Charlie Hodgson
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Charles Christopher Hodgson (born 12 November 1980) is a retired English
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 it ...
player, having previously been a player for
Sale Sharks Sale Sharks is a professional rugby union club from Greater Manchester, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby. Originally founded in 1861 as Sale Football Club, now a distinct amateur club, they adopted the ...
and
Saracens upright 1.5, Late 15th-century German woodcut depicting Saracens Saracen ( ) was a term used in the early centuries, both in Greek and Latin writings, to refer to the people who lived in and near what was designated by the Romans as Arabia ...
. His position was
fly-half In the game of rugby union, there are 15 players on each team, comprising eight forwards (wearing jerseys numbered 1–8) and seven backs (numbered 9–15). In addition, there may be up to eight replacement players "on the bench", numbered 16– ...
and he is the leading Premiership points scorer of all time. Hodgson also played for
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
, until announcing his international retirement in 2012. Hodgson made 18 consecutive starts at fly half for England between 2004 and 2006.


Early years

Born on 12 November 1980 in
Halifax, West Yorkshire Halifax () is a minster and market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Calderdale in West Yorkshire, England. It is the commercial, cultural and administrative centre of the borough, and the headquarters of Calderdale Council. In the 15th cen ...
, Hodgson was educated at
Bradford Grammar School Bradford Grammar School (BGS) is a co-educational independent day school located in Frizinghall, Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. Entrance is by examination, except for the sixth form, where admission is based on GCSE results. The school gi ...
; the school hosts a rugby tournament for under-12s called the Charlie Hodgson Cup. He was a huge Halifax
rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 112 ...
fan long before he ever played
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 it ...
. A family friend invited him to
Old Brodleians Old Brodleians RUFC (or ''Brods'', as they are known) are an English rugby union club from Hipperholme, near Halifax, West Yorkshire. The club currently operates three senior men's teams in the past there was a strong veterans side whose regular ...
rugby club and his first game was for the opposition, as they were short. He has also played for
Old Brodleians Old Brodleians RUFC (or ''Brods'', as they are known) are an English rugby union club from Hipperholme, near Halifax, West Yorkshire. The club currently operates three senior men's teams in the past there was a strong veterans side whose regular ...
,
Durham University , mottoeng = Her foundations are upon the holy hills ( Psalm 87:1) , established = (university status) , type = Public , academic_staff = 1,830 (2020) , administrative_staff = 2,640 (2018/19) , chancellor = Sir Thomas Allen , vice_cha ...
and Yorkshire. He was first picked for Yorkshire by Keith Dyas.


International

He marked his
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
début with a record-breaking 44-point haul against
Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...
in November 2001, the most by any
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
player in a test match, when
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
won 134–0. He was selected at centre in the 2003 Six Nations. He played 2 games at centre, only to be demoted to the subs bench for the third match against Italy. It was in this game he picked up a serious injury. He made a return to action during the 2003/04 season, after having been sidelined for eight months with a ruptured
cruciate ligament Cruciate ligaments (also cruciform ligaments) are pairs of ligaments arranged like a letter X. They occur in several joints of the body, such as the knee joint and the atlanto-axial joint. In a fashion similar to the cords in a toy Jacob's la ...
in his left knee. The injury had denied him selection for the 2003 World Cup and another injury kept him out of the 2004 Six Nations. He played at
fly-half In the game of rugby union, there are 15 players on each team, comprising eight forwards (wearing jerseys numbered 1–8) and seven backs (numbered 9–15). In addition, there may be up to eight replacement players "on the bench", numbered 16– ...
during the 2004 summer tour to the Southern Hemisphere, for all three internationals against
New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island coun ...
and
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. With an area of , Australia is the largest country by ...
. He was named Man of the Match against
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by to ...
in the Autumn of that year. Hodgson has received criticism for not being Jonny Wilkinson and his inconsistent goal kicking, which was partly responsible for
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
's disappointing performance in the 2005 Six Nations championship. Hodgson was selected for the 2005
British & Irish Lions The British & Irish Lions is a rugby union team selected from players eligible for the national teams of England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. The Lions are a test side and most often select players who have already played for their national ...
tour of
New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island coun ...
. Whilst playing for England against South Africa on 18 November 2006, Hodgson ruptured the
cruciate ligament Cruciate ligaments (also cruciform ligaments) are pairs of ligaments arranged like a letter X. They occur in several joints of the body, such as the knee joint and the atlanto-axial joint. In a fashion similar to the cords in a toy Jacob's la ...
in his right knee that ensured he would miss the rest of the 2006/07 season. Subsequently, he did not appear for England throughout the whole of 2007, missing the
2007 Rugby World Cup The 2007 Rugby World Cup was the sixth Rugby World Cup, a quadrennial international rugby union competition inaugurated in 1987. Twenty nations competed for the Webb Ellis Cup in the tournament, which was hosted by France from 7 September to 2 ...
through injury, just as he had in
2003 File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A ...
. Hodgson made his return to the
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
squad for the
2008 Six Nations Championship The 2008 Six Nations Championship, known as the 2008 RBS 6 Nations because of sponsorship by the Royal Bank of Scotland, was the ninth series of the rugby union Six Nations Championship, the 114th series of the international championship. Fifteen ...
. Hodgson was dropped during England's tour of New Zealand in 2008 as he was perceived to have a weak defence. After two years away from the international side, Hodgson was selected to play for England in May 2010. During his time away from the England set-up, Hodgson had improved his defence enough to impress the new coach, Martin Johnson. Hodgson was selected for England's June tour of New Zealand. He was selected at fly-half for the first test but was subbed early in the second half because of some defensive errors most notably the missed tackle on centre
Ma'a Nonu Ma'a Allan Nonu (; born 21 May 1982) is a professional rugby union player from New Zealand who currently plays for the San Diego Legion in Major League Rugby (MLR). He plays in the inside centre, but can also cover outside centre and wing. ...
which led to a try. He took no further part in the tour. Hodgson's next game for England was against the Barbarians on 29 May 2010 however he was substituted in the first half due to a facial injury. Hodgson was included in Johnson's squad to tour Australia in June 2010, although he did not play in the Tests. Although not originally in England's squad for the 2010 autumn internationals, Hodgson was called up as cover after Wilkinson suffered a shoulder injury. In England's 21–11 defeat to South Africa Hodgson sustained what was thought to be a bruised foot; however, it was later discovered that the suspected bruise was a broken foot. In June 2012, Hodgson announced his retirement from international Rugby.


