One of Brisbane's finest is throwing in the towel with finality and Darren Lockyer fans the world over will surely miss their idol on the field.
After declining an offer from the Widnes Vikings to join the Super League, Lockyer announced his retirement from the National Rugby League and 2011 will be his last year.
This autumn one of the most illustrious careers in rugby's recent history in England is officially coming to an end.
A native of Brisbane, Lockyer made his inaugural debut at 18-years-old on NRL with the Broncos starting from the bench in a 60-14 massive win against Parramatta in the 13th round.
Having previously played rugby in towns with no Aussie Rules, the young Lockyer was recognized for his great potential in the sport when he won the club's award for rookie of the year.
Fast-forward to the present and the legendary captain of the Broncos now holds 34 trying scores and 54 Test caps under his belt-both ground-breaking Australian records that every other player in the league cannot hold a candle to.
If there's one last hurrah that the 34-year-old giant wants to deliver to his beloved country, it's to be anointed as the captain of the Australia team that would compete against England, Wales and New Zealand in the Four Nations series.
Closing the curtains on a successful stint at the league with one last international victory is a great way of making more history one final time.
Although it's probably tempting to designate the NRL as a penultimate stage in one's career in the game by jumping to the Super League as the swan song career season finale, Lockyer remains certain and at peace with is choice.
Although he plans to take a one-year break from the game, Lockyer won't linger very far from the NRL.
In fact, league insiders expect his return as a coach for the Brisbane Broncos soon after.
His former Great Britain coach Brian Noble considers the 30-something as an icon, legend and the cream of the crop.
He also adds that Lockyer's level of performance has propelled the game to greater heights and that Lockyer himself was the difference between losing and winning.
Noble also ends with an affectionate note saying Lockyer is an awesome bloke that no one could really hate him.
Darren Lockyear has helmed three teams and led the Australia national team, the Queensland State of Origin team and the Brisbane Broncos as their captain towards victories in their respective competitions.
In fact, one of the highlights of his career was when he was captain of all three teams in 2006 and all three finished as champions at the end of the season.
Lockyer's phenomenal streak continued in 2009 when he broke the record for most Test caps and in 2010 the greatest trying score for the Australia national team.
Darren Lockyer is considered by many as the greatest fullback that ever played the game.
After declining an offer from the Widnes Vikings to join the Super League, Lockyer announced his retirement from the National Rugby League and 2011 will be his last year.
This autumn one of the most illustrious careers in rugby's recent history in England is officially coming to an end.
A native of Brisbane, Lockyer made his inaugural debut at 18-years-old on NRL with the Broncos starting from the bench in a 60-14 massive win against Parramatta in the 13th round.
Having previously played rugby in towns with no Aussie Rules, the young Lockyer was recognized for his great potential in the sport when he won the club's award for rookie of the year.
Fast-forward to the present and the legendary captain of the Broncos now holds 34 trying scores and 54 Test caps under his belt-both ground-breaking Australian records that every other player in the league cannot hold a candle to.
If there's one last hurrah that the 34-year-old giant wants to deliver to his beloved country, it's to be anointed as the captain of the Australia team that would compete against England, Wales and New Zealand in the Four Nations series.
Closing the curtains on a successful stint at the league with one last international victory is a great way of making more history one final time.
Although it's probably tempting to designate the NRL as a penultimate stage in one's career in the game by jumping to the Super League as the swan song career season finale, Lockyer remains certain and at peace with is choice.
Although he plans to take a one-year break from the game, Lockyer won't linger very far from the NRL.
In fact, league insiders expect his return as a coach for the Brisbane Broncos soon after.
His former Great Britain coach Brian Noble considers the 30-something as an icon, legend and the cream of the crop.
He also adds that Lockyer's level of performance has propelled the game to greater heights and that Lockyer himself was the difference between losing and winning.
Noble also ends with an affectionate note saying Lockyer is an awesome bloke that no one could really hate him.
Darren Lockyear has helmed three teams and led the Australia national team, the Queensland State of Origin team and the Brisbane Broncos as their captain towards victories in their respective competitions.
In fact, one of the highlights of his career was when he was captain of all three teams in 2006 and all three finished as champions at the end of the season.
Lockyer's phenomenal streak continued in 2009 when he broke the record for most Test caps and in 2010 the greatest trying score for the Australia national team.
Darren Lockyer is considered by many as the greatest fullback that ever played the game.