Kenni Thompson has announced her immediate retirement from football

The Bermuda forward left Bournemouth Women at the end of another highly successful season last month and while many expected that to be the prelude to her signing for a bigger club, she has made the surprise announcement on Instagram that she is stepping back from the sport.

The 25-year-old, a regular in the Bermuda national team, cited losing her passion and joy for the game as the main reasons behind her decision.

“Fourteen years ago I had to make one of the hardest decisions of my life. Pack up everything and move across the world to chase a dream at 11 years old,” she wrote.

“A dream of playing football professionally at the highest level and making it my career. I chased my dream and I achieved it. With hard work, tenacity and burning passion for the game, I’ve represented my country and played for and against some of the biggest names in football.

“Now here I am at 25, once again making an even harder decision to once again pack up everything and walk away from my career, my dream, my life.

“This hasn’t been a decision that’s come easy. Unfortunately this has been years in the making. Bit by bit, day by day that same passion that pushed me has slowly faded. The joy for the game that always got me through the darkest moments ultimately disappeared.”

She added: “I know there will be a lot of people that don’t understand and that I may be letting down but this is something that I have to do for me. I need to not just put myself first but love myself first.

“I spent years trying to recover my joy for the sport when I should’ve been finding my joy for life and for living. To genuinely see the beauty in who and what I have been blessed with. To be present and not solely just exist. I need time to not just find myself but find the joy and happiness within me and unfortunately the only way to do so is to walk away from the only thing I ever wanted in life.

“I know that 11-year-old girl is screaming at me to change my mind. She survived everything she thought she wouldn’t and I will for ever be proud and grateful for her strength, but she isn’t who I am today. She was strong enough to go after her dream no matter what, but now I need to be strong enough to walk away. I’m sorry I let you down but I can’t let me down.

“I will for ever be grateful for the amazing people football has brought into my life. Maybe this is goodbye for ever, maybe it’s not, but right now I need to do what’s best for myself and the people I care most about in the world. Current priority: peace, reset, restart, refocus.”

Thompson departed Bournemouth on a high after scoring the only goal in the National League Cup final this season as the club claimed silverware and she scored 21 goals in 62 appearances for the Cherries as they climbed the women’s football pyramid.

Writing on Instagram, Thompson outlined her love for the town and team that play on the South Coast in England.

“This club, this town, these people,” she wrote.

“All I can say is thank you. For letting me be part of this journey, for memories that will last a lifetime and people I’ll never forget. It’s been an absolute pleasure to be a part of this club. “Three years, four trophies and promotion with “little old Bournemouth”. The chez are massive. Thank you for everything.”

Thompson came up through the youth ranks at Espanyol and Barcelona and has also had stints in England with Chelsea and London City Lionesses.

She was also an integral member of the senior national women’s team, scoring and providing two assists in what would be her final appearance for the Lady Gombey Warriors in a come-from-behind 5-3 win against Grenada at Flora Duffy Stadium last month.