Gerry Thornley/On Rugby It's always poignant when a player's career is cut short by injury, and the summary ending of Jeremy Davidson's career at 29 years of age is no exception. To hammer home the point, he admits with typical candour he hadn't really planned for the days after his playing career.

Still nurturing hopes of making the summer tour to Australia, Tonga and Samoa, and very definitely with his eyes fixed firmly on the World Cup in October, all Davidson had been looking forward to was playing for the Barbarians against England at Twickenham at the end of the month.

Then, suddenly and cruelly, it was over. Just like that. Davidson slipped on a muddy bank while on a fishing trip and damaged the same left knee that had sidelined him for most of the 1997-98 season and had required reconstructive surgery.

He's trying to be as phlegmatic about it as he can yet, deep down, he's known since he first injured his knee playing for London Irish against Gloucester in 1997 after the Lions tour that, to a degree, his career was living on borrowed time.

"There's nothing you can do. If the knee is ready to go, the knee is ready to go. It's worn out. I knew back in '97 that it would cause me hassle, I just didn't know what the timeframe was. I knew with cartilage operations that it was wearing away and wearing away. Unfortunately I slipped and fell, and did the ligaments, so it's under repair."

Though discernibly downcast, Davidson said yesterday: "You've got to take it on the chin. It could have happened when I was 21."

Two-time Irish Lions aren't exactly a dime a dozen, and even rarer are those who make the impact Davidson did. The 1997 Lions tour of South Africa will be regarded as the apex of his career when, it would be fair to say, he was the Lions' most valuable player and, for one glorious summer, he was the best lock forward on the planet. Pride of place in his rugby memorabilia is an oil painting of a Lion which was presented to him at a Lions' banquet after the second Test in Durban when he was honoured as the players' player of the tour, with his parents present.

Of his 32 caps, the win at Wembley over Wales stands out.

"We'd had a run of defeats and needed the win. Wembley was a unique experience and it was a great day. I wasn't lucky enough to take any of the big scalps, like the wins against England, and I never played against the All Blacks, but that day was magnificent."

We'll always wonder how his career might have panned out but for that fateful day against Gloucester. Constantly troubled by injuries ever since, Davidson also had problems with his shoulder, thigh and a broken thumb in recent seasons. He never quite scaled those heights again though, typically, he responded to inheriting the Ulster captaincy with a real resurgence in form, and captained the Irish As to victory over their English counterparts.

Willie Anderson, for one, maintains Davidson "could have been another Willie John McBride", making three Lions tours and, being a natural born leader, captaining Ireland as well: "The thing that always impressed me about Jeremy was his commitment and aggression. When he partied, he partied, but when he trained, he trained at 100 per cent. He demanded the same commitment, accuracy and precision from those around him, and he inspired others around him to do the same. He always played with total aggression. I really believe rugby union, in Ireland and Britain, has lost a great player and he's certainly one of the greatest players I've ever coached."

Despite the sudden ending and the slight unfulfilment, Davidson can look back on a broader and more eventful career than most players, which began when he displaced Anderson in the Dungannon team and took him via London Irish and Castres back to Ulster, playing 32 times for Ireland along the way as well as three Tests on that 1997 Lions tour and on the 2001 tour to Australia.

Davidson found a home from home in Castres, and looked to the manor born when in France. The Castres-Munster match three seasons ago afforded me the opportunity to interview him and, typical of his generosity and modesty, so accommodating was he it was almost a humbling experience. He drove out of his way and afforded reporter and photographer virtually an entire afternoon. The respect and affection with which he was held in Castres was palpable and a measure of the success of that venture was that not only did he stay a third season, he also became the club's captain.

"I went over there as a young man and it was a sort of step in the dark. Not many Irish players had played in France at that stage. I really enjoyed the standard of rugby, the forward play, the aggression, the partisan atmosphere, and then to be made captain topped it off. It's hard to describe the way you felt as an Irishman in a town of 50,000 who were all 100 per cent behind you."

Davidson's invested well and he's a smart guy - with a degree in European Business Studies. He's contemplating returning to college and teaching, as well as moving into coaching.

Think of Davidson and you think of those one-handed lineout takes, and the rampaging charges with ball tucked in his arm, with the trademark socks rolled down and that distinctive high-knee action. Those gallops are no more but he's given plenty to the game and he still, you sense, has plenty more to offer.

Congratulations to Portlaoise on their achievement in winning the Provincial Towns Cup on Sunday for the first time in 21 years and only the second time in their 37-year history.

It was tough on Navan, who'd been unbeaten all season, but Portlaoise dominated throughout and victory was copper-fastened by two second-half tries from team captain and centre Michael Fennelly. Number eight Nigel Peavoy, who touched down for the first try, was a deserving recipient of the man of the match award.