Mark Regan

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Mark Regan
Full name Mark Peter Regan
Date of birth 1972-01-28
Place of birth Bristol, England
Height 1.77 m
Weight 96 kg
Rugby union career
Position hooker
Professional clubs Caps (points)
Bath
Leeds Tykes
Bristol
69
22
(30)
(5)
correct as of 13 Sept 2006.
National team(s)    
1995-2004
1997		 England
British and Irish Lions		 33
1		 (15)
(0)
correct as of 13 Sept 2006.

Mark 'Ronnie' Regan MBE (born 28 January 1972 in Bristol) is an English rugby union player. He played as a hooker for Bristol, Bath, Leeds Tykes as well as England and the British Lions.

Mark's England breakthrough came when he succeeded Brian Moore in 1995 for the visit of South Africa to Twickenham in November. Despite being on the losing side that day, he retained his place for the 1996 and 1997 Five Nations championships.

Selected for the 1997 British Lions, Mark's rivalry with Keith Wood was legendary. Although he was kept out of the first and second tests by the Irishman, Mark did play in the final test and proved that he could compete on the biggest stage.

He lost form on return from Lions duty and lost his England place to new club mate Andy Long and then Richard Cockerill. Even though he played a major role in Bath's epic Heineken Cup victory over Brive in Bordeaux, the hooker was out of favour with England Coach Clive Woodward.

1999/2000 saw the reincarnation of Regan the player. He shed over a stone in weight and hit back at critics who believed his line-out throwing was too inconsistent for international level by turning in some impressive performances for Bath. A prominent figure in the clubs late season challenge for the Allied Dunbar Premiership, he was voted the Bath forward of the year.

Mark returned to the international scene as a training squad member and England A player. He returned to the England squad on the tour to South Africa in 2000. He played some of the best rugby of his career and selection for the autumn internationals followed. Phil Greening's knee and hand injuries opened the door for him to take over as England's number one hooker for the Six Nations Championship, however Clive Woodward opted for Leicester Tigers Dorian West and Mark was forced to sit on the bench most of the campaign.

Though he missed out on the Lions tour to Australia during the summer he was selected for England's summer tour. However, hindered by his injury, Mark struggled to find his early season form. He remained part of the England set up for the 2001-2002 season and again went on tour in the summer to Argentina.

Mark joined the Tykes in August 2002 from Bath and quickly became a central figure for the Tykes. He made his debut on the opening day of the 2002-2003 season in a 26-13 win over Leicester Tigers. Since moving to Leeds his displays not only saw him become a crowd favourite but he has also saw a revival in his international career.

He announced his international retirement in 2004 after not being selected for the game against Canada. Mark left the Tykes at the end of the 2004-05 season having helped secure the Tykes Premiership status as well as winning a Powergen Cup winners medal. He played 69 times for the Tykes and scored 6 tries. In 2005-6 he was instrumental helping newly promoted Bristol Rugby retain their Premiership status.

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