Nothing has surprised Southend's 72-year-old rugby star Ken Light during a playing career which has lasted 60 years - until now.

To recognise his forthcoming retirement, the club organised a special match between a Southend team and a Ken Light XV, made up of many of his friends and former team-mates from such clubs as Canvey, Westcliff, Rochford and Thurrock.

Ken knew nothing about it until her ran on to the pitch and found his son, who had flown in specially from South Africa, performing the coin toss.

Southend skipper Tony Dawson, who helped organise the match, said: "It was unbelievable. His son was tossing the coin in a skull cap and Ken didn't even recognise him.

"We had to hide all his old friends in the hockey dressing room and when they came out on to the pitch he didn't recognise them either. Then he saw one of the players - Angus Thorne - and said: 'Where have all this lot come from?'."

As ever, No 8 Ken played a pivotal role in the game and only narrowly failed to get on the scoresheet in a 40-27 win when his conversion attempt in the dying seconds crashed off the crossbar.

He refused to accept a stage-managed score because he didn't want any favours - an attitude he has carried throughout his rugby career.

Speaking before the match, the veteran star confessed: "It annoys me when opposing players come up and ask me if I'm all right.

"I wouldn't be on the field if I didn't think I was up to it. If I get killed it's my fault - I'm the one whose daft enough to turn up."

Ken has been "daft enough" to turn up for 60 years now and has played for a host of teams since he first scrummed down with Bideford School in Devon. He still plays every weekend unless needed as a referee.

But he now feels the time has come to hang up his boots - 30 years after a previous attempt at retirement was aborted when team-mates talked him out of it.

"This is definitely the end of the line," he insisted. "There's no point carrying on if I haven't got the strength to make an impact.

"I can catch a ball and pass it on but I'm starting to feel the physical side of the game a bit more. I feel a bit stiff by Sunday lunchtime, although it soon passes.

He added: "The problem is that my shoulders are shot. After 60 years of tackilng and pushing in the scrums, my reaction times are slower and I'm more easily sidestepped."

Skipper Tony, however, feels Ken is still good enough to make his presence felt. He said: "Ken is always solid and reads the game so well. It's all about technique - if there's any loose ball he picks it up because he knows where it's going to go."

In fact, Ken's form is so good that he recently played a part in the club's record senior victory of 121-0.

Incredibly, he was actually in the side on the day when the record was set in the 70s and scored 38 points a 106-0 win. And even then he was in his forties.

However, the time has now come to bring his record-breaking career to an end and he says he'll miss playing when he retires at the end of the season. He said: "Wherever I've been the rugby players have been great. I wouldn't change any of it."

Ken Light - is hanging up his rugby boots after playing the game for 60 years

Converted for the new archive on 19 November 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.