8 statistics from Sam Warburton's career you may not be aware of
Sam Warburton announced his shock retirement from rugby on Wednesday, following a battle with injuries.
The Wales and British and Irish Lions great failed to recover from neck and knee surgery, causing him to call time on a sensational career at the age of 29.
Warburton led his country to Grand Slam glory in 2012 and also captained the Lions on two tours.
As tributes for the flanker pour in, we pick out the best Opta statistics from his career.
79 - Warburton won 79 caps combined for Wales and the British and Irish Lions in a career that spanned from 2009 to 2017.
49 - The flanker captained Wales on 49 occasions, more than any other player.
53 - In total, Warburton won 53 Test caps as captain, with his last such game coming as a 28-year-old. No other player has led a side out in 50+ Tests before turning 29 (Will Carling the next best on 44).
Continue reading below...
2 - Warburton became just the second player after Martin Johnson to lead the Lions on two tours, after he was named captain for the 2013 tour to Australia and the 2017 series in New Zealand. The Lions were unbeaten in both series (won 2-1 v Australia, tied 1-1 v NZ).
4 - Only Johnson and Ronnie Dawson (both six) have more Test caps as captain of the British and Irish Lions than Warburton (four, level with eight players).
22 - Warburton is the youngest player to captain any side in a Rugby World Cup match, which he achieved when, as a 22-year-old, he led Wales out against South Africa at the 2011 Rugby World Cup.
7 - He is the seventh youngest player to captain Wales in a Test match, the second youngest forward to do so, as well as the youngest in the professional era.
70 - Warburton played 70 times in the Pro14 for Cardiff Blues, scoring five tries, as well as 33 games in Europe, including a victory in the 2009-10 Challenge Cup final.
Latest Comments
It started with a gut-wrenching realization. I’d been duped. Months earlier, I’d poured $133,000 into what I thought was a golden opportunity a cryptocurrency investment platform promising astronomical returns. The website was sleek, the testimonials glowed, and the numbers in my account dashboard climbed steadily. I’d watched my Bitcoin grow, or so I thought, until the day I tried to withdraw it. That’s when the excuses began: “Processing delays,” “Additional verification required,” and finally, a demand for a hefty “release fee.” Then, silence. The platform vanished overnight, taking my money with it. I was left staring at a blank screen, my savings gone, and a bitter taste of shame in my mouth.I didn’t know where to turn. The police shrugged cybercrime was a black hole they couldn’t navigate. Friends offered sympathy but no solutions. I spent sleepless nights scouring forums, reading about others who’d lost everything to similar scams. That’s when I stumbled across a thread mentioning a group specializing in crypto recovery. They didn’t promise miracles, but they had a reputation for results. Desperate, I reached out.The first contact was a breath of fresh air. I sent an email explaining my situation dates, transactions, screenshots, everything I could scrape together. Within hours, I got a reply. No fluff, no false hope, just a clear request for more details and a promise to assess my case. I hesitated, wary of another scam, but something about their professionalism nudged me forward. I handed over my evidence: the wallet addresses I’d sent my Bitcoin to, the emails from the fake platform, even the login credentials I’d used before the site disappeared.The process kicked off fast. They explained that scammers often move funds through a web of wallets to obscure their tracks, but Bitcoin’s blockchain leaves a trail if you know how to follow it. That’s where their expertise came in. They had tools and know-how I couldn’t dream of, tracing the flow of my coins across the network. I didn’t understand the technical jargon hash rates, mixing services, cold wallets but I didn’t need to. They kept me in the loop with updates: “We’ve identified the initial transfer,” “The funds split here,” “We’re narrowing down the endpoints.” Hours passed , and I oscillated between hope and dread. Then came the breakthrough. They’d pinpointed where my Bitcoin had landed a cluster of wallets tied to the scammers. Some of it had been cashed out, but a chunk remained intact, sitting in a digital vault the crooks thought was untouchable. I didn’t ask too many questions about that part; I just wanted results. They pressured the right points, leveraging the blockchain evidence to freeze the wallets holding my funds before the scammers could liquidate them. Next morning, I woke up to an email that made my heart skip. “We’ve secured access to a portion of your assets.” Not all of it some had slipped through the cracks but $133,000 worth of Bitcoin, my original investment, was recoverable. They walked me through the final steps: setting up a secure wallet, verifying the transfer, watching the coins land. When I saw the balance tick up on my screen, I sat there, stunned. It was real. My money was back.The ordeal wasn’t painless. I’d lost time, sleep, and a bit of faith in humanity. But the team at Alpha Spy Nest Recovery turned a nightmare into a second chance. I’ll never forget what they did. In a world full of thieves, they were the ones who fought to make things right. Contacts below: email: Alphaspynest@mail.com, WhatsApp: +14159714490, Telegram: https://t.me/Alphaspynest
Go to commentsFrom a kiwi point of view it would be great if a fleet of 7s could consistently give a big 7/1 bomb squad the run around. That will be helped if World Rugby continue to learn from Super Rugby and the Premiership.
Although I wouldn't take too much from a win over anyone not employing a seven forward bench, especially Wales. SA and France are winning the big trophies for a reason.
Go to comments