Neil Clark (born 8 October 1981) is an English former

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...

player. His position of choice was hooker.

Rugby career

Clark first played rugby for the youth sides at

Helston RFC Helston RFC is a rugby union club in Cornwall which has been in existence since 1965. They currently play in Cornwall League 2, following relegation from Cornwall League 1 in 2018–19. They are famous for the 1995–96 side that managed to re ...

, before moving joining the

Exeter Chiefs Exeter Chiefs (officially Exeter Rugby Club) is an English professional rugby union club based in Exeter, Devon. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby. The club was founded in 1871 and since 2006 has played its home m ...

. Clark made his debut for Exeter on 9 October 1999 at the age of 18 as a substitute against Orrell R.U.F.C. He made his full debut two seasons later against

Bedford Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population of the Bedford built-up area (including Biddenham and Kempston) was 106,940, making it the second-largest settlement in Bedfordshire, behind Luton, whilst ...

and made a handful of starts, before dropping back out of regular first team contention for the next couple of seasons. In 2003, Clark moved to

Bristol Shoguns Bristol Bears (officially Bristol Rugby Club or Bristol Rugby) are a professional rugby union club based in Bristol, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby. The club was founded as Bristol Football Club in 18 ...

. In his second season with the club he scored the winning try in the penultimate match against Orrell that saw Bristol promoted to the Premiership. Clark injured his

anterior cruciate ligament The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is one of a pair of cruciate ligaments (the other being the posterior cruciate ligament) in the human knee. The two ligaments are also called "cruciform" ligaments, as they are arranged in a crossed formation ...

in pre-season training before the 2006-07 season and was released by Bristol in February 2007 during his rehabilitation. Towards the end of the season, Clark moved to Cornish All Blacks and made several appearances in their successful push for promotion from

National Division Two National One (last season known as National League 1 and previously known before September 2009 as National Division Two), is the third of three national leagues in the domestic rugby union competition of England. It was known as Courage Leagu ...

, scoring the final try of the season against

Cambridge R.U.F.C. Cambridge Rugby Union Football Club or CRUFC ('The Blood & Sand') is a rugby union club representing the city of Cambridge, England. Formed in 1923 the club currently competes in the third tier of the English rugby union system, National Leag ...

Clark began the 2007-08 season at Bath Rugby, where he provided squad cover during the 2007 Rugby World Cup. He returned to Cornish All Blacks in December for the remainder of the season, in which the club was relegated back to National Division Two. Clark returned to Exeter, now rebranded the Exeter Chiefs, for the 2008-09 season. He scored a try in the opening match of the season at

Esher RFC Esher Rugby Football Club is an English rugby union club based in Surrey, England. Esher currently play in the third division of the English league system; National League 1, following the club's promotion from National League 2 South at th ...

, but a broken ankle in a later match brought the season to a premature end. However, Clark played a full role in Exeter’s following season, in which the club were promoted from the

RFU Championship The RFU Championship is an English rugby union competition comprising twelve clubs. It is the second level of men’s English rugby and is played by both professional and semi-professional players. The competition has existed since 1987, when ...

into the Premiership, and was voted Players’ Player of the Season. Clark when then included in the England squad. Clark played a role in Exeter’s first three Premiership seasons, sometimes as starting hooker, sometimes from the substitute bench. The final Premiership match of the 2011-12 season saw Clark make his 150th appearance for the club. It was announced on 23 April 2013 that Clark would join newly promoted French side

Oyonnax Oyonnax () is the second most populated commune in the Ain department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in eastern France. Oyonnax lies in a valley of the Jura Mountains in the far north of Ain. It is near the Parc naturel régional du Ha ...

. After helping Oyonnax survive in the

Top 14 The Top 14 () is a professional rugby union club competition that is played in France. Created in 1892, the Top 14 is at the top of the national league system operated by the French National Rugby League, also known by its French initialism o ...

in his first season with the club, Clark suffered a neck injury and was forced to announce his retirement from the sport in November 2014.

Notes

References

External links

ESPN player profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Clark, Neil 1981 births Living people Alumni of the University of Exeter Rugby union players from London English rugby union players Rugby union hookers Exeter Chiefs players Bristol Bears players Bath Rugby players Expatriate rugby union players in France English expatriate rugby union players English expatriate sportspeople in France