Northern Edition

Select Edition

Northern Northern
Southern Southern
Global Global
New Zealand New Zealand
France France

Veteran Luke Wallace exits Harlequins mid-season

Harlequins' Luke Wallace during the Gallagher Premiership Rugby match between Bath Rugby and Harlequins at The Recreation Ground on January 28, 2022 in Bath, England. (Photo by Bob Bradford - CameraSport via Getty Images)

Harlequins have announced that flanker Luke Wallace will leave the club at the end of December, bringing an end to his 12-year career at the Stoop.

ADVERTISEMENT

The 33-year-old will leave the club as one of the few players to win the Gallagher Premiership in both 2012 and 2021 with the London club.

Wallace enjoyed a stint away from Quins between 2019 and 2021, where he played for Coventry and Leicester Tigers before returning to the club he rose through the ranks with in May 2021. He signed a new deal with the club in 2022, but has struggled for game time this season. He will leave with 198 appearances to his name though in a Quins career that has spanned 12 years after making his debut in the 2011/12 season.

Video Spacer

Jamie George passionately defends Owen Farrell | Big Jim Show | RPTV

Video Player is loading.
Current Time 0:00
Duration 3:17
Loaded: 0%
Stream Type LIVE
Remaining Time 3:17
 
1x
    • Chapters
    • descriptions off, selected
    • captions off, selected
    • en (Main), selected
    Video Spacer

    Jamie George passionately defends Owen Farrell | Big Jim Show | RPTV

    RugbyPass tv

    On his departure, Wallace said: “I have loved every minute of representing this Club. I’ll obviously always remember the big results, specifically lifting the two Premiership trophies and the LV Cup, but I think my fondest memories will be the wins away in Europe and the celebrations that followed with a great group of mates.

    “I would like to thank my teammates, coaches, and staff for their huge support throughout my career. Lastly a special mention to the Quins faithful who have supported us through thick and thin.”

    “This was always the plan just to play for six months in this first block of the season,” he added in a video message by Quins. “Obviously with the World Cup, the plan was that I’d obviously play a bit more in that first period. Unfortunately I got injured earlier on in that first period in preseason. And then with the [London] Irish guys coming in as well, it just meant the back row ranks were a bit fuller than we expected. So unfortunately didn’t get to play my 200th game, that was a big motivation for me this year.

    “Just looking for a different challenge now, whether that’s in rugby – I’m exploring stuff abroad, I’d like to play abroad before I retire – or exploring other career options as well.

    ADVERTISEMENT

    Director of Rugby Billy Millard added: “Luke has been an incredible servant to our Club and the ultimate professional over two very good stints. He’s been a true Harlequin and a player that will be remembered for his work-rate and dedication, leading from the front on and off the pitch. We wish Luke the very best as he progresses into his next challenge.”

    Related

    ADVERTISEMENT

    Argentina v France | HSBC SVNS Hong Kong 2025 | Men's Match Highlights

    New Zealand v Australia | HSBC SVNS Hong Kong 2025 | Women's Match Highlights

    Tokyo Sungoliath vs Shizuoka BlueRevs | Japan Rugby League One 2024/25 | Full Match Replay

    Reds vs Force | Super Rugby W 2025 | Full Match Replay

    Behind the Scenes with the Australian Rugby Sevens Team in Hong Kong | HSBC SVNS Embedded | Episode 9

    The Rise of Kenya | The Report

    New Zealand in Hong Kong | Brady Rush | Sevens Wonders | Episode 4

    The Fixture: How This Rugby Rivalry Has Lasted 59 Years

    Trending on RugbyPass

    Comments

    0 Comments
    Be the first to comment...

    Join free and tell us what you really think!

    Sign up for free
    ADVERTISEMENT

    Latest Features

    Comments on RugbyPass

    H
    Head high tackle 1 hour ago
    Can Samoa and Tonga ever become contenders when their top talent is skimmed?

    I think you have gone in the wrong direction here Nick. I think you need to delve down into the rules etc around Moana Pacifica’s selection policies and then you need to understand that a lot of KIWI BORN rugby players have PI heritage. It appears ok for the 4 home nations to pillage NZ born players constantly without retribution but you want to question whether NZ BORN players should be eligible for NZ? Seems a real agenda in there.

    Go back and look at the actual Aims and agenda for MP becoming a entity and you see lots of things enshrined in policy that you arnt mentioning here. EG there is an allowance for a percentage of MP to be NZ eligible. This was done so MP could actually become competitive. Lets be real. If it wasnt this way then MP would not be competitive.

    There also seems to be some sort of claim ( mainly from the NH ) that NZ is “cashing in” on MP, which , quite frankly is a major error. Are you aware of how much MP costs NZR Financially?

    39 NZ born rugby players played at the last world cup for Samoa or Tonga. PLUS plenty for Scotland, England, Ireland and Wales.

    Taumoefolau is a BORN AND BRED NZer. However I very strongly doubt he will be an AB, but who do you believe he should be allowed to play for? Levi Aumua is ALSO a born and bred Kiwi.

    Aumua was eligible to represent Samoa and Fiji for the Pacific Nations Cup in July that year but ended up playing for neither. He IS eligible for his nation of Birth too Nick

    He is a Kiwi. Are you saying an NZ born, raised Kiwi cant play for NZ now?

    Sorry Nick Kiwi born and bred actually qualify for NZ.

    4 Go to comments
    LONG READ
    LONG READ Why Les Kiss and Stuart Lancaster can lead Australia to glory Why Les Kiss and Stuart Lancaster can lead Australia to glory
    Search