Alfie Mawson reflects on retiring at 29 with doctor telling him to ‘never run again’

Alfie Mawson reflects on retiring as a professional footballer at the age of 29: with the doctor telling him to ‘never run again’.

The centre back began his senior career with Brentford from the youth ranks but spent his entire time on loan with four clubs, including three loan spells with non league Maidenhead United and winning the League Two Player of the Year award with Wycombe Wanderers in 2015.

He then went out to Barnsley after failing to record a League appearance with Brentford, and made 49 appearances during the one season there, helping the former to win promotion to the Championship.

He signed for Premier League outfit Swansea City in 2016, and his second season there he featured in every Premier League match of the campaign but could not prevent the team from the drop.

Mawson made six appearances for the England under-21 team and was called up for the England squad in March 2018 but didn’t play in the two friendlies.

👏🏻 Today we stand and applaud Alfie Mawson.

Fantastic service to the game we love in each of the top six divisions.#Chairboys pic.twitter.com/DRLqnzTZla

— Wycombe Wanderers (@wwfcofficial) March 18, 2023

Alfie Mawson reflects on retiring at 29 with doctor telling him to ‘never run again’

Mawson suffered an injury-hit season between 2012 and 2013 season and managed only 12 Development Squad appearances for Brentford.

A torn meniscus in a Development Squad match ended his campaign early, prompting him to contemplate quitting football, before signing a new one-year deal in June 2014.

He made his debut in a loan spell Luton in a 5–0 away league victory over Alfreton Town on the 7th of December 2013, but was substituted for Joe Davis at half time due to an injury.

And in 2014, a knee injury disrupted Mawson’s time at Welling and he returned to Brentford at the end of the season, having made 9 appearances and scored one goal.

He went to Wycombe has cover, and went on to finish the 2014–15 season with 50 appearances and seven goals, his Mawson’s 97th-minute winner in a 3–2 win against Northampton Town on the final day wasn’t enough to prevent Wycombe from having to settle for fourth place, his season ended in disappointment after a penalty shoot-out defeat to Southend in the final, but on a much more positive note, sweeping the board at Wycombe’s end-of-season awards ceremony, won the Supporters’ and Players’ Player of the Year awards, collected the Official Wycombe Wanderers Supporters Association’s Player, Young Player and Away Travel Player of the Year awards, won the Wycombe Wanderers Independent Supporters’ Club Player of the Year award and finished third in the running for the League Two Player of the Year award.

💙 Not just a wonderful talent on the pitch, but an incredible character off it too.

Alfie Mawson is a role model for any aspiring footballer.

This weekend, we celebrate your career, and are proud to have seen you play in the light and dark blue quarters.

Thanks, Alfie! pic.twitter.com/KYp5K7X3OI

— Wycombe Wanderers (@wwfcofficial) March 17, 2023

Mawson signed for League One club Barnsley in June 2015 on a three-year contract, impressed in the 2015–16 season, scoring seven goals in 58 appearances and played a vital part in the Tykes’ season, including beating Oxford 3–2 to win the EFL Trophy in April 2016 and earned promotion to the Championship after beating Millwall 3–1 in the playoff final.

After just four league matches experience in the Championship with Barnsley, Mawson went to Premier League club Swansea in August 2016, made his full debut in October 2016 in the 0–0 home draw against Watford and was presented with the man of the match award for his work in defence. He scored his first goal for the club on the 3rd of January 2017 in a 2–1 victory against Crystal Palace. In the 2017–18 season, Mawson produced the only goal in a 1–0 home win against Liverpool in January 2018 to help Swansea’s survival hopes, and despite the player featured in all 38 Premier League fixtures, he couldn’t prevent the club’s relegation, which was confirmed on the final day of the season.

Mawson joined newly promoted club Fulham on a four-year contract for an undisclosed fee, reported to be in the region of £20 million, but the Cottagers got rid of manager Claudio Ranieri, with Scott Parker replacing him and Mawson didn’t feature as much as hoped, instead spending time on loan at Bristol City.

Alfie Mawson on retiring at 29: ‘The doctor was brutal. He told me never run again’ https://t.co/GztiiP9l0d

— Indy Football (@IndyFootball) March 31, 2023

 

Mawson said in an interview with The Independent: “I’m quite outspoken so if I don’t agree with certain things, I’ll voice my opinion. I’m not just going to sit around and do this or go against myself. I got comfortable with not being involved and not playing as much, which was annoying and sad, but there’s only so much you can do to put yourself forwards.”

He failed a medical at a different Championship club who had concerns about the longevity of his knee, and so returned to the Chairboys knowing it could be the place where he saw out his career, but unfortunately ended his career a lot earlier than hoped.

The then-manager Gareth Ainsworth let Mawson do what he was able to do, depending on his body, fitness and injury. Then in January, he had to a face-to-face meeting with his knee surgeon, talking about his latest scan results. By then, he had undergone six operations on his lateral meniscus, “the doorstop between bones which stops cartilage fraying”.

“Football’s fantastic and I’ve loved it, but there are way worse things going on in the world than my bad knee.

“He knew me and knew I didn’t want to be risking my health. I haven’t got kids yet but that was a big thing, I wanted to be playing around in the garden with them one day. He said you could maybe play a couple more games but you won’t be in any fit state after; it’s going to take one more little movement and you’ll be in big bother. He said I could show your knee to a hundred other knee surgeons and they’d say the same thing – that would be to retire.

“He was brutal. Originally when I went to meet him I was clinging on to a little bit of hope, some sort of injection to get me through to the summer and reassess. But I didn’t want him to lie. He knew me as a person, he knew what I was going through and what I wanted to feel like after football, and he made that decision crystal clear for me.

“It destroyed me to ultimately have to finish football,” he says.

After being told of the news, he’s managed to take advantage of the nice food out there that footballers can’t usually eat during their playing career. visited his parents and nephews more often, wanted to be a better brother to his sister, who has been fighting cancer.

“Football’s fantastic and I’ve loved it, but there are way worse things going on in the world than my bad knee.”

He said upon retiring: “It might come as a shock to some people, but to me, it’s been coming for a while.

“After speaking to the specialists, to my family and to the gaffer, I’ve come to the difficult decision to retire. I had some time off around Christmas after feeling some pain in my knee and the pain hasn’t gone away. I went for a scan and unfortunately the damage was done.”