Scotland captain Corsie announces retirement

Scotland captain Rachel Corsie will retire from football following the upcoming Nations League matches against Austria and Netherlands.

The defender, who has 154 caps for the national side, was recalled to the squad by new head coach Melissa Andreatta last week.

However, a series of injuries had left her in “chronic pain” and after six surgeries – including five on her left knee – Corsie admits now is the right time to retire.

The 35-year-old has played for nine clubs across Scotland, England, USA and Australia during an 18-year playing career.

However, Corsie insists hanging up her boots following one last runout for Scotland, with whom she has reached two major finals, is the perfect way to say goodbye to the game.

She said: “I’ve obviously had a really challenging year. My body, I think, has really wanted this to be my last year.

“My heart and my head have been stubborn and said I’m not quite ready.

“Getting back playing at the end of the season [following knee surgery in October] was a really tough ambition and objective, but we got there. I feel like playing in the WSL, playing international football, I think that is the highest level.

“To be turning 36 in August and to know that I’ve got to this point playing at the highest level and I’m going to stop at that point, I think that that feels the right place for me.”

A return from surgery was in doubt

Corsie returned to action from her latest knee operation in April, four months later than planned.

October’s procedure was expected to keep her out for eight weeks, instead of the six months that followed, leaving Corsie fearful her career would end on the sidelines.

She added: “I was told by the surgeon, before having the surgery, that the condition of my knee was fairly concerning and that surgery would potentially give some relief, but there’s quite a serious likelihood that the damage that’s been done over the course of my career is going to be impactful to the rest of my life.

“The specific moment I knew there was a specific injury that was going to keep me out, I wanted to do the surgery because I knew that I couldn’t get back playing, leaving it as it was.

“I basically was just in chronic pain all the time, like walking up and down stairs to the house, sitting in the car for periods of time, going to the toilet, getting in and out of the shower and having to climb out over the bath, like all these little things, like they’re the day-to-day things that for me are now not normal.

“When you tolerate it in sport, when you go and do your training, you’re willing to accept some level of pain and discomfort, but I think it’s the rest of your day where it probably mentally impacts you more because there’s no respite for it.

“I’d say the first half of the season, especially from October through to January – that was a much harder journey.

“I’ve done a lot of rehabs, and I find the process of it almost cathartic at times because you do just follow the steps and you get there, and you feel good once you get there.

“The mental challenge of that, the emotional stress and knowing this could now be your last year, and potentially you’re not going to make it back – I think that’s something for any athlete that is extremely difficult.

“That’s not the ending that anyone wants, where you don’t really get the say on your terms to any degree.

“That also came off the back of the season before – I was available for every single game and I played in every club game and all the cup games, bar one, where I was suspended, which I also will add that is the only game in my senior career, club-wise, that I’ve been suspended for! I think I’ve done quite well to make it that far.

“It’s been a tough journey. There were a few other little niggles, which are really common. That was frustrating in their own right. I have made it and it has been worth all those days in pain.”

‘Scotland farewell the perfect ending’

Corsie’s final two games are at home to Austria on May 30, before travelling to the Netherlands four days later.

The centre-back, who is third in the all-time cap-holders list, revealed that her two all-time highlights came with the national team, meaning this was the perfect way to round off her career.

“Without doubt, the best thing I’ve ever done in my life is playing and getting to represent your country,” she said.

“There is nothing I’ve experienced in sport like that. That’s been something for me that I’ll treasure and take with me for the rest of my life.”

When asked if this feels like the perfect end, she added: “I think it does for me. I think it’s a really unique opportunity.

“There’s something special about being Scottish. I think it has been the one thing that’s been the light that I’ve needed at times to keep going, to want to keep pushing.

“I’m just so delighted that I’m going to be included, I get to be involved, and I’m looking forward to it.”

“One of my favourite moments and the moment I think was the most euphoric, that brought the biggest joy was when we qualified for the World Cup in Albania.

“I have like a very vivid visual still in my head of just the moment the referee blew for full-time. Those feelings are just unmatched.

“In the sense of a big standout, powerful moment – I think it was the day we played England in that opening game at the World Cup that followed.

“Some of that includes the build-up but I think to lead your team at their first-ever game at the World Cup – it’s a moment that can’t be replicated. It is one of those things that only happens once when you do things for the first time and that moment probably fills me with the most pride.

“You wouldn’t have dreamt of playing at a World Cup when I was a kid because you just didn’t know that was a thing.

“It [my career] has definitely surpassed everything I thought it would, because I don’t even think I thought what I’ve done was even possible. It certainly wasn’t possible when I started.”

‘A powerhouse in women’s football’

Paying tribute to her former team-mate, flat-mate and ex-Scotland international Leanne Crichton said: “My first memory of Rachel was probably when she came into the U19s national team.

“She would have only been 17, so she was a young one that was pushed up and she was really quiet, but you could tell that she was quite inquisitive and interested in everything that was going on.

“I remember her playing on the right wing at that point, and when you look at her career, it’s absolutely unimaginable to think that she would have stayed there. So whoever decided that she should move back to centre-back, that was an absolute masterstroke from that coach.

“She’s been an unbelievable captain and leader for the national team, both on and off the pitch, for what feels like such a long, long time now. I feel like she was always a leader, even before she was a captain.

“She’s always put others first and she’s always looked to try and ensure that the game is in the best place possible, both when she’s been part of it and looking to try and lay the foundations and make sure that the game’s in the best possible state it could be by the time she steps back and hangs the boots up.

“We followed similar paths in the sense that we both played for Notts County, we’ve both represented the national team, and we’ve both played at Glasgow City. Our paths have, at some point, been parallel to one another.

“She’s been an absolute powerhouse in terms of women’s football in Scotland, but not just in Scotland, I think across the UK and even over in America.

“When you look at how much she worked off the pitch, to make sure that her game was in the best place possible – she’s always comfortable enough and willing enough to advocate for others, which I think is so valuable and it’s probably why her and I have got the friendship that we’ve got and that we’re so strong in our beliefs.”

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