International tries


Club career

Hodgson first played for
Sale Sharks Sale Sharks is a professional rugby union club from Greater Manchester, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby. Originally founded in 1861 as Sale Football Club, now a distinct amateur club, they adopted the ...
against French club Auch in 2000. Sale Sharks is where Hodgson has seen his greatest success in winning the 2005/06
Guinness Premiership Premiership Rugby, officially known as Gallagher Premiership Rugby, or the Gallagher Premiership for sponsorship reasons, is an English professional rugby union competition. The Premiership has consisted of thirteen clubs since 2021, and is the ...
in a dominant victory over
Leicester Tigers Leicester Tigers (officially Leicester Football Club) are a professional rugby union club based in Leicester, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby. The club was founded in 1880 and since 1892 plays its hom ...
at
Twickenham Twickenham is a suburban district in London, England. It is situated on the River Thames southwest of Charing Cross. Historically part of Middlesex, it has formed part of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames since 1965, and the boro ...
. In the final he contributed 6 penalties, a conversion and a drop goal. Hodgson has been voted Sale Sharks player of the season three times: 2008, 2009, and 2010. In an attempt to correct a long-standing shoulder problem, Hodgson underwent surgery in August 2010. Although he missed the start of the 2010/11 season, he recovered to take his place in Sale's team in September. He returned from injury on 2 January 2011, taking part in Sale's 28–22 win against Saracens. Just over a week later, Hodgson signed a three-year contract with Saracens, stating that he wanted a "new challenge". Sale's chief executive, Mick Hogan, paid tribute to Hodgson, saying that "Without doubt, he will be considered among the greatest players to ever play for Sale Sharks". Towards the end of the seasons, in April, Hodgson scored his 1,000th point at Edgeley Park. He passed the landmark in a match against
Gloucester Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean to the west, east of Monmouth and east ...
; Hodgson assumed the role of captain for the game and victory helped Sale avoid relegation. During his time at Saracens he won two Premiership titles in 2015 and 2016, as a replacement in both finals. He also helped Saracens win the European Champions Cup in 2016, again as a replacement in the final. In 2016, Hodgson Announced his retirement from rugby union.


Private life

On 23 June 2007, Hodgson married Daisy Hartley at
Bolton Abbey Bolton Abbey in Wharfedale, North Yorkshire, England, takes its name from the ruins of the 12th-century Augustinian monastery now known as Bolton Priory. The priory, closed in the 1539 Dissolution of the Monasteries ordered by King He ...
in Yorkshire. The couple have five children.


See also

* List of top English points scorers and try scorers


References


External links


Profile at England RugbyProfile at Sale SharksGuinness Premiership profileCareer stats at Statbunker
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hodgson, Charlie 1980 births Living people Alumni of Durham University British & Irish Lions rugby union players from England Durham University RFC players England international rugby union players English rugby union players People educated at Bradford Grammar School Rugby union fly-halves Rugby union players from Halifax, West Yorkshire Sale Sharks players