Former U's star Dion Dublin has turned down the invitation to extend his playing career by one more year at Cambridge United.

The Norwich City centre-forward is determined to see out this season at Carrow Road and then retire from playing, and U's boss Jimmy Quinn admitted today that he was unable to tempt him back to the Abbey either on loan or on a final one-year deal.

"I asked him but he's definitely going to retire at the end of the season," Quinn confirmed.

"I tried to get him on loan to the end of the season but he's got commitments to Norwich and he's totally made his mind up to go into media work.

"I tried to convince him to play for another year and come back to Cambridge where it all started and he thanked me for asking but said he had made his mind up.

"There would have been a contract on offer for him here, without a shadow of a doubt."

Dublin, who will turn 39 next week, was part of the John Beck side that carried all before them in the early 90s with two successive promotions and FA Cup quarter-final appearances in a run that lifted United from the bottom division to the brink of the inaugural Premiership.

Play-off defeat to Leicester ended the charge and Dublin was sold to Manchester United for £1m as the side gradually broke up, but the towering centre-forward, who went on to play for England, Coventry, Aston Villa, Leicester and Celtic, has always remained a favourite at the Abbey.

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