James McClean has bid an emotional farewell as he retires from international football.
Last month, the 34-year-old revealed their November 21 friendly against New Zealand would be his final appearance for the Republic of Ireland.
The Derry native earned his 103rd international cap in the 1-1 draw against the All Blacks at Dublin’s Aviva Stadium on Tuesday night.
Speaking after the match, James said: “I think this is the right time to go. Not many people get to go out on their terms. I’ve had the absolute time of my life. I’ve achieved so much beyond my wildest dreams, I’ve had my time.”
“The lads were saying tonight, ‘Why didn’t you cry? I would have cried’ but I don’t see the need to cry because like I said, I had the time of my life, I’ve had so many happy memories, and it’s been an absolute honour.”
“I’m going to call it how I see it. There is so much ability here. These lads are young, that’s not making excuses for them. International football is a whole different level.”
“These will get better with experience and you know with that experience I’ve no doubt that down the lines these lads will bring the glory days back and when I say glory days I mean qualifying for major tournaments because they just need to believe in themselves, because the ability is there, it’s just getting that consistency and doing it every single game, and I’ve no doubt that will come with experience.’
“There were so many highs, but I think the Euros in 2016… I don’t think you can top that,” James admitted. “That night in Lille when we beat Italy was, I honestly, I said this before, I wish you could bottle that because if you could bottle that and sell it, you’d be laughing. Absolutely phenomenal.”
“It’s been absolutely amazing. From the second I stepped on the pitch against the Czech Republic in 2012, the fans here in the stadium have been absolutely phenomenal, home and away. That was something again that was very special.”
“And I pride myself on how your nearest and dearest, your teammates, view you as a person and tonight that showed how they viewed me, I’ve struck up some great relationships with the lads over the years and it’s something that I will miss, the camaraderie around the squad and going into battle with these lads.”
“It’s something that I had to deal with in June as well with the 100th cap, trying to find the right balance. Look, it’s a bit bittersweet it didn’t end on a win. But I’m going to savour the night for what it was, I’ve added a few more lovely special memories to the ones I’ve got. That’s the positive I’m going to take from it.”
James made his first senior appearance for Ireland in 2012 against Czech Republic.
The 34-year-old, who won his 100th cap against Gibraltar at the Aviva Stadium last June, scored 11 times for his country.
The Derry native has been married to his wife Erin since 2016, and the couple share four children – Allie May, James Jr, Willow Ivy, and Mia Rose.
