John Carter said renewed passion for the game saw him become Oxford University captain less than five months after coming out of retirement.

And having been elected as the Dark Blues’ new skipper, Carter is relishing the task ahead, especially after missing December’s Twickenham victory with a shoulder injury.

The 29-year-old back-row forward said he decided to retire after being disappointed by the 2009 Varsity campaign.

“We folded in ourselves and played as 15 individuals,” explained Carter (who is known as ‘JC’).

But having started the 2010-11 season as team manager, Carter was persuaded to play again by head coach Murray Henderson.

“It wasn’t something I wanted to do, but the pull became much more powerful and made me believe in the power of rugby again,” he said.

“We were certainly playing for each other.

“I played and come the end of the season I still had that belief. It was very much an emotional decision to go for the captaincy.

“I felt that I would be the best person for the job, which was very important for me.

“I had to believe in what I was doing. I couldn’t just do it for a CV tick or anything like that.”

Carter is recovering from an operation to fix his dislocated right shoulder and will be out for three months.

He will take charge of planning, including recruiting a coaching team, while others lead on the field.

“I’m absolutely confident in my ability to get my shoulder in a good enough position to play again,” said Carter, who has now had six shoulder operations.

“The surgeon is very positive about that.”

Carter came to Oxford after playing professionally for Sale and Northampton and hopes to draw on these experiences.

As a captain, he stressed he would be very democratic.

“I said I would be a leader amongst men,” said Carter.

“Feedback is key to me. I want to know what everybody else in the team is feeling.”

Carter added: “I was delighted to be elected.

“It is nice to know that you have the players behind you.”

Off the field, Carter is studying for a masters in psychoanalysis, based on Freudian psychology.

He said: “That was the reason I came here, I am very passionate about it. I want to be a psychotherapist.

“When I finished professional rugby, there was a big void in my life. Psychoanalysis has really filled that.”

Meanwhile, Oxford University centre Alex Cheesman has been named in the 26-man England Students squad to face France Universities at Richmond on February 25.