Former Wales scrum-half Mike Phillips on retiring and playing with Dan Carter

Mike Phillips shakes my hand warmly in the foyer of Racing 92's training ground on the outskirts of Paris. It's the day after he announced his retirement from international rugby.

"What, you've come over from London this morning just to speak to me?" he says incredulously. "Better make it a good interview then!"

We sit outside by one of the club's training pitches and he admits the decision wasn't particularly tricky: "The way things have gone for me this last year or so, I don't think it's going to be a massive shock to some people. It's the right time really."

Phillips retires with 99 caps to his name - 94 in the red of Wales; five more in another red, that of the British and Irish Lions. But he has no regrets over missing out on the ton.

"I think it's cool, it's a bit different and I've always tried to be different my whole career so why not finish on 99?"

Regrets

However, there does seem to be a tinge of sadness as to the manner in which his international career fizzled out.

Having been dropped from Wales' original World Cup squad, he was then recalled due to their injury woes, only to play no part whatsoever in any of their five matches. His final appearance was in a pre-World Cup warm-up defeat by Ireland in Cardiff on the first weekend of August.

"I saw the World Cup as a last goal in my career and wanted to go out on a bang, but that's professional sport," he says ruefully.

"A lot has changed in that Welsh camp. I felt a bit distant this time".

The 33-year-old believes he has improved as a player during the four years he's been playing club rugby in France, but says head coach Warren Gatland didn't see it that way.

"When I told him in the summer that I've won a Grand Slam, a Six Nations Championship and a Lions Series [in that time], he didn't have much to say to me."

He pauses. "That's probably why he never picked me again!" he adds, bursting out laughing. He later tells me off-camera that on announcing his international retirement he received a text from Paul O'Connell which read, 'I thought you'd retired two years ago'.

'Best 9 and 10 in the world'

He's enjoying life in Paris, but admits it'll probably be his last season here before he returns to Wales.

He'll at least get the chance to play alongside the man regarded by many as the greatest to have ever laced up a pair of rugby boots.

All Blacks legend Dan Carter was presented to the Racing fans during their win against Toulouse that weekend and will most likely make his debut in the sky blue and white jersey the weekend after next.

"The boys have welcomed him with open arms. Everyone's got a spring in their step and hopefully he can bring us some silverware this season", says Phillips, before grinning and adding: "I did text him when he arrived saying, 'The best 9 and 10 in the world are now playing alongside each other'!"

Self-belief

Although said with tongue firmly in cheek, it wasn't that long ago that one could certainly have argued that was the case. Phillips has always carried himself with an air of cocksure brashness, a self-belief that rubbed many up the wrong way.

But it was an arrogance that was backed up by his performances on the field, from scoring a try on his debut against Romania in Wrexham as a 20-year-old, through to his man-of-the-match performance against Ireland in guiding Wales to the semi-finals of the 2011 Rugby World Cup, and onwards to the key role he played in the Lions' first series win for 16 years in 2013 against Australia.

The last couple of years may have seen his powers wane, but one shouldn't forget the player Mike Phillips was at his scintillating best.

His departing words to me, with a glint in the eye, are: "They'll probably want to make a movie on me when they see this."

"And who'd play the lead role?" I ask. "Brad Pitt probably. Or Colin Farrell. Or I might just play myself."

He laughs out loud again, shakes my hand, wishes me a Merry Christmas and wanders off.