View source for Simon Shaw

{{Short description|British Lions & England international rugby union player}}
{{for|the English association footballer|Simon Shaw (footballer)}}
{{EngvarB|date=August 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2020}}
{{Infobox rugby biography
| name           = Simon Shaw <br/> [[Order of the British Empire|MBE]]
| image          = Simon Shaw (cropped).jpg
| caption        = Shaw in 2010
| birth_name     = Simon Dalton Shaw
| birth_date     = {{birth date and age|1973|9|1|df=yes}}
| birth_place    = [[Nairobi]], Kenya
| height         = 2.04 m
| weight         = {{convert|123|kg|stlb lb|0|abbr=on}}<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.rfu.com/SquadsAndPlayers/EnglandElite/SimonShaw.aspx |title= RFU Official Site of the RFU, Governing Body of Rugby Union in England|publisher= Rugby Football Union|access-date= 23 August 2011 |url-status= dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120107175911/http://rfu.com/SquadsAndPlayers/EnglandElite/SimonShaw.aspx |archive-date= 7 January 2012}}</ref>
| school         = [[Runnymede College]]<br/>[[Godalming College]]
| university     = [[University of the West of England]]
| position       = [[Lock (rugby union)|Lock]]
| ru_currentteam = [[Retired]]
| youthyears1    = 
| youthclubs1    = Cranleigh RFC
| years1         = 1990–1997
| years2         = 1997–2011
| years3         = 2011–2013
| clubs1         = [[Bristol Bears|Bristol]]
| clubs2         = [[Wasps RFC|London Wasps]]
| clubs3         = [[RC Toulonnais|Toulon]]
| apps1          = 
| apps2          = 355
| apps3          = 41
| points1        = 
| points2        = 128
| points3        = 0
| repyears1      = 1996–2011
| repyears2      = [[1997 British Lions tour to South Africa|1997]]/[[2005 British & Irish Lions tour to New Zealand|2005]]/[[2009 British & Irish Lions tour to South Africa|2009]]
| repteam1       = [[England national rugby union team|England]]
| repteam2       = [[British & Irish Lions]]
| repcaps1       = 71
| repcaps2       = 2
| reppoints1     = 10
| reppoints2     = 0
| ru_clubupdate  = 5 December 2011
| ru_ntupdate    = 27 August 2011 
}}

'''Simon Dalton Shaw''' [[Order of the British Empire|MBE]] (born 1 September 1973) is a former English [[rugby union]] player who played as a [[Lock (rugby union)|lock]]. He played for [[Bristol Bears|Bristol]], [[Wasps RFC|London Wasps]] and [[RC Toulonnais|Toulon]]. He won 71 caps for [[England national rugby union team|England]] between 1996 and 2011, and 2 for the [[British & Irish Lions]], with whom he toured 3 times.

==Early life==
Shaw was born 1 September 1973 in [[Nairobi]], Kenya. He was educated at [[Runnymede College]] in [[Madrid]] and at [[Godalming College]] in Surrey. He played for [[Bristol Bears|Bristol]] at 17, despite not taking up the game seriously until he was 16, after his family had moved to England from Spain. He also played for Cranleigh Rugby Club in his younger years.{{clarify|date=May 2021}}

Shaw has represented England at various levels including students and Under-21s. At {{convert|2.04|m|ftin|abbr=on}}, he is one of the tallest men to have played for [[England national rugby union team|England]].<ref name="BBCSport">{{cite web| url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/7051339.stm | title = Simon Shaw – lock | work = [[BBC Sport]]| date = 18 October 2007 | access-date=8 November 2008}}</ref>

==Club career==
Shaw played for [[Bristol Bears|Bristol]] at the age of 17. He joined [[Wasps RFC|London Wasps]] in 1997. Wasps won the [[Anglo-Welsh Cup|Tetley's Bitter Cup]] in 1999 and retained it the following season with a victory over the [[Northampton Saints]].<ref name="Wasps triumph in Tetley's Final">{{cite news|url=http://www.espnscrum.com/scrum/rugby/story/30980.html|title=Wasps triumph in Tetley's Final|publisher=ESPN Scrum|date=13 May 2000|access-date=5 September 2011}}</ref> Playing against [[Bath Rugby|Bath]] in August 2000, Shaw became the only lock in the [[English Premiership (rugby union)|Premiership]] to have scored a [[drop goal]].<ref name="Bath cruise past disappointing Wasps">{{cite news|url=http://www.espnscrum.com/scrum/rugby/story/32373.html|title=Bath cruise past disappointing Wasps|publisher=ESPN Scrum|date=27 August 2000|access-date=5 September 2011}}</ref>

