Due to his wife, the all-time player for the Penrith Panthers announced his retirement

Due to his wife, the all-time player for the Penrith Panthers announced his retirement

After experiencing acute kidney failure towards the end of 2018, the Tonga 9s representative resumed training with the Canterbury Bulldogs. However, he has now made the decision to hang up his boots. Between 2017 and 20, Stephen Crichton played in 31 NRL games for the Penrith and Wests Tigers.

In 2019, he participated in three Nines World Cup matches for Tonga. “I got to fulfil a lifelong dream of mine to play in the NRL, and to do it with my little brother Dallin Watene-Zelezniak will always be something special,” Stephen Crichton wrote in an Instagram post.

I couldn’t have imagined a better ending: I made my debut next to my brother when it all began, and I will retire beside him.Before Christmas, I began training with the Bulldogs, and I must say, what a fantastic squad and amazing club they are.

I experienced a minor health scare the week before Christmas and had to be admitted to the hospital due to acute kidney failure.”I went back to training as I wanted to focus on the season ahead, but unfortunately it ended up with further complications again, which made me realize that my health and family were more important, which led to this decision,” the mother said. “After four days of being in the hospital, the image of my kids crying as they left me each night worried stuck with me and gave me a lot of time to think.”