A lot has happened since 1992.
The internet. The Premier League. Leitrim winning the Connacht championship.
And a man named Pádraic Joyce came along and changed Galway football as we knew it. He came along and inspired a generation – and another after that. And he came along and treated football purists to 23 years of effortless class.
This weekend though, a journey spanning almost a quarter of a century comes to an end.
Pádraic Joyce has seen plenty since he made his senior club debut for Killererin at the age of 15 back in ’92. Four senior championship titles with his club, six Connacht titles with his county and two All-Irelands were actually just the tip of the iceberg for a man who’s talent and determination gripped the nation.
But, despite being pulled back out of retirement to help his club out of a relegation battle last year – and, by help, scoring 1-5 – Joyce has made the emotional decision to finally hang up his boots for good at the age of 38.
And the football world is a much worse place for it.
Speaking with GAA.ie, Joyce confirmed he has just one game left.
“I retired two years ago and I didn’t play any football for a while,” he said. “I didn’t play any championship last year but I came out of retirement in October 2014 to play in a relegation play-off this 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.”
Well, unless they need him for a relegation play-off, presumably.
Thanks for the memories, Pádraic.
