Bradley Davies has revealed he would have quit international rugby if he had stayed with Wasps.
The Wales second row moved to the Ospreys at the start of the summer because he believed that was the only way he could prolong his Test career.
Davies suffers with a chronic knee problem and the 29-year-old says another season in English club rugby would have ended his Wales days on 56 caps.
He said: “The decision was to keep playing in England and retire from international rugby – or come back home and play both.
“It’s very difficult to play for Wales when you are in such a big league as the Aviva Premiership. English boys are looked after during the Six Nations. They don’t have to go back and play for their clubs.
“But if you are not playing in Wales, then Welsh internationals don’t get the same luxuries. I just realised that the way my body was going, I couldn’t have lasted more than another two years or so.
“It was a mental season for me last season. It got too much and I was struggling to run.
“This way, with central contracts, I can keep going for longer and that appealed to me.”
Davies had a chance to rejoin the Cardiff Blues, but felt they would not offer him a chance of winning trophies.
“It was only the Ospreys that I would have come home to. Whenever I played against them, I always thought they were the main team in Wales.
“They always did well in Europe and they were always hard to beat. I had a good nine years at the Cardiff Blues, but I wanted to go somewhere I can win things and I think the best chance of that is here.”
