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Sackey resigned to England fate

Winger Paul Sackey has rediscovered his love of rugby at Toulon © Getty Images

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Paul Sackey does not expect to play for England again after rediscovering his passion for rugby with Toulon.

The winger has fallen out of favour with international selectors since joining the French side, something that has been a source of personal disappointment. But after scoring a crucial try in Toulon's 32-16 Heineken Cup victory over Munster - in which Jonny Wilkinson also kicked 22 points - the former Wasps man is happy to spend the rest of his career on the Cote d'Azur.

"I'd like to stay out here for another two years then perhaps finish," Sackey said. "I probably won't come back to England to play club rugby again. As much as I loved it at Wasps I needed a new start and to enjoy playing rugby again. Toulon's done that for me."

Tragedy struck Sackey soon after he arrived to play Top 14 rugby, as he learned his cousin Michael Ofori had been murdered back in London. After initial soul-searching, the bereavement forced Sackey to refocus on his professional career.

"Mikey was just sitting in his car and someone came up and shot him," said Sackey. "It was a very emotional time for me. We were very close. He came to all my games. Maybe some people would have chucked it in and come home at that point, but he wouldn't have wanted that and neither did I."

The other low point of the 31-year-old's career came in 2009, when a broken leg against Ireland ruled him out of the subsequent Lions tour to South Africa, and has since left him in the international wilderness. Since returning to regular action Sackey is disappointed not to have been contacted by England head coach Martin Johnson but, like team-mate Wilkinson, will keep trying to perform to the best of his ability at Toulon and hope that brings its own rewards.

"To be honest, I've only once thought about giving up and that was when I broke my leg playing for England in 2009 and missed out on the Lions," he said. "It was a huge goal for me and when it was taken away I started to fall out of love with rugby. That was the last game I played for England. They haven't been in touch. No feedback, nothing. It hurts but that's sport. You get injured, someone else comes in.

"I still back myself to do a job for England. But all I can do is play well for Toulon and hopefully come away with a trophy this season."

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