Kentish Gazette Canterbury & District
Burns quits with no regrets just a lot of fond memories
Rugby
Outgoing captain Tom Burns has described the six seasons he spent with Canterbury as the happiest period of his rugby career.
The 28-year-old second row has been forced to retire due to persistent knee injuries and says he will cherish the memories he made at Merton Lane.
Burns enjoyed profitable spells at Barking and Richmond – from whom he joined Canterbury in 2012 – but says leading the Black and Ambers this season in National 2 South was his proudest moment.
He bowed out in the 33-30 home win over Cinderford last month and said: “I’ve played kind of at this level since I was about 16 so it’s been a good 13 years of National League rugby.
“I’ve won this league and the one above. I’ve done everything I think there is for an amateur player to do so I’m not leaving with any regrets.
“Definitely my proudest achievement is being here and leading these guys.
“Anyone who plays the game will tell you, there’s just this unique bond when you play.
“It’s the time you spend together, the effort you put in together, you see each other in the highest highs, the lowest lows. You commit to that emotional tie with them. It’s an incredible place, the people you get here, the care and the love.
“There’s a reason me and Martyn Beaumont (who has moved to Dover) were both in tears at the end of the Cinderford game. You’re not just retiring from a club, you are kind of retiring from everything and it’s special.”
Burns has been troubled by a groin injury for the past couple of months but it is his ongoing knee problems which have forced him to call it a day.
He added: “Basically I’ve got arthritis in my knees and the bones are starting to spur.
“I’ve had it about two years now, we always knew we had to manage it and we’ve just run out of lives.
“We went to the realms of ‘you can have a couple of injections and stuff to try and keep you playing’ but for me it’s more a case of what am I going to get out of the next two seasons?
“Can I take them (the team) forward any more? If I’m honest, I don’t think these boys need me any more.
“It’s scary to see how good some of them are going to be. They’re going to take the standard much much higher than I ever could.”
Burns gets married to fiancee Amy in Thames Ditton, Surrey, on Saturday, May 27. Beyond that, he says has no idea what his future weekends hold.
He added: “I don’t know what will happen but I’d love to coach, I never say never to anything.
“Andy Pratt (Canterbury’s head of rugby) is an excellent coach and he lets us take control of stuff so I’d say the players take a huge responsibility for what we do. I’ve had a taste for it and I do like it so it would not surprise me if I was back around at some stage.”
‘Definitely my proudest achievement is being here and leading these guys’