"When you get to hear Adrian Varley's life story - the highs and lows, the mental health struggles - it makes almost perfect metaphorical sense that he decided to call time on Galway at the height of Covid."
"It was November 2020. He had hurt his hamstring - "another kick in the teeth" - some 10 days out from the Connacht SFC final against Mayo in Pearse Stadium. And in those depressingly isolated times, if you weren't in the '26', then you weren't allowed in the ground."
Adrian Varley experienced significant highs and lows and faced mental health struggles. He decided to end his Galway career during the height of Covid in November 2020. Ten days before the Connacht SFC final against Mayo at Pearse Stadium he suffered a hamstring injury described as "another kick in the teeth." Covid-era protocols limited access so that only the team '26' could enter the ground, leaving others excluded. Injury, isolation from pandemic restrictions, and ongoing mental-health challenges combined to shape his decision to step away from inter-county football.
Read at Independent
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