Wales international forced to retire with immediate effect

Wales and Ospreys prop Paul James has been forced to retire due to a shoulder problem.

James has not featured competitively since coming on as a replacement in the Ospreys’ Pro14 victory over the Dragons on December 31, 2017.

The 36-year-old, capped 66 times by Wales, revealed a lack of improvement in his shoulder after two operations has forced him to switch his focus to coaching.

“I’m sad to say my time has come to an end. After two shoulder operations and a lot of rehab I’m afraid that my shoulder hasn’t recovered,” James wrote in a post on Twitter.

“I would just like to thank everyone who has supported me over my career and has helped me achieve everything I did, especially my wife Louise as she had to go through the highs and lows with me.

“I look back with no regrets and loved every second of it. I will miss the banter with the boys but hope to get a new buzz out of dipping my toes into coaching.”

THE END!!!!!!!!! #Thankyourugbyitsbeenablast #232andout pic.twitter.com/UfYTfgf7vG

— Paul james (ASSEY) (@Paul_James1) December 26, 2018