league at the end of the current season.
Ryan - one of the most exciting players in the game - has decided that 14 years in first grade football is enough.
“The illness (pleurisy) knocked me around a little bit and although the body’s bounced back obviously it’s taken a while,” he said today. Ryan played his first game of the season for Penrith last week after recovering from a bout of pleurisy.
“The fact is I’ll be 32 at the end of the year, I’m coming off contract and there are a lot of young guys here," he said. "It’s time to move on.
“I’ve really enjoyed my career and been lucky enough to do a lot of good things in it, so it’s better to go out hopefully still playing well rather than going on one or two years too long.”
Ryan hasn’t yet made up his mind what the future holds.
“I’ve been lucky enough to meet some good people on the way through and I’ve got a few business things that I intend to work on. I also want to do some traveling, hang out and give the body a rest for a couple of months.”
“Ryan is a great asset to this club and to the game,” Panthers CEO Shane Richardson said today. "In his career he has helped us win a Premiership, set a number of records and been an inspiration for a lot of young players.
“His popularity with the fans is well deserved and he will be missed.”
Ryan Girdler was born in Sydney on September 19, 1972.
He made his first grade debut with Illawarra against South Sydney at Wollongong in 1991 and played with them until 1992.
His representative career includes eight games for NSW (1999-2001), two Tri-Series games (1997), five Tests (1999-2001), four Super League Tests (1997), World Cup 2000 and the Kangaroo tour in 2003. He holds a number of records including 52 points in a State of Origin series (2000).
