Joyce to hang up his boots
November 19, 2015
Padraic Joyce celebrates Killererin's 2007 Galway SFC final success with his dad Paddy and daughter Ava.
©INPHO/Lorraine O'Sullivan.
Galway football legend Pádraic Joyce will play his final game for his beloved Killererin this weekend.
The 1998 and 2001 All-Ireland winning forward will call time on his glittering playing career after Killererin's Division 2 league game against Moycullen on Sunday. He made his senior debut for the club as a 15-year-old in 1992 against Clonbur.
Joyce, who will be a selector with the Irish team that takes on Australia in Croke Park on Saturday night, retired from club football two years ago, only to reverse his decision later that same year when he scored 1-5 against Menlough in a SFC relegation playoff. But he insists he won't be changing his mind this time.
"I retired two years ago and I didn't play any football for a while," he explained to gaa.ie
"I didn't play any championship last year but I came out of retirement in October 2014 to play in a relegation playoff that year and we survived at senior. I didn't do too bad for an oul man that hadn't trained for a long time!
"So after that, I kind of got back into it again and trained. After I retired, I got into a bit of cycling and running on the roads and I got into middling shape again. So I got the bug again and I played again this year, I played the full year in 2015. It's hard to walk away from it but I'll tell you now, I've one league game left and when that's over, that's it for me.
"I'm 1000 per cent sure this time. I have a young lad in the house, three months old, and he needs my attention."
