Lenihan forced to retire due to persistent injury issues

HULL CITY’S Brian Lenihan has been forced to retire from football at the age of 23.

The Corkman has been plagued by injuries since moving from Cork City to England in 2014, a switch that immediately earned him a call to Martin O’Neill’s Ireland squad.

Lenihan, a defender who was also versatile enough to play in midfield, was struck down by a knee problem in a loan spell at Blackpool. And that was the first in a succession of problems that eventually led to the youngster calling it a day.

He met with another setback at the start of this season which resulted in the difficult decision to quit, although he did not detail the specific problem in his Twitter statement announcing the news.

GRATEFUL

“It is with deep regret that I have had to retire from professional football. Having to retire at 23 is something I did not foresee, but such is life,” said Lenihan in a Twitter statement.

“From a medical point of view the staff have gone above and beyond for me and for that I will be forever grateful.

“This decision does not come lightly but due to the medical advice I have received it is an action that needs to be taken for my own well-being.”

“Sometimes in life you need to give up on a lifelong dream to ensure you live a happy and more fulfilling life.”

Lenihan made just two appearances for Hull, the second of which was last August where he captained the side in a League Cup encounter.

A statement from Hull described Lenihan as “a defender who showed great promise before the first of a succession of injuries halted his progress.”