Sunderland AFC can today announce that Grace McCatty has decided to retire from football at the end of the season.
McCatty has spent six seasons at the Club, playing 111 games during her time on Wearside, as well as playing for Gloucester City, Durham and a 10-year spell with Bristol City.
The 34-year-old joined the Club in the Women’s National League, and has been played a crucial role in getting the team to near the top of the Championship.
On her retirement, McCatty said: “It’s not been an easy decision. I was saying to the girls that I joined my first football team in 1994, if you had told me back then what I know now and the experiences I’d gone through, I couldn’t have asked for more in my career.
“The first time I spoke to Mel about coming to Sunderland, I said i wanted to play a part in getting the Club back to where it belongs. Here we are so six years later so close to achieving that and I feel like it's a good time to go out.
“I’m proud of what I’ve achieved and while it’s hard to say goodbye, I think it’s time for the next chapter.
Sunderland Women Head Coach Mel Reay said: “Grace arrived at the club following our demotion from the Super League in 2018. She made her debut with what was largely a new team full of youngsters made up from our development squad.
“From my perspective, her leadership skills