It was the long goodbye for Tommy Bowe as he gave himself a year to wind down his rugby career and hang up the boots once and for all. "I was able to enjoy my final year," he told Ray D'Arcy, "and because of that, maybe I don't miss it as much as maybe some of the other guys do."
One thing he definitely doesn't miss is the training. "When it's pouring rain, the wind's howling and you're going across to do contact practice," he told Ray, it's not exactly his idea of fun.
Something that is fun, however, is his new gig as a presenter with Eir Sport alongside some of his old rugby buddies.
"The dynamic is good, the craic is good, we're trying not to be too serious but at the same time we do have insight that we can try to offer out to the viewers but also try and put a smile on their face."
Tommy told Ray about a new project he's passionate about, Rugby Rising, giving those training at a schools level another outlet to get together and enjoy the sport they work so hard to master.
"We wanted to add something else into the schools’ calendar that was a bit of fun, brings back some of the old school values of getting to hang out with the people that you're playing against so Rugby Rising is starting next week. Hopefully, it'll be the first year of many years to go."
Click here to listen to Tommy's chat in full.