New boy Hunt in for Wolves but out for Ireland

STEPHEN HUNT is set to miss Ireland’s opening four games of the Euro 2012 qualifying campaign.

Wolves’ new signing from Hull City is continuing his slow rehabilitation following surgery on a broken foot and, having posed for the cameras at Molineux yesterday, revealed that it could be late October before he’s ready to make his debut for his new club.

That would rule the winger out of Ireland’s opening European Championship games against Armenia away, Andorra and Russia at home and Slovakia away – the latter game is scheduled for October 12.

Hunt is keeping his fingers crossed that he might be back sooner but accepts that it is vital he doesn’t rush his recovery from the injury which shortened his final season at Hull and saw him miss Ireland’s recent friendlies against Paraguay and Algeria.

“I think if it’s late October, I might hang my boots up and be retired by then!” he quipped yesterday.

“I know that’s the current time span and I’ll be following the instructions of the physios but hopefully it might be a little bit sooner than that.”

Mick McCarthy’s signing of Hunt will be regarded as one of the least surprising moves this summer.

“It’s been a long time coming in terms of all the speculation,” said Hunt, who was the subject of €5m bid from Wolves as far back as the New Year but who has now been let go for an undisclosed fee by cash-strapped and relegated Hull.

“I know a lot of the players at Wolves and am sure there’s a lot of banter flies around the place. I’m looking forward to that and being part of a good season.”

One of those players he knows best at Wolves is his old mate and international colleague Kevin Doyle but, with the latter being strongly linked with a move to a bigger Premiership club, it’s unlikely the two will get much time to renew old acquaintances at Molineux.