By Martin Williams
June 5 2004

23 year old Llanelli born product Matthew Jones has been forced to retire from professional football. The Wales and Leicester midfielder has finally admitted defeat in a battle agianst injury and will now look to work on TV. Jones' nightmare period began when he ruptured knee ligaments at Anfield in a Premiership match for Leicester against the Reds in January 2002.

After a long recuperation from his knee problems Jones injured an ankle before dislocating a disc in his back at the beginning of the 2002/03 season.

The 13 cap Welsh International underwent surgery in a bid to play again but has been forced to retire after speaking with the surgeon.

"I've had every possible treatment I was recommended and even went as far as having surgery on my back which had a risk of paralysing me from the waist down," Jones told BBC Wales Sport.

"Any normal person would probably not do that, but for me I would do anything to get back playing the game love.

"When I sat down with the surgeon three weeks ago I was nearly in tears.
"Everything I had ever dreamed for has been taken away from me.

"I have lived my dream because all my ambitions were to play football and I achieved that.

"It was fantastic and I just feel that a couple of weeks ago I was woken up from my dream and someone wouldn't me go back to sleep.
"I've tried for so many months to fall back into this dream of being a football player again but unfortunately I can't.

"I've got to accept it and be grown up about it and not feel sorry for myself. I've got to get on with it and make something exciting of my life again."

And Jones could now be set for a move onto our TV screens.

"I'm taking my gran on a two-week cruise round the Caribbean and then I'll sit down with my agent to work out where I go next," said Jones. "What I'd like to do is some sort of TV work, whether that be children's television, daytime TV, soccer punditry or even a football show.

"Children's TV is something that particularly appeals to me. Someone once asked me what I'd be doing if I wasn't a footballer and I said a kindergarten teacher.

"I haven't got the qualifications to be a teacher, but I love kids so much, even though I haven't got any myself, and just think children's telly would be an intriguing thing to do.

"It would be a fun. It would be humorous but educational at the same time."
Jones went on, "I've already done some work for Sky Sports, working on the FA Youth Cup final and I'm quite friendly with Martin Tyler (commentator) so I've been going round with him.

"I've also done a documentary with the BBC which firstly involves me telling people about my injury and then interviewing other sports people whose careers have been affected by injury.

"Basically people in a similar position to me. People who've had careers in sport but suddenly had it taken away from them. It's a look at how they've coped with that."

We wish Matt well in the future.