Robinson aims to call it a day with final dash at World Cup

Jason Robinson, the Sale and England wing, has announced he is to retire from club rugby at the end of the season. But the 32-year-old Robinson made it clear that, if selected, he would be available for England throughout this summer and for their defence of the Rugby World Cup in France in September and October. He would then retire from the game completely once England's tournament is over.

"I have thoroughly enjoyed my time at Sale, but it's time to move on," Robinson said. "I want my last game for Sale to be at home [versus Bath], and I want to be able to say a big thank you to the supporters."

Robinson began his career in 1992 in league with Wigan Warriors where he had a reputation as a party animal and suffered problems with alcohol. He adopted Christianity, partly due to the influence of his Wigan team-mate Va'aiga Tuigamala, before turning to the 15-man code where he has been a resounding success. He joined Sale from Wigan in November 2000 and in 2004 he became the first league convert to captain England when they played Canada at Twickenham.

Unlike Henry Paul, who joined Gloucester from Bradford Bulls but found himself struggling with the union game, Robinson took to the switch like a natural and has proved a devastating finisher for his club and his country. The wing, nicknamed "Billy Whizz" after the Beano character because of his searing pace, has scored 26 tries in his 43 England games, and in all has made 531 appearances in both codes.

He first entered the union consciousness in the cross code game for Wigan against Bath at Twickenham in 1996. He subsequently joined the West Country club on a short-term contract, but it was to be four years before he crossed the game's great divide and joined Sale.

A year later Robinson won the first of those 43 caps in Clive Woodward's England side in the 2001 Six Nations and that same year was picked for Graham Henry's British and Irish Lions tour of Australia and scored a stunning solo try in the first Test in Brisbane. Four years later he was a member of Woodward's disappointing Lions tour of New Zealand.

Robinson went on to help England win their first Grand Slam of the Six Nations era in 2003 and then underlined his lethal finishing with a clutch of tries in the World Cup success later that same year, scoring a well-worked try in the final against Australia in Sydney. He was appointed MBE in the New Year's Honours list in December.

His crowning glory at club level with Sale was helping them land their first Premiership title last season. Sale finished top after the regular 22-game league campaign, then destroyed Leicester in the final at Twickenham.

But this season has been a difficult one for the Sharks, having seen their hopes of defending their title ruined by injuries to key players. They are ninth in the Premiership, and not safe from relegation having won only seven out of 19 games this season, while their Heineken Cup campaign ended at the pool stage and they reached the semi-finals of the EDF Energy Cup.

Robinson had originally retired from international rugby in September 2005, but he returned to the fold for this season's Six Nations Championship and performed as though he had never been away. He scored four tries in four games and is likely to remain a key part of England coach Brian Ashton's plans this year.

England travel to South Africa for a two-Test tour in May and June, then face three World Cup warm-up games during August before beginning their World Cup defence against the United States in Lens on 8 September.