Run-of-page feature
Better Byrne to Bow Out? (Emma Byrne retires)
She Kicks, issue 43, September 2017 pp.44–45
Emma Byrne retires as a Brighton player after 23 years and a record 134 caps for the Republic of Ireland, and 17 years and 29 trophies at Arsenal. She was central to the 2007 Quadruple, and the tributes to her performance in the UEFA Cup final against Umea are unanimous: Jayne Ludlow remembers immense saves and nearly having her lights punched out; Vic Akers recalls the ball hitting Byrne on the head and going wide; Rachel Yankey says most seasons Arsenal did not need a goalkeeper and that day they did. She Kicks also credits her stand for Republic of Ireland players in their 2017 dispute with the FAI. The tribute closes with her own withering, affectionate one-line profiles of team mates, written for cup final programmes.