Former Blue Jimmy Bullard has announced his retirement from professional football due to the knee injury which required surgery twice in two years earlier in his career. The 33-year-old’s Town contract was terminated by mutual consent in August and he subsequently joined the MK Dons, for whom he made only one start and two sub appearances.
Bullard told the League One side’s website that having seen a specialist last week, he had decided to hang up his boots: "My old knee injury has never allowed me to get back to where I want to be as a football player; it’s always hindered me.
"There are a lot of games in this league and I now know my knee won’t allow me to play Saturday-Tuesday-Saturday-Tuesday, it’s not built for that now.
"I want to be out there playing but at the same time I know my knee won’t allow me to play at my best and to keep my place in the team. I’m hindering myself more than I am helping myself for the future.
"In the summer I knew I wanted to give it one last crack and show people what I could do. But what I think with my strong head and what I could physically do are two different things. My head tells me I can do it, but my body tells me, 'no Jim you can’t'.”
Bullard won Town’s Player of the Year award in 2010/11 after a superb loan spell from Hull in which he scored five goals in 16 games. However, having signed a permanent two-year contract last summer after his Tigers deal was terminated, he failed to reach the same standards last season.
The ex-Peterborough, Wigan and Fulham man made just 12 starts — the last in the 4-0 defeat at Burnley in November - and nine sub appearances and scored one goal.
This summer the one-time England call-up was on the periphery during pre-season before he and the club settled the remaining year of his terms.