Hibernian forward Dwight Gayle to retire at end of season

Hibernian forward Dwight Gayle revealed he intends to retire from playing at the end of this season.

The 35-year-old former Crystal Palace and Newcastle striker signed a season-long deal with the Hibees in the summer and has chipped in with two goals in nine appearances, two as a starter.

Asked at a press conference on Friday afternoon if he had thought about next term, Gayle – who netted in last weekend’s 3-1 win over Ross County – explained that he feels his body is no longer allowing him to operate at the level he would like.

“Yes, I’ve started to express my feelings,” he said. “My body’s starting to break down a bit and it’s likely that I might pack it in to be fair.

“It’s just a whole heap of things really, you’re not able to generate the same speed and power as other people. From game to game it’s hard to recover as quickly as before.

“I’ve always wanted to play, do what I can to help out the team and when you feel like you’re not really able to do that, then that’s sort of a difficult time.

“I’d love to play it continuously forever, but with injuries and stuff like that, your body starts to pick up stuff that you probably need to think about.

“It’s not just muscle injuries, other things as well that could prevent you in later life, maybe playing in the garden with your kids and stuff like that. These are things I need to take into consideration.”

Gayle, who has already gained his UEFA B coaching licence, is intent on enjoying the remaining months of his playing career with Hibs.

“I’ve been thinking like this in terms of the enjoyment for the last two years now, where before each game you’re just thinking that this is potentially one of your last ones, so to try and enjoy it for what you can,” he said.

“At the moment I’m just focused on helping the team in whichever way I can and trying to get out there to help them, so I’ll always be available (for selection).”

Hibs travel to Aberdeen on Saturday buoyed by having moved off the bottom of the William Hill Premiership table in recent weeks with seven points from their last four games, a run sparked by a dramatic 3-3 draw at home to the Dons last month.

Gayle believes that match – in which Hibs scored two stoppage-time goals – had a galvanising effect on his team.

“I felt like we could feel it in the dressing room after the game,” said the striker. “And the way that the fans took to us that evening. Going around the pitch at the end of the game, you could tell that they were in full support of us and that gave us a bit of a buzz, whereas previously, when we conceded in the last few minutes, it was almost the opposite.

“You’d be going in to the next game with a bit of doubt. Whereas from the Aberdeen game, we had a big buzz about the team and then went on to some decent results. We need to just keep turning up the heat.”