'I was letting my team-mates down' - Ben Foster opens up on decision to retire and reflects on 'unreal' Wrexham experience

Ex-Wrexham goalkeeper Ben Foster recalled the highs and lows of his time as a footballer while hitting the links in his latest Youtube appearance.

WHAT HAPPENED? In the latest episode of Tubes and Ange Golf Life, Foster opened up on the experience he had seeing Wrexham promoted out of the National League after the 2022/23 campaign and the timing of his retirement. The former goalkeeper felt it was the right time to hang up his boots early this season.

WHAT THEY SAID: "I feel good. It’s a big weight off my shoulders. Don’t get me wrong, Wrexham was unreal. What a town, owners, fans, players, coaches, staff — it’s got everything," Foster said.

«I know for a fact they’re going to go on to bigger and better things. But I just got to the point where I didn’t feel that I could do the team justice. I felt like my legs had slowed down, my sharpness, my spring, my reflexes. I felt I’d let too many goals in that I knew I should have been saving. When I got to that point I felt I was letting my team-mates down. I can’t do that, I can’t look at myself in the mirror. It’s the right decision, there’s no shame in it. I’m 40 years old and it’s natural that you’re going to slow down. So there we go, back to being a retired footballer again. Plenty more golf!»

THE BIGGER PICTURE: Wrexham found an immediate replacement for Foster in Arsenal youngster Arthur Okonkwo, who made his Red Dragons debut Tuesday evening in the EFL Cup. Foster will go down in Wrexham folklore as the goalkeeper who saw them out of the National League and it's likely Red Dragons owners Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney will see that the 40-year-old returns in the stands at the Racecourse Ground this season.

IN THREE PHOTOS:

WHAT NEXT FOR BEN FOSTER?: The ex-footballer