Cathal McCarron has announced his retirement from inter-county football.
"It's never easy to say goodbye, but I feel the time is right for me now," the Tyrone defender said in a statement released via Twitter.
With the injury and the traveling, it has been getting harder and harder.
I wanted to take this time to thank all the GAA community that supported me through the tough times and the good times. It's been an incredible journey and I have some unbelievable memories that I will never forget.
It's time now to sit in the stand again and watch Tyrone win another All Ireland and more importantly spending more time with the family and enjoy some club football.
McCarron won an All-Ireland with Tyrone in 2008 and was nominated for an All-Star on three occasions.
He moved to Athy in 2017 and transferred to play his club football there just over a year ago.
During last year's Super 8 game against Roscommon, he picked up a knee injury which forced him to miss the remainder of the championship, including Tyrone's All-Ireland final defeat to Dublin.
"Cathal represented us with great dedication and distinction for many years and takes with him a wealth of intercounty experience," said Tyrone GAA.
😢❤️ pic.twitter.com/CwI6qNvIte
— Cathal McCarron (@mc_carron1) March 21, 2019
Photo by Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile
