Baldwin sad to see Kennedy leave

Kennedy scored a hat trick during his testimonial match

Histon chairman Gareth Baldwin has hailed the contribution of retiring Stutes forward Neil Kennedy following his testimonial match.

Kennedy has helped the club to five promotions in his 11 seasons at the Glass World.

"Neil's probably had more impact on Histon's destiny than any other player," Baldwin said.

"He's cost us a few quid in goal bonuses, but he's been worth every penny."

Interviews from Kennedy's testimonial

Kennedy led a team of Histon favourites to a 10-2 victory over a Mickey Quinn all-star 11 at the Glass World stadium as Stutes fans celebrated the 36-year-old's career with the club.

Former pros such as Dave Bennett, Mark Kinsella and Mark Venus were all in attendance, but it was Kennedy himself who was the real star, signing off with a well taken hat trick.

Baldwin told BBC Radio Cambridgeshire that he did not expect too many other players to show such long term commitment to the club.

Mickey Quinn says Histon have made great strides

"In this day and age I think it usually turns out that if you get a player for three or four years you've done well," he said.

Meanwhile, former Coventry star Mickey Quinn was also quick to praise Kennedy on his big day.

"Five years ago Histon were in the Eastern Counties, they've come through to the Conference, they're a lovely little club now, and he's helped them all the way."

Following the match, Kennedy's testimonial day was rounded off by an auction and race night which in total raised over £15,000.