Hill climbs final mountain in vain

THE IRON man, who has confounded medical science with numerous knee operations, hobbled wearily towards the mixed zone area for his last Heineken Cup post match interview. If yesterday wasn’t the end of Richard Hill’s career, it’s nearing fast as the 34-year-old limps towards retirement.

Grasping a well-earned bottle of Heineken in one hand, he looked genuinely in bits — just like his left knee – but he refused to wave goodbye just yet. He described it as an emotional afternoon as he begins to bid farewell to the game and to a glittering career.

“At the moment it’s a time to reflect – I’m not going to make any decisions today or tomorrow. It was good to play at that level today. There have been many proud moments. Many proud moments got us where we are today, purely in this competition. The guys put it in today, and it’s a hard pill to take but it’s one we have to take.”