Darren Crompton

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Darren Crompton
Personal information
Date of birth September 12 1972 ( 1972-09-12) (age 35)
Place of birth Exeter, England
Height 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight 18 st 2 lb (115 kg)
Nickname DC
Rugby union career
Playing career
Position Tighthead Prop
Clubs Caps (points)
1993-1997
1997-1998
2003-2004
1999-2003, 2004-
Bath Rugby
Richmond
Cardiff Blues
Bristol Rugby



156



(40)
National team(s)    
1998, 2007 England 1 (0)

Darren Crompton (born 12 September 1972) is a professional rugby union player for Bristol Rugby. He has played for Richmond, Bath, Cardiff Blues and represented England at many levels. He also has a judo black belt, winning a national gold medal at 13.

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[edit] Professional career

Darren began his professional career at Bath in 1993, moving to Bristol in 1999 after a spell at Richmond. He played for Bristol for four years, making up his first stint at the club, before moving to the Cardiff Blues for the 2003-2004 season. He returned for his second spell at Bristol on a two year contract along with another former Bristol and Bath player, Dave Hilton, helping to win the National Division One title in 2005. Newly promoted to the top flight of English club rugby, they were joined in the front row at the start of the 2005 Guinness Premiership season by yet another former Bristol and Bath man, Mark Regan. With Hilton playing loosehead, Regan at hooker, and Crompton at tighthead, their combined age was over 100. Because of this, no one expected the old but experieced front row team to have as much impact as they did, and have become known as 'Dad's Army'. Having helped keep Bristol in the Premiership in their first season, and after playing every game during the 2006-2007 campaign, which saw the team finish a surprising 3rd, he renewed his contract to Bristol Rugby in spring 2006.[1]

[edit] International career

He has played for England U16s, captained the U18s and the U21s, leading the U18 team in all five of their matches in 1991. He was selected for the England A tour of Australia and Fiji in 1995 debuting against South Australia. In 1998 he went on his first full England tour to the Southern Hemisphere, but returned home uncapped. He made no further appearance for England until 2007 when he was selected for the mid-year test series in South Africa. Many spaces were made available on this tour as no Leicester, Wasps or Bath players were selected by Brian Ashton due to Heineken Cup and European Challenge Cup finals commitments.[2] This meant that Crompton was selected for the tour at the age of 34, nine years after his first senior England tour, as a result of his form in the Premiership.[3] Thus he was able to win his full England cap, when he took to the field during the first test against the Springboks in Bloemfontein as a replacement for Stuart Turner.

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