Former England centre Atkinson retires with immediate effect

Gloucester and former England centre Mark Atkinson has announced his retirement from professional rugby following a serious knee injury.

Atkinson has been a key figure at the club for over ten years but faced a major setback early last season that sidelined him for the entirety of the 2022/23 campaign.

Despite a determined effort to return to the sport, including three Gallagher Premiership appearances this season, he has decided to retire based on medical advice.

Since joining Gloucester in 2014 from Bedford Blues, Atkinson has made 168 appearances, earning recognition at the international level with caps for the Barbarians and England.

Celebrated for his decade of service, he was honored with a testimonial year. Although retiring from play, the 34-year-old will continue to contribute to Gloucester, engaging in matchday and commercial team roles.

“The decision to retire from a sport I love has been a very difficult one. I felt optimistic at the start of the season that I was in a good place with my knee, but it became apparent quite quickly that a full recovery wasn’t on the cards.

“Like many players who make this decision, my priority is my family and being able to run around with my young daughter, Sydney. Following medical advice, continuing my playing career had the potential to impact that and so for that reason it was, in the end, straight forward.

“I want to take this opportunity to thank my teammates who I’ve played with over my 10 years at Kingsholm. I’ve had many highs and some pretty low lows during that time and my teammates have been there for all of it. I’m very grateful to them."