Germany giant Grings calls time
Wednesday, May 7, 2014
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"I have the feeling the right time has come," said former Germany striker Inka Grings as she announced that this season will be her last as a player, though a future in coaching awaits.
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Former Germany striker Inka Grings, currently plying her trade for second-tier 1. FC Köln, has announced that she will hang up her boots at the end of the 2013/14 season.
"Even as a kid it was my wish to one day wear the jersey with the billy goat [Köln's badge] – that's why it is special for me to end my career at this club," the 35-year-old Grings said. "I have the feeling the right time has come now, although of course I would have liked to win promotion to the Bundesliga with 1. FC Köln."
That looks like a faint hope with second-ranked Köln trailing SC Sand by eight points with three matches to go, and only the champions being promoted, but Grings can be proud of her contribution, with her 18 goals the second-highest tally in the league this term.
A 2005 and 2009 UEFA European Women's Championship winner, Grings lifted the 2009 UEFA Women's Cup with FCR 2001 Duisburg, the club she represented from 1995–2011. Her final count of 64 goals in 96 games for Germany is almost as impressive as her extraordinary haul of 353 in 271 Bundesliga matches.
Grings's future may now involve coaching. She obtained her UEFA A licence in February, and in April spent time with Köln's men's team, who themselves gained promotion to the Bundesliga.
