Carl Rimmer forced to retire following stroke

Exeter Chiefs prop Carl Rimmer has been forced to retire from professional rugby following a stroke in January, confirms crashballrugby

The 32-year-old suffered his stroke during a Chiefs training session two days after a Premiership game against Newcastle Falcons, spending the majority of the week in hospital. After waiting to see whether the issue would correct itself over time, medical professionals have advised Rimmer to retire from the game. 

"It was all a bit weird." Rimmer reflected, "Nobody knew what had happened, I didn’t really know, I was fully conscious, and by the time I got to hospital and someone diagnosed it and told me what was wrong, the best part of me thought ‘it can’t be, it is impossible, I am 30 years old, there is no way that’s happened’, and it turns out it was related to trauma and not to anything else."

“The club were brilliant with me and let me have some good time off to make sure everything healed as it should. Apart from the rugby side of things, I have been pretty much fine since February, so that has been brilliant.

“I was under the impression from medical guidance that there was a chance that I could return to playing, but at the same time the percentage was only 50-50, but unfortunately, three months later, when they rescanned everything, the injury itself had not healed properly, which just meant the risks of returning to play a contact sport were too great, and I was advised medically to retire, which wasn’t great news to hear at the time.”

Rimmer has amassed over 100 appearances for the Chiefs since joining in 2012, after suffering a neck injury while playing for Coventry, and played a vital role in Exeter's first Premiership title during the 2016/17 season.