Shrewsbury Town defender Mike Jackson has taken the decision to hang up his boots and retire from playing.

Jacko has been battling a knee problem since the end of last season and recently returned to training on his specialist's advice.The idea was to see how the knee stood up to full training but Jacko still has problems and this has prompted the decision.

Jacko will be staying with the club until the end of the season at least though as he continues to work as part of the coaching staff.

The news is a big blow to the club and Jacko but Simmo understands the reasoning behind the decision: "It's a massive disappointment for Jacko that he has had to come to this decision but he has to look at his long term health.It's no good to continue to try and get back to fitness and risk having to have surgery somewhere down the line.

"He will be continuing to work on the coaching side of things here and that is good news for the football club.It's been good to have him around, his input has been good and he has the respect of all the staff and players."