Kilbane not ready to retire

Republic of Ireland defender has no plans to call it a day

Last updated: 10th September 2008

Kilbane not ready to retire

Kilbane: Still going strong

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Kevin Kilbane admits he has no plans to retire from international football with Republic of Ireland.

The experienced full-back is due to make his 50th consecutive competitive appearance for Ireland against Montenegro in Wednesday's 2010 World Cup qualifier.

Kilbane knows the end of his career will arrive sooner rather than later, but the 31-year-old says that international retirement is not an option for him at this point, especially if his team make it to the 2010 World Cup finals.

He said: "I think it's quite young to be thinking about it. I've genuinely not felt as though I've wanted to (retire).

"I've said that I'll probably see out the campaign and see what happens then. I'm not making any sort of decisions just yet, but I still feel good, still feel able to play.

"We will just wait and see when it comes up. Hopefully, first and foremost we can qualify and then the decisions can maybe go hand in hand."

Happy

Kilbane admits he is happy to continue playing internationals at the moment and is enjoying working with respected Ireland manager Giovanni Trapattoni.

He said: "I've worked with some very good managers, but I've never worked with a manager who has a pedigree like him.

"When you have the time with him day to day, he's fantastic. He's such a good guy to work with and we certainly seem to have benefited straight away."