In the [[2002–03 Zurich Premiership]] Shaw won the [[English Premiership (rugby union)|Premiership]] for the first time, defeating [[Gloucester Rugby|Gloucester]] in the final.<ref name="Wasps romp to title">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/english/2947768.stm|title=Wasps romp to title|work=[[BBC Sport]]|date=31 May 2003|access-date=5 September 2011}}</ref> That season Shaw also won his first European silverware with victory against Bath in the [[2002–03 Parker Pen Challenge Cup]].<ref name="Wasps win Parker Pen Cup">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/european/3046481.stm|title=Wasps win Parker Pen Cup|work=[[BBC Sport]]|date=25 May 2003|access-date=5 September 2011}}</ref> The [[2003–04 Zurich Premiership]] season saw Wasps retain their Premiership crown<ref name="Wasps 10-6 Bath">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/english/3754577.stm|title=Wasps 10–6 Bath|work=[[BBC Sport]]|date=29 May 2004|access-date=5 September 2011}}</ref> and win the [[2003–04 Heineken Cup]], their first [[Heineken Cup]] title.<ref name="Wasps 27-20 Toulouse">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/european/3733109.stm|title=Wasps 27–20 Toulouse|work=[[BBC Sport]]|date=23 May 2004|access-date=5 September 2011}}</ref>

The [[2004–05 English Premiership (rugby union)|2004–05 season]] saw Wasps win the Premiership for a third season in a row.<ref name="Leicester 14-39 Wasps">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/english/4537935.stm|title=Leicester 14–39 Wasps|work=[[BBC Sport]]|date=14 May 2005|access-date=5 September 2011}}</ref> The following season Wasps defeated the [[Scarlets]] to win the [[2005–06 Powergen Cup|Powergen Cup]].<ref name="Scarlets 10-26 Wasps">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/welsh/4868066.stm|title=Scarlets 10–26 Wasps|work=[[BBC Sport]]|date=9 April 2006|access-date=5 September 2011}}</ref>

Wasps defeated [[Leicester Tigers]] in the final of the [[2006–07 Heineken Cup]] to become European Champions for the second time.<ref name="Heineken Cup final: Leicester 9-25 Wasps">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/6663245.stm|title=Heineken Cup final: Leicester 9–25 Wasps|work=[[BBC Sport]]|date=19 May 2007|access-date=5 September 2011}}</ref>

The following [[2007–08 English Premiership (rugby union)|2007–08 season]] saw Wasps defeat Leicester Tigers in a final again to regain the Premiership title.<ref name="Guinness Premiership final">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/7426519.stm|title=Guinness Premiership final|work=[[BBC Sport]]|date=31 May 2008|access-date=5 September 2011}}</ref>

In May 2008, playing against [[Leeds Carnegie]] in the last match of the regular season, Shaw became the first player ever to play in 200 Premiership matches.<ref name="Simon Shaw set to become record breaker at Leeds">{{cite news|url=http://www.premiershiprugby.com/premiership/news/5720.php|title=Simon Shaw set to become record breaker at Leeds|publisher=Premiership Rugby|date=9 May 2008|access-date=5 September 2011}}</ref>

In November 2011, Shaw decided to finish his career overseas and signed for French club, [[RC Toulonnais]].{{citation needed|date=March 2024}}

==International career==
He won his first [[England national rugby union team|England]] [[Cap (sport)|cap]] against [[Italy national rugby union team|Italy]] in 1996.<ref name="England 54-21 Italy">{{cite news|url=http://www.espnscrum.com/england/rugby/match/23164.html|title=England 54–21 Italy|publisher=ESPN Scrum|date=23 November 1996|access-date=5 September 2011}}</ref> The following year Shaw was picked for the successful [[1997 British Lions tour to South Africa]]. A spate of injuries and Wasps' indifferent form in his first season at the club cost him his England place and although he regained his place in the England squad for the following summer's tour, he was forced to withdraw with a long-standing back injury.{{cn|date=June 2025}}

During the [[2000 Six Nations Championship]], he had to step in for the injured [[Martin Johnson (rugby union)|Martin Johnson]]. He earned his 20th cap during the [[2003 Six Nations Championship]], a tournament which saw England win the [[Grand Slam (rugby union)|Grand Slam]]. Shaw played in all three [[2003 Rugby World Cup]] warm up matches. He was not named in the original 30-man squad but was flown out to Australia due to an injury to [[Danny Grewcock]], earning him an [[Order of the British Empire|MBE]] as part of the World Cup-winning team. He keeps this in a drawer as he feels he didn't "win" it as he never played in a test.<ref name="BBCSport" />

Shaw was called up to the squad for the [[2005 British & Irish Lions tour to New Zealand]] after Irish lock [[Malcolm O'Kelly]] aggravated a groin injury in training.<ref name="O'Kelly ruled out of Lions tour">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/international/4602041.stm|title=O'Kelly ruled out of Lions tour|work=[[BBC Sport]]|date=2 June 2005|access-date=5 September 2011}}</ref>

