Tom Croft
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| Full name | Thomas Richard Croft | ||||||||||||||||
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| Date of birth | 7 November 1985 | ||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Basingstoke, England | ||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) | ||||||||||||||||
| Weight | 110 kg (17 st 5 lb) | ||||||||||||||||
| School |
Park House School Oakham School |
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| Rugby union career | |||||||||||||||||
| Current status | |||||||||||||||||
| Current team | Leicester Tigers | ||||||||||||||||
| Playing career | |||||||||||||||||
| Position | Flanker, Lock | ||||||||||||||||
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| Youth clubs | |||
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| Years | Club / team | ||
| Newbury RFC | |||
| Professional / senior clubs | |||
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| Years | Club / team | Apps | (points) |
| 2005– | Leicester Tigers | 169 | (135) |
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Correct as of 11 February 2016
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| National team(s) | |||
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| Years | Club / team | Apps | (points) |
| 2007– 2008– 2009, 2013 |
England Saxons England British and Irish Lions |
42 5 |
42(20) 5(10) |
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Correct as of 1 March 2015
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| Sevens national teams | |||
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| Years | Club / team | Comps | |
| 2006– | England | ||
Tom Croft (born 7 November 1985) is a rugby union player for Leicester Tigers in the Aviva Premiership.
born 7 November 1985 in Basingstoke, England, Croft went to Oakham School in Rutland where he was in the same year as England cricketer Stuart Broad.
Croft's best position is blindside flanker, but he can fill in at openside flanker (where he has the pace and can make tackles), and lock (where he is tall enough, and has the power to drive the scrum). He is known for his line-out agility and unusual speed for a forward. He is one of the quickest players in the Tigers squad.
Croft is said to be equally comfortable in the backline, at the bottom of a ruck or jumping at three in the line. According to Dean Richards, Croft "has everything", and former All Black, Aaron Mauger, is quoted as saying he is the quickest back-row forward he has ever seen. Martin Corry believes England have never had a player blessed with Croft's abundant abilities.
His senior debut for Leicester Tigers came against Gloucester in the 2005–06 season, a week after he turned 20. In the following season, which included a Premiership title and the Anglo-Welsh Cup for the Tigers, he made 16 appearances.
2008–09 could be considered Croft's breakthrough season, in which he established himself both in the club side and on the international scene. He was man-of-the-match in the Heineken Cup semi-final against Cardiff Blues, which resulted in a historic sudden death kicking competition. Fortunately, the shoot-out ended before Croft's turn came up – though it was a close run thing, as either he or Harry Ellis would have followed Jordan Crane. Although the Tigers fell at the final hurdle of the Heineken Cup, they won the 2008–09 Guinness Premiership. Croft played lock in both finals, as a result of injury to team-mate Louis Deacon.
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