KRIS Radlinski admits he has no idea what the future holds after calling time on his illustrious rugby league career at the age of 29.

The Wigan and Great Britain full-back yesterday announced his retirement due to continuing problems with a knee injury.

Radlinski has been one of the great players of his generation but his last three seasons, particularly 2005, have been ravaged by injuries.

He underwent surgery on his knee last November but failed to recover fitness and after learning he was risking severe arthritis in later life, he decided to bow out.

Radlinski said: 'It is a big part of my life that has come to an end.

'I don't really know what will come next. I've just come to a decision that my body has been put through enough.

'I've had some serious injuries and I've put myself first for once. It's been making me unhappy and that's not fair to the people around me, my family.'

Radlinski, who won 23 caps for Great Britain, made his first-team debut for hometown Wigan in 1993 and caught the eye with a hat-trick in the Premiership final two years later.

Outstanding in defence and attack, he twice resisted lucrative overtures to switch to rugby union.

Heroic

He will probably be best remembered for his heroic man-of-the-match display in the 2002 Challenge Cup final at Murrayfield when he rose from his hospital bed to inspire a shock win over St Helens.

Personally, however, he chooses another famous win over rivals Saints, in 1999, as his highlight.

He added: 'I am lucky to have played so many games, but probably the last one at Central Park, when I was involved in history, means more than most.'

In all, Radlinski made 310 appearances for Wigan, scoring 183 tries. He made his decision to retire on medical advice after an emotional discussion with chairman Maurice Lindsay.

Radlinski said: 'Maurice has looked after me from day one. He now wants me to go away and rest but has told me if I come back he will find a job for me in some capacity.'

Radlinski's retirement brings an era to a close, the player having been the last remaining link with winter rugby and the great Wigan sides of the early to mid-1990s.

Radlinski said: 'It is a team sport, so you can't really have regrets. I have played in finals and Test series and you've got to take the losses to appreciate the wins.

'The game has been very good to me and I have made nothing but friends.

'When I walk away it is not the trophies but the friendships that are the best memories.'

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