Yesterday it was announced that five-time All Star and multiple All Ireland-winning wing-back Tomas O'Se is retiring from inter-county football.
The name itself holds a certain mythical status in Kerry and that was delivered on the pitch from the moment he made his Championship debut in 1998 all the way to today.
Two men - Dara O'Cinneide and Darran O'Sullivan - who have shared pitches and dressing rooms with him were on Off The Ball last night to tell the lads what it was that made him a living legend.
O'Se announced his decision to retire on O'Cinneide's radio show on Raidio na Gaeltachta.
"Tomas probably had his mind made up immediately after the Dublin game. I'd know Tomas inside-out over the years and lived together in college so it was really just a chat. It was an easy interview," said O'Cinneide.
"We all remember him for his marauding runs up the wing. He wasn't always like that in the early years but he felt like he had extra energy around 2003/2004 and Jack O'Connor came on the scene and encouraged it. It became a tactic for the opposition to put an extra midfielder on him to track his runs."
A nightmare for wing-forwards, O'Sullivan knew exactly how O'Se impacted on the opposition.
"Being a wing forward I probably marked him more in training than other fellas," said O'Sullivan. "The first thing you'd think is 'God I hope he doesn't outscore me'. He's like a machine, he just keeps on going and that's why it's been a shock that he's retiring. You'd just presume that he'd go on forever. He wasn't slowing down."
Tomas was the "natural successor" to his uncle - the late, great Paidi O'Se according to Dara O'Cinneide.
"It never inhibited him even on his debut game when he performed quite poorly. He never buckled under that pressure because he always felt that Paidi was more of a guidance. I think he would have used Dara and his older brothers Fergal and Mark as well as his confidantes in those early years. I don't think he ever doubted himself which is something of an O'Se trait."
Listen to the full interview below or download the podcast on iTunes.
Main Image: ©INPHO/James Crombie
