Leinster back row Shane Jennings to retire from rugby at the end of the season

Image: Shane Jennings: Will retire from rugby at the end of the season

Leinster back row Shane Jennings has announced he will retire from professional rugby at the end of the season.

The 33-year-old has made over 200 appearances for the province in 11 seasons, scoring 21 tries.

Since his debut he has won three Heineken Cups, three Celtic League titles and an Amlin Challenge Cup.

He also has an English Premiership winners medal from his two-year hiatus with Leicester Tigers.

Jennings won the first of his 13 caps for Ireland while in England and appeared for his country in two matches at the 2011 World Cup. He made his last appearance in a green jersey as a replacement against Scotland in the 2012 Six Nations Championship.

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The Dubliner said: "Retiring has been on my mind for a while to be honest. The last couple of weeks probably solidified my decision.

"I've certainly taken my time to think about it, think about all the options, think about what I'm probably going to leave behind. There's a number of reasons. My body is battered and bruised, but thankfully it's not too bad.

"I've kind of been preparing myself over the last number of years with IRUPA through educational programmes and mentor programmes, and I've got a lot of assistance and a lot of help over the last few years to prepare myself for this. I'm very grateful that I'm going out on my terms. 

"I'm very grateful that I've been part of such a great club, such a great team. It's been good times. But thankfully I'm confident I've made the right decision. I'm prepared, and I'm looking forward to the next stage of my life."

Head coach Matt O'Connor said: "It's been a pleasure to work with him over the last two season. I don't think there's been a bigger contributor to the success of the organisation over the last few years."

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