Shaw was selected as a member of the England [[2007 Rugby World Cup squads|2007 World Cup squad]].<ref name="Tindall & Hodgson miss World Cup">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/english/6943101.stm|title=Tindall & Hodgson miss World Cup|work=[[BBC Sport]]|date=13 August 2007|access-date=5 September 2011}}</ref> He played the full 80 minutes in the [[2007 Rugby World Cup Final|final]].<ref name="World Cup final 2007">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/7052822.stm|title=World Cup final 2007|work=[[BBC Sport]]|date=20 October 2007|access-date=5 September 2011}}</ref>

Shaw was selected by the [[British & Irish Lions]] for their [[2009 British & Irish Lions tour to South Africa|2009 tour of South Africa]], his third Lions tour.<ref name="O'Connell handed Lions captaincy">{{cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/8007666.stm|title=2009 Lions squad selection|work=[[BBC Sport]]|date=21 April 2009|access-date=5 September 2011}}</ref> He was the oldest person to be selected and to play for the Lions. He won his first Lions cap in the second test against [[South Africa national rugby union team|South Africa]] at [[Loftus Versfeld]], [[Pretoria]] and he was named man of the match.<ref name="South Africa 28-25 Lions">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/8118816.stm|title=South Africa 28–25 Lions|work=[[BBC Sport]]|date=27 June 2009|access-date=5 September 2011}}</ref> During the third test in Johannesburg he was yellow-carded for foul play when he knee-dropped [[Fourie du Preez]].<ref name="South Africa 9-28 Lions">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/8133265.stm|title=South Africa 9–28 Lions|work=[[BBC Sport]]|date=4 July 2009|access-date=5 September 2011}}</ref> In 2004 he was red-carded for a similar offence against [[New Zealand national rugby union team|New Zealand]].<ref name="Woodward slates Shaw card">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/international/3821497.stm|title=Woodward slates Shaw card|work=[[BBC Sport]]|date=19 June 2004|access-date=5 September 2011}}</ref>

In August 2011, he was selected as part of [[2011 Rugby World Cup squads#.C2.A0England|England's squad]] for the [[2011 Rugby World Cup]].<ref name="Rugby World Cup 2011: Johnson omits Flutey from England squad">{{cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/14614058.stm|title=2011 England World Cup squad|work=[[BBC Sport]]|date=22 August 2011|access-date=5 September 2011}}</ref>

In 2011, Simon Shaw became a director of a rugby hospitality company, Set Piece Events.{{cn|date=June 2025}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120107175911/http://rfu.com/SquadsAndPlayers/EnglandElite/SimonShaw.aspx |date=7 January 2012 |title=England Rugby profile }}
* {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110605080028/http://www.wasps.co.uk/playerdisplaySS.ink?skip=23&season=07%2F08&seasonl=2007%2F2008&playertype=P |date=5 June 2011 |title=Wasps Profile }}
* {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110806032638/http://www.premiershiprugby.com/squads.php?includeref=dynamic&player=3690 |date=6 August 2011 |title=Premiership profile }}
* {{ESPNscrum|12407}}
* [http://www.sporting-heroes.net/rugby-heroes/displayhero.asp?HeroID=7417 Simon Shaw photo by sportingheroes.net]
* [http://www.setpieceevents.co.uk Simon Shaw's Rugby Hospitality company]

{{English national rugby union team captains}}
{{England 2011 Rugby World Cup squad}}
{{British and Irish Lions 2009}}
{{England 2007 Rugby World Cup squad}}
{{British and Irish Lions 2005}}
{{England 2003 Rugby World Cup squad}}
{{British and Irish Lions 1997}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shaw, Simon}}
[[Category:1973 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:English rugby union players]]
[[Category:England international rugby union players]]
[[Category:British & Irish Lions rugby union players from England]]
[[Category:Bristol Bears players]]
[[Category:Kenyan emigrants to the United Kingdom]]
[[Category:Kenyan people of English descent]]
[[Category:Wasps RFC players]]
[[Category:Barbarian F.C. players]]
[[Category:Rugby union locks]]
[[Category:Alumni of the University of the West of England, Bristol]]
[[Category:Members of the Order of the British Empire]]
[[Category:Sportspeople from Nairobi]]
[[Category:RC Toulon players]]
[[Category:White Kenyan people]]
[[Category:Kenyan expatriate sportspeople in France]]
[[Category:2003 Rugby World Cup players]]
[[Category:2007 Rugby World Cup players]]
[[Category:2011 Rugby World Cup players]]
[[Category:English expatriate rugby union players in France]]