Irish forward, Andrew Barbour has decided to draw a line under his international career after amassing 84 caps and 12 goals for his country.Barbour said of his retirement “After five full years playing at the highest level with all the training and representing Ireland it is time to step down. I have gone further in my hockey career than I thought possible and I have been to a lot of amazing places with the team.”
“The dream was to go to the Beijing Olympics this year and the next time we have a shot at the Olympics is four more years down the road, which is beyond me at this point.
"I am 30 now and there are some good young players coming through they system, including from my own club, so at this time it makes sense to finish up now rather than wait for the next major tournament which will be the 2009 Europeans [B division]. There are great structures in the IHA now and the right people are in charge and things are bright for the future”
Coach Passmore will miss Barbour’s presence on the pitch “Andy has been a fantastic player to have had in the squad over the past number of years. A consistent performer Andy’s pace and tight skills have tormented even the world's best teams.”
Whilst took his time to progress from the under-21 ranks into the Senior squad, eventually making the
breakthrough into the Senior international team in 2003 when he played his debut match against Belgium.
He went onto compete at the European A division in Barcelona and has been ever present in the squad since then winning gold with Ireland in the B division in Rome and was an integral part of the squad that took part in the World Cup Qualifier in China.
Coach Passmore will miss Barbour’s presence on the pitch “Andy has been a fantastic player to have had in the squad over the past number of years. A consistent performer Andy’s pace and tight skills have tormented even the world's best teams.”
Whilst took his time to progress from the under-21 ranks into the Senior squad, eventually making the
breakthrough into the Senior international team in 2003 when he played his debut match against Belgium.He went onto compete at the European A division in Barcelona and has been ever present in the squad since then winning gold with Ireland in the B division in Rome and was an integral part of the squad that took part in the World Cup Qualifier in China.
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