Time waits on no man. Not even the best of them.
It’s a cruel world sometimes and when a starlet like Andy Reid is forced to retire on his 34th birthday, you wake up with a heavy heart.
After 16 years in professional football, 29 international caps, and no end of plaudits and worshipers, Andy Reid has hung up the boots and he goes with all of our best wishes.
A persistent groin problem has kept the Dubliner out of action for the best part of two years now and, in a statement published by the Nottingham Post, Reid confirmed the sad news.
“I have no regrets and I know I did positive things for every team I played for,” he said.
“I’m just really, really disappointed that I couldn’t finish on a high, maybe with a promotion for Forest. There isn’t always a happy ending though.
“I think my fairytale in football is the fact that I’ve had a long and, in my opinion, good, career. I’m very, very grateful for that. I’ve had some wonderful experiences, played in some big games, for some big clubs, and I’ve enjoyed every minute of it.”
The fans enjoyed it more.
Andy Reid was a footballer of a different era. He was a man that looked at the impossible and constantly tried to debunk it. He was an entertainer.
In Marseille before England’s first Euro 2016 game against Russia, a couple of Irish journalists sat with the English fans. One of them, a Londoner, turned to us and said, “Jesus, I love Andy Reid.”
He wasn’t joking, it wasn’t a cult thing and the man was an Arsenal fan who couldn’t have cared less about Nottingham Forest. But he looked at Andy Reid and saw the footballer he always wanted to be. He looked at Andy Reid and had his faith renewed that talent and ability on the ball would be enough.
For Reid, football was always a simple game. He demystified it with his close control, his effortless footwork and his daring vision as he slid passes that most of us would be afraid to even look at.
Along with Wes Hoolahan, he’s one of the few Irishmen that have inspired a different breed of youngsters to emerge in the country. Technical players. Footballing players.
Reid’s time on the pitch was hampered by fitness and injury. It was a stop-start career a lot of it and his appearances in the green shirt only left us wanting more.
But in that time alone, he left a legacy.
And only a fool wouldn’t follow it.
Thank you, Andy.
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