Niamh O'Sullivan has fond Meath memories but no regrets

While admitting there is never truly a right time to hang up your boots, Meath's Niamh O’Sullivan has said she's happy with her decision to retire from inter-county football.

A senior debutante as a teenager back in 2008, the Dunshaughlin native previously stepped away from the Royal panel for a number of years before returning to the fold in 2016.

Meath dropped down from the TG4 All-Ireland senior football championship at the end of her comeback year, only to eventually reclaim a top-tier spot with an All-Ireland intermediate success in 2020.

In addition to claiming Division 2 and Division 1 Lidl National Football crowns in the same years, O’Sullivan was a pivotal figure as Meath secured back-to-back All-Ireland SFC titles in 2021 and 2022 with Eamonn Murray at the helm. Yet last year’s Brendan Martin Cup campaign ended in a quarter-final defeat to Kerry and this proved to be her final game for the Royal County.

"There’s never really a right time to hang up the boots," O'Sullivan said.

"You’re always kind of asking yourself, 'am I doing the right thing?’. If I was a bit different and maybe more emotional, I probably would be questioning my decision, but there’s serious talent coming through on that team and my old legs were never going to last forever with these young girls coming up.

"Obviously it's a sad decision, but as I keep saying, it’s a very happy one."

"It has been a magical few years. Would I have ever thought that I’d have three All-Ireland medals in my back pocket? Absolutely not. I always wanted to just play in Croke Park. It didn’t matter if we’d won, lost or drawn in Croke Park, I just wanted to be able to say I played in Croke Park.

"To have been able to play there on numerous occasions has been just an absolute