Wales international Dan Biggar has paid tribute to those who helped him become the man and player he is today after announcing his retirement from rugby.
The 35-year-old will bring down the curtain on an illustrious 18-year career this summer, when his current contract with Toulon expires, having won 112 caps for his country and won three Six Nations titles, including a Grand Slam. As well as representing the Ospreys, Northampton Saints and Toulon, Biggar also played in three Lions Tests and featured at three Rugby World Cups.
He confirmed his plans on Monday in a video announcement, saying that rugby has "given me a life I could never have imagined" and that he was "so, so grateful" to have "lived out my childhood dreams for the best part of two decades".
READ MORE: WRU set to appoint former England man as director of rugby
READ MORE: Dan Biggar to quit all rugby as he makes big announcement
Reflecting further on his rugby journey in his MailOnline column, Biggar said he could retire happy having exceeded his "wildest expectations" over the course of his career. Paying tribute to those who helped him achieve what he has, the Welshman singled out former team-mate Leigh Halfpenny as well as his mother Liz, who tragically died in 2021 following a battle with cancer.
Recalling travelling to early-morning weights sessions alongside Halfpenny as teenagers, the fly-half admitted neither of them would have thought they would go on to have the careers they've had. However, he added that those early days had been invaluable to his development as he credited his training partner as one of two big reasons he enjoyed so much success in professional rugby.
"The first is I feel lucky to have had a training partner like Leigh," he wrote. "There was never a chance he was going to miss a session and we drove each other on. We were both extremely dedicated."
Paying tribute to his mum, he added: "The second is that looking back, I now realise I couldn’t have done it without my mum, who passed away from cancer in June 2021. I wouldn’t have achieved what I have were it not for her sacrifices and immense support.
"I knew this moment was coming. But my only regret or sadness as I prepare to say goodbye to professional rugby is that my mum didn’t see more of the big moments in my career.
"She missed my 100th Wales cap and me start at No 10 for the Lions. She missed the birth of my second son Oliver. I feel like it’s such a shame because she helped lay the foundations for what I’ve been able to achieve. I owe her everything and still miss her dearly."
Biggar went on to thank the rest of his family for their support, as well as former coaches Sean Holley, Neil Jenkins and Chris Boyd, and added that his proudest achievement was giving his wife Alex and two sons James and Oliver a quality of life he "could only have dreamed of" when he started his career. Living on the Cote D'Azur, he didn't want to move his family again for the sake of a one-year contract elsewhere in France or maybe further abroad, like Japan.
While he admitted he would miss the "p***-taking" in the changing room and matchday atmospheres, the fly-half confessed he would not miss training, which he said is sign that it is time for him to hang up his boots. He went on to admit that he now finds himself "absolutely f***ed" after a double training day at Toulon and that, coupled with a "frustrating" lack of game-time with the Top 14 side, led him to decide to call it a day.
As for his future plans, Biggar - who has already worked as a pundit for ITV and TNT Sports and regularly features on The Rugby Pod alongside Andy Goode and Jim Hamilton - is hoping to build on the media career that he is "loving", but admits he would like to move into coaching at some point.
"In the future, I would love to be considered for a coaching position that would help the next generation of young players in Wales with their kicking," he added. "But at the moment, I also can’t commit to a full-time coaching job because the time and pressure that comes with it is not something I’m prepared to do."
