Death threat NI footballer quits

Lennon: "Enough is enough"

GLASGOW, Scotland -- Northern Ireland footballer Neil Lennon says he is quitting international matches after receiving a death threat.

Lennon, 31, a Catholic, pulled out of his country's game against Cyprus on Wednesday night after a threat said to have been made by the paramilitary Loyalist Volunteer Force.

The midfielder who plays for Glasgow Celtic, a club with strong Catholic associations, had been due to captain his national side for the first time.

But on Thursday he said he would not play for Northern Ireland again, adding: "It's a shame it has to end this way."

Lennon said he had thought long and hard about the decision, but added: "It is time for me to say: 'enough is enough.'" He said he "could not keep putting myself and my family through this."

Lennon nearly quit in February 2001 when, in his first international since joining Celtic, he was booed by sections of the crowd drawn largely from the Protestant community.

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But as Lennon made his announcement, it was claimed that the death threat might have been a hoax.

Loyalist sources close to the paramilitary group, which is based near Lennon's family home in Lurgan, County Armagh, dismissed the threat as "nonsense."

Irish Football Association President Jim Boyce said hoax or not, whoever had made the threatening call was "a moron."

He said: "This is just unbelievable. It is a terrible blight once again on society in Northern Ireland especially when you think of the efforts made by the Irish Football Association to stamp this sort of thing out.

"It is something that the decent people of Northern Ireland totally and utterly condemn."

Ulster Unionist Party leader David Trimble condemned the threat as a "sinister and serious development which I condemn without reservation."

He said: "The safety of Neil Lennon and his family is the major consideration and it is a sad day for football, which has come through 30 years of violence, that such an incident can put one of the province's top players in a position of fear.

"It is totally unacceptable."

Northern Ireland manager Sammy McIlroy had urged him not to quit.

"We will do our utmost to get Neil back. I need all the experienced players I can get," he said.

"But obviously it is up to Neil. This is not the first time he has been under scrutiny like this.

"The boy is very sad, I am very sad. The players were all devastated but the response they gave me was brilliant under difficult circumstances."

The Police Service of Northern Ireland refused to speculate whether the threat was real or a hoax.

"We would not discuss the security of any individual," said a spokesman.

A Celtic spokesman said: "We are very disappointed to learn of the circumstances of Neil's having to withdraw, particularly in his first game as captain of his country's team."