Andy calls it a day

But he has not played in the Premiership since last September, when he was diagnosed as suffering from post-viral fatigue syndrome. Andy said: "I have tried on four separate occasions to make a comeback, but I have suffered a bad reaction, both to matches and to training. So, following discussions with the medical specialists, I have reluctantly decided to retire. After being the club's top goalscorer last season, I was looking forward to establishing myself in the Premiership and I am devastated that I will not be able to play a part in Charlton's future success."

Addicks manager Alan Curbishley said: "This is a tremendous blow and it will not be easy to replace Andy. It would cost us something like £4-5m to sign a player of the same quality. He had a fantastic start to the season and I believe that he would have been our top goalscorer if this illness had not affected him so badly. I hope that he is now able to lead a normal life, because I know how badly the last eight months have affected him."

Overall, Hunt scored 36 goals in 94 outings for Charlton, after arriving from WBA on a Bosman free transfer in the summer of 1998.

One of the unofficial Charlton sites have set up a message board where fans of Andy Hunt can leave messages to be passed back to him via the club. If you want to contribute the url is http://boards.rivals.net/default.asp?sid=905&p=16&style=1&forumid=5545