Trim's Tim Clancy with his children following Motherwell's last home game of the season after they had clinched a Champions League spot.

After one of the proudest seasons of his career Trim's Tim Clancy had to make the heart wrenching decision to leave a club he had helped guide into the Champions League to ensure the longevity of his career and financial stability for his family.

Since moving to Motherwell from Kilmarnock in the January transfer window Clancy was a pivotal figure in helping the Lanarkshire club cement third place in the Scottish Premier league and following Rangers' tales of woe which resulted in their expulsion from European competition Clancy and Motherwell were on their way to the Champions League.

With the famous anthem ringing in his ears the financial turmoil that has effected Scottish football started to take it's toll at Motherwell and it became clear to Clancy that those Champions League dreams would have to be set aside for the benefit of his career and family.

Despite reaching the lucrative Champions League Motherwell sought significant wage cuts from many of their more established players and Clancy was considered as such. After reviewing his options the former NECSL player was left with no option but to reject the new contract that was offered to him and take his chances as a free agent.

News of Clancy's departure from Motherwell didn't take long to reach Pat Fenlon ears and the former Shelbourne manager pounced to snap up the 27-year-old on a two year deal on Thursday morning.

"I'm absolutely thrilled to be joining Hibs. They are such a massive club and with their great Irish connections it was a no-brainer for me. It was difficult to leave Motherwell, but I just had to do it," Clancy told the Meath Chronicle.

"My contract with Motherwell ran out, but they offered me a new deal which I had to turn it down. The attraction of playing Champions League with Motherwell was a huge thing for me, but I had to think about the financial welfare of my family and it just wasn't viable for me to stay even though I love it there.

"I told the manager when I spoke to him that it was the most enjoyable season of my career and I had been happy playing under him. He had brought in four or five of us to tell us the financial situation at the club and that there was going to be cutbacks, and that we would have to take a cut, but that just wasn't workable for me.

"Even if they had offered the same wages again I'd probably have signed up again, but the budgets had to be cut and they accepted that if we could get a better deal elsewhere then they'd understand if we took it.

"The offer came in from Hibs and as a family we decided to move. It will be a fresh start for us and it's a fresh challenge I'm looking forward to.

"Hibs have a huge fan base in Edinburgh. The stadium is top class at Easter Road and the training facilities are fantastic. It is a massive club, but I'm going to say it's a step up for me because that would be disrespectful to Motherwell.

"If you look at the season they have just had it was clear that Motherwell were the best side outside of the big two, but I am looking forward to the new challenge at Hibs and a fresh start for myself and my family."

Clancy, who played over 60 times in his four year spell at Kilmarnock before joining Motherwell, is equally comfortable at centre-back and full-back and will be a huge addition to Fenlon's squad as they look to rebuild after a disappointing season which saw them flirt with relegation and lose out in the SFA Cup final to city rivals Hearts.

Moving to Hibs will give Clancy the financial security and stability he wants to provide for his family, but he also sees it as a massive step in the right direction for his career.

The life of a professional footballer is often viewed as a glamorous one, but Clancy disputes that emphatically and is already making plans for his life after football.

"Coming to Hibs and looking round at their facilities is amazing. They have an absolutely top class set-up and the fans already have been amazing. I'm really looking forward to getting started," he said.

"I'm loving being a professional footballer and I know it is what every young player dreams of. We had some great times last season with Motherwell, but there are also times when you realise that it is your job and you have to plough hard and get on with it.

"There will probably be 700 or 800 players let go this season and they will all be looking for new clubs, so it is a tough business to survive too. If you ask those lads about the glamourous life of a professional footballer they'll confirm that it is not all as fancy as it is made out to be.

"I know it's not the longest career in the world, but you have to just crack on and make the most of it when you can. If you start to worry about getting injured or not being picked up by a club then you are not going to perform to the best of your ability.

"I know you've always got to be preparing for life after football and I've started doing a few courses in personal training and I'm also going to do my coaching badges, so I've started to build for my future for life when I finish playing, but hopefully that won't be for a good few years yet.

"It's a fact of life that clubs are under financial strain and things aren't as good as they were 10 years ago, but I've just got to make sure I've got myself sorted and then hang in there for as long as I can."

Since leaving home as a young man to pursue a football career with Millwall, Clancy has enjoyed the ups and downs of a professional footballer. Released by the London club, the Trim man ploughed on in the non-leagues before being picked up by Kilmarnock. He endured a difficult time in his early days there, struggling to break into the team then suffering bad ankle and elbow injuries that ruled him out for over six months.

Surplus to requirements in his latter days at Kilmarnock, Clancy was snapped up by Stuart McCall at Motherwell and in 31 appearance for the fir Park outfit he helped them into the Champions League.

It has been a hell of a ride for Clancy and one he enjoys with his friends back home in Trim. It is that close friendship with lads like Mark Scanlon, David Conway and Barry O'Callaghan that has made life in Scotland easier to bear for Clancy. He has a great family behind him and his wife and three children are also a massive support.

"My links to home are still vital to me. You make very few real friends in football. Even when your at a club you become close to people, but when you move away you might never hear from them again, so from that point of view it's great to still have your boyhood friends," said the former Trim Celtic player.

"Having the lads come over to watch me is great because they are my genuine friends. No matter how long I haven't seen them for, when we do meet up the conversation is just as easy as it would be if we lived next door to each other and that is important to me.

"I do see a time when myself and my family will move home to Ireland. A lot will depend where I finish out my career, but we have talked about moving back home and I'd say that will happen at some stage, but for the next two years at least I'm looking forward to my challenge here at Hibs," concluded Clancy.