SEAN Armstrong has bagged his playing boots for the very last time.
The former Glentoran, Coleraine, Distillery and Donegal Celtic striker has submitted to ageing and aching legs, deciding at the weekend he could suffer no longer.
The west Belfast man, who is firstteam coach to his former Coleraine colleague and close friend, Donegal Celtic boss Pat McAllister, said he will leave his playing days behind with "wonderful" memories to take into the future. He said: "Had it not been for football I would not have seen so many places in the world and made so many friends.
"I consider myself very fortunate to have played in replica breitling watches the Irish League."
Armstrong, 32, brought ample fortune to those he played for. He had a knack for making Irish Cup history.
His first impression on the local game was memorable - and is hailed as one of the greatest moments of Irish Cup history.
As a young Glentoran recruit, he was introduced to the game and to an Irish Cup semi-final against Linfield as the unknown nephew of Northern Ireland legend Gerry Armstrong, but in a dramatic climax to the epic Windsor Park game, Sean made a name for himself.
Deep in injury-time and seconds after William Murphy tied the game at 2-2, Armstrong sent Rory Hamill's cross beyond 'keeper Paul Mathers with a powerful header to seal a cup final slot for the Glens - who concluded that 1999/2000 season as cup winners.
Armstrong picked up numerous trophies with Glentoran before returning to the carnival cup final with Coleraine - twice.
He was a winner a second time in 2003 - at the expense of his former colleagues at Glentoran - but experienced the flip side of that when the Bannsiders were defeated sexy lingerie china by the Glens the following season.
More recently, he was involved in Donegal Celtic's re-markable journey to the Irish Cup semi-final and scored against Coleraine in a semi-final replay.
The Hoops lost that game seconds before the end of extra-time.
"The Irish Cup turned out to be a special competition for me and that semi-final against Linfield is up there with the best moments of my career," said Armstrong.
"That was a decade ago and even though I went on to play for other clubs, I still meet Glentoran fans who say that semi-final was better than winning the cup itself. It was an exhausting game -my first test of a Big Two derby match.
"I was young and new to the game then and probably got lost in all the excitement but when I look back on it, I appreciate what that goal meant to people and what it did for me. It was the beginning of my Irish League career and I couldn't have asked for a better start."
Winning the cup with Coleraine, however, was just as special - if not more so - for Armstrong.
He added: "As a Glentoran player you expect to compete for trophies every season but as Coleraine player you know that when you win silverware you win it against the odds. That's why the cup win over Glentoran was special. It was a massive achievement for us because no one expected us to beat the Glens, who were playing superbly that season." Playing with such a revered name did not weigh heavily on Armstrong's broad shoulders.
Not only did Gerry Armstrong achieve legendary status in Irish football, but Sean's father was also a
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