Dublin footballer Ray Cosgrove has announced his retirement from the inter-county scene. The scorer of 6-23 in a remarkable 2002 championship campaign, the Kilmacud Crokes forward had struggled to recapture those heights in recent years and his Dublin days appeared numbered after he was introduced and then taken off in the recent NFL Division 2 final defeat to Westmeath at Navan. Explaining his decision to retire, the 31-year-old said: "I made the call myself. I felt I had to be realistic. "All good things come to an end. Obviously, I would like to have ended my career on a high but it wasn't to be. "I have two young children now and the commitment at senior inter-county level is so huge." Of Mayo stock, Cosgrove first joined the Dublin panel in 1996 but had to wait until 1999 before making his championship debut in the Leinster final defeat to Meath. He then fell out of favour under Tommy Carr, before clubmate Tommy Lyons brought him in from the cold three years later and Cosgrove repaid him with a stunning campaign which ended in heartbreaking circumstances when his last-gasp free to force a replay with Armagh in the All-Ireland semi-final struck the post. Tweet

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