Clare Shine: Glasgow City and Republic of Ireland forward to retire from playing at 27
Glasgow City and Republic of Ireland goalscorer Clare Shine announces retirement at the age of 27; Shine will stop playing after Sunday's SWPL game with Hearts; the forward has scored 70 goals in two spells at Glasgow City and is the joint-11th highest goalscorer in the club's history
Saturday 24 September 2022 20:01, UK
Glasgow City and Republic of Ireland forward Clare Shine has announced her retirement as a player after Sunday’s SWPL match against Hearts.
Over two spells with Glasgow City - either side of a return to her homeland to play for Cork City - Shine made 105 appearances and scored 70 goals, making her the joint-11th highest goalscorer in Glasgow City history.
Signing in May 2015 for her first spell, Shine scored 17 goals in that campaign and ended the season as top scorer at the club. The 27-year-old striker marked the end of her debut season with a hat-trick in the 2015 Scottish Women's Cup Final as City beat Hibernian at Ainslie Park before making her Republic of Ireland debut in a UEFA Women's European Championships qualifier against Spain.
The following season, Shine repeated her exploits and was top scorer for a second season in a row as City secured a Scottish-record 10th league title in a row.
Shine scored on her second debut against Stirling University, after rejoining the club in 2019. That was the start of 19 goals Shine would score in 2019, including a first UEFA Women's Champions League (UWCL) goal against Chertanovo Moscow.
Arguably her biggest goal during her time was at the end of the 2019 season when once again, Shine wrote the headlines in a Scottish Women's Cup Final against Hibernian with a 90th-minute winner to bring the cup back to Glasgow for the first time since she scored a hat-trick in the 2015 final.
Shine made 40 appearances over the last two seasons, playing a further five games this term, which included an opening day hat-trick against Spartans.
As well as being a key player for many years, the Republic of Ireland international has spoken openly about her own mental health problems, and has become a key figure within the Glasgow City Foundation charity, where she will continue to work and help the club with their charitable plans and ambitions.
She said: "Thank you to everyone who has played a part in my football journey, thank you for all the amazing memories. I am looking forward to opening a new chapter of my life, and for Glasgow City, I will always be your number one supporter."
Glasgow City head coach Eileen Gleeson said: "As Clare Shine announces her retirement from football it is with a mixture of sadness and admiration that I pay tribute to a very special person and player. Clare has been an outstanding footballer throughout her career, a brilliant ambassador for both club and country.
"Clare has written the history books at Glasgow City, she is an integral part of many successful moments at the club. These will always be remembered."
Glasgow City chief executive Laura Montgomery added: "I remember the day I brought Clare Shine to Glasgow City and it has been one of the best decisions I have ever made. Throughout our 25 years as a football club there are only a small a number of players who have completely embodied every single aspect of Glasgow City. Our values, our ambitions, our standards and what it means to pull on our jersey and Clare is one of them.
"She will be a massive loss on the pitch and in the dressing room, but thankfully she will remain an integral part of our club and help us continue with our aims and objectives off the field. Without doubt Clare Shine and Glasgow City has been a great partnership, we have been good for each other and I hope she retires with only the very best memories and knowing that she is forever a huge part of this club."
