24 Dec 2011

Roger, Wilko, over and out at Toulon

12:57 pm on 24 December 2011

Two weeks after calling time on his 91-cap England rugby career, Jonny Wilkinson says he will end his club career at French Top 14 side Toulon.

The 32-year-old recently signed a new deal at the French side until 2013 and says he spent 13 years at Newcastle because he likes to think long-term and he has the same goal at Toulon.

Wilkinson, a World Cup winner in 2003, kicked 15 points in Toulon's 20-15 win over Lyon on Saturday which kept his team in third place in the table.

Such is his hold on the position that former French outside-half Frederic Michalak, who has reached a verbal agreement to play for Toulon next season, has already been told that he will have to slot into the halfback position.

Wilkinson brought the curtain down on his international career on December 13th after 13 seasons playing for England.

After losing to France in the World Cup quarter-finals, it was looking increasingly likely that Wilkinson would not feature in the Six Nations - which gets underway in February.

Including appearances for the British and Irish Lions, Wilkinson scored 1,246 points from a total of 97 international matches.