World’s leading rugby try scorer retires

Japan winger Daisuke Ohata, the leading try scorer in international rugby, has played the final game of his career after sustaining a right knee injury.

Ohata injured his knee in a domestic league match on Sunday and said after the game he would retire.

“It’s sad that it ended like this but I think I have had a good career,” Ohata said. “I feel I have left my mark as a rugby player.”

Ohata represented Japan at the 1999 and 2003 Rugby World Cups and has scored a record 69 test tries. He has been capped 58 times, third on the all-time list. He missed the 2007 World Cup because of an injured Achilles’ tendon.

The record for most tries was previously held by David Campese of Australia, who scored 64 from 101 tests.

The 35-year-old Ohata announced in the summer that he would retire at the end of the season but the injury forced him to leave the sport ahead of schedule.