KEY POINTS:
James Ryan has terminated his Otago contract and revealed he will take an indefinite break from rugby to allow his battered body a chance to recover from multiple surgeries.
Ryan, who played nine tests for the All Blacks in 2005-06, has not played rugby since April 7 last year when he wrecked his knee playing for the Highlanders against the Chiefs in Queenstown.
He has been reluctant to comment on his playing future after speculation he might retire because of his knee and shoulder injuries.
"I've decided to have an indefinite break. Some might say that's no decision but it's been a big decision for me to make," he said yesterday.
"I've had three limb reconstructions in 12 months and that has been pretty frustrating for me to deal with. Rehabbing is not a nice thing to be doing all the time.
"I think I just need to have a bit of space to physically give my body a complete break from rugby."
Ryan, 25, is contracted to the New Zealand Rugby Union until the end of the year but decided to exercise his right to terminate his provincial contract.
He won't rule out the possibility of playing for Otago again because he says he honestly does not know where or when he will return to the field.
"I'm not saying my time in Dunedin is over. I loved the place, and the Otago union were extremely good to me. I'm not saying my career is over. Far from it. But it's impossible for me to put a time on it ...
"Four years ago, rugby was just completely everything to me. I wouldn't have expected to be doing what I am now. But it's not money or opportunities that will make me want to play rugby again. I have to really want to be doing it."
Ryan said he would need two or three months to get his body into the physical shape required to play top-class rugby.
He had played some cricket over the summer and felt no pain in the knee or shoulder that had required reconstructive surgery.
Ryan is a lawyer at leading firm Russell McVeagh, immersed in corporate law, and said he was thriving doing something outside rugby for the first time since he was 18.
He was a guest commentator for TV3 at the Rugby World Cup but said he had no plans to further his career in television.
