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Harlequins post emotional goodbye to their beloved prop Mark Lambert

mark lambert

Retiring Harlequins prop Mark Lambert has been showered in praise from his former teammates. 

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The 35-year-old announced he will be bringing his 17-year professional career to an end on Wednesday, and will not be returning when the Gallagher Premiership resumes in August. 

That means his 251st and final appearance for Quins was a 28-15 loss to Bristol Bears at Ashton Gate in March before the season was suspended as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

He is a player that may not have received the fanfare on the Test stage that some of his Quins teammates have, or indeed his fellow loosehead Joe Marler has, but typifies what it means to be a one-club man. That has been echoed by many who have played with him throughout his career at the Stoop. 

Only Mike Brown, Chris Robshaw, Danny Care and Nick Easter have made more appearances in the league for Quins than the prop, and all five were part of the club’s greatest days in the modern era, chiefly the Premiership final win in 2012 against Leicester Tigers. 

Brown labelled his former teammate a “Harlequins legend” while Care said he “has been the heart and soul of the club since the day I joined”.

Former Australia and Harlequins captain James Horwill also said he was a “one club man who is the heartbeat of the club”. 

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A post shared by Danny Care (@dannycare9) on

Having represented England at under-19 and under-21 level, Lambert’s career was not necessarily plain sailing, as he suffered a number of troublesome injuries early on in his career, while Harlequins were relegated in his first season as a professional. 

Since 2017, Lambert has served as the chairman of the Rugby Players Association, and has been at the centre of attention in recent weeks regarding the potential player strike over the pay-cuts during the pandemic. He plans on continuing to serve as chairman in retirement. 

 

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G
GrahamVF 46 minutes ago
Does South Africa have a future in European competition?

"has SA actually EVER helped to develop another union to maturity like NZ has with Japan," yes - Argentina. You obviously don't know the history of Argentinian rugby. SA were touring there on long development tours in the 1950's

We continued the Junior Bok tours to the Argentine through to the early 70's

My coach at Grey High was Giepie Wentzel who toured Argentine as a fly half. He told me about how every Argentinian rugby club has pictures of Van Heerden and Danie Craven on prominent display. Yes we have developed a nation far more than NZ has done for Japan. And BTW Sa players were playing and coaching in Japan long before the Kiwis arrived. Fourie du Preez and many others were playing there 15 years ago.


"Isaac Van Heerden's reputation as an innovative coach had spread to Argentina, and he was invited to Buenos Aires to help the Pumas prepare for their first visit to South Africa in 1965.[1][2] Despite Argentina faring badly in this tour,[2] it was the start of a long and happy relationship between Van Heerden and the Pumas. Izak van Heerden took leave from his teaching post in Durban, relocated to Argentina, learnt fluent Spanish, and would revolutionise Argentine play in the late 1960s, laying the way open for great players such as Hugo Porta.[1][2] Van Heerden virtually invented the "tight loose" form of play, an area in which the Argentines would come to excel, and which would become a hallmark of their playing style. The Pumas repaid the initial debt, by beating the Junior Springboks at Ellis Park, and emerged as one of the better modern rugby nations, thanks largely to the talents of this Durban schoolmaster.[1]"


After the promise made by Junior Springbok manager JF Louw at the end of a 12-game tour to Argentina in 1959 – ‘I will do everything to ensure we invite you to tour our country’ – there were concerns about the strength of Argentinian rugby. South African Rugby Board president Danie Craven sent coach Izak van Heerden to help the Pumas prepare and they repaid the favour by beating the Junior Springboks at Ellis Park.

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