Andy Ripley
England
player portrait
Full name Andrew George Ripley
Born December 1, 1947, S Liverpool
Died June 17, 2010, Surrey (aged 62 years 198 days)
Major teams Presidents XV, England, England XV
Position No. 8

Test career
Span Mat Start Sub Pts Tries Conv Pens Drop GfM Won Lost Draw %
All Tests 1972-1976 24 24 0 8 2 0 0 0 0 8 15 1 35.41
Five/Six Nations 1972-1976 17 17 0 4 1 0 0 0 0 4 12 1 26.47

Career statistics
Test debut England v Wales at Twickenham, Jan 15, 1972 match details
Last Test Scotland v England at Murrayfield, Feb 21, 1976 match details
Test Statsguru Main menu | Career summary | Match list | Most points | Most tries | Tournament list
Profile

Ripley won 24 caps between 1972 and 1976, scoring two tries, and was selected for the triumphant 1974 Lions tour to South Africa. He did not begin playing rugby until he was 19-years-old and continued until he was 41, spending his whole career at Rosslyn Park.

The hard-running No.8 was a brilliant all-round athlete, competing in the 400m at the UK athletics Championship, and was world veteran indoor rowing champion. He found further fame on the BBC Superstars show that was a perfect showcase for his all-round sporting skills. A chartered accountant, Ripley was a colourful and popular figure who received an OBE in the 2010 Birthday Honours List.

At the age of 50 he gained an MPhil at Cambridge University and even tried out, unsuccessfully, for a place in the Boat Race crew. He was also an exceptional seven-a-side player and won the inaugural World Cup Sevens with England at Murrayfield in 1973. In addition to his many other talents, Ripley was a fluent linguist and worked as a rugby commentator for French television.

Initially diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2005, he appeared to have made a recovery by 2007 only for disease to return the following year and most recently spread to his skull and affected the optic nerves. In the last five years of his life he worked as an ambassador for the Prostate Cancer Charity.

He finally lost his battle cancer in 2010 shortly after having received the Blyth Spirit Award for outstanding courage in the face of adversity at the Rugby Players' Association Awards.

Latest Articles
Rest in peace (Dec 29, 2010) Time for clubs to rally around England (Jun 30, 2010) Former England international Ripley dies (Jun 17, 2010) Level pegging (Feb 3, 2010) Springboks claim narrow victory in Wales (Dec 22, 1900) Andy Ripley news and articles (6) »
Latest Photos
May 26, 2010
Former England international Andy Ripley
Former England international Andy Ripley
©  Getty Images
May 26, 2010
Andy Ripley receives the Blyth Spirit Award
Andy Ripley receives the Blyth Spirit Award
©  Getty Images
Jan 1, 1975
Rosslyn Park's Andy Ripley
Rosslyn Park's Andy Ripley
©  Getty Images
Apr 1, 1974
A portrait of Rosslyn Park's Andy Ripley
A portrait of Rosslyn Park's Andy Ripley
©  Getty Images
Andy Ripley rugby photos (7) »

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