Joe Bergin has called time on his 13-year inter-county career with Offaly's hurlers.
The 32-year-old Seir Kieran forward made 124 appearances across League and Championship, scoring 41-229.
Bergin scored 1-1 against Cork on his debut for the Faithful County while still a student at St Brendan's Community School.
He went on to win a Division Two League title in 2009, captained his county, collected five Railway Cup medals with Leinster and represented Ireland in the hurling/shinty series on two occasions.
"It's a big commitment and I thought long and hard about it last year as well but I didn't want to walk away given where we were and I gave it another shot. Between work and home and everything, I've just decided to take a step back," the Seir Kieran forward said in confirming his retirement to Midlands 103.
"If I'm honest it was always a dream of mine, I grew up watching Offaly playing in Croke Park and winning All-Irelands, as a young person you aspire to do that as well. I remember when I got the call from John McIntytre to come into the panel when I was 18. I didn't think I'd be playing for such a long time and I enjoyed every moment of it.
"Things are looking brighter at the moment, Michael Fennelly and Johnny Kelly are bringing professionalism and have a good structure in place. I'm hugely optimistic for the lads, they're in good hands and there's plenty of good hurlers and there's a great training facility at the Faithful Fields.
"Being an inter-county player now is night and day compared to when I started in 2006, the strength and conditioning work and the analysis has moved to a different level. You have to give much more time to think about the game outside the training sessions and move with the times.
"When the time comes I hope to be able to pass on my experience, it's not an immediate concern as I'm focusing on planning for my club, but I wouldn't rule out going into coaching into the future.
Cheers for throwing the ball out the odd time big lad! You're one of Offalys greats, unmarkable at times! With Offaly, Leinster & Ireland we hurled beside each other & I'm going to miss that! Not to mention the farms & fields of Derrykeale! Best of luck in the next chapter!💚⚾️💛 pic.twitter.com/LLF4iuRC8i
— Shane Dooley (@shanedoole) January 15, 2020
Download the brand new OffTheBall App in the Play Store & App Store right now! We've got you covered!
Subscribe to OffTheBall's YouTube channel for more videos, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter for the latest sporting news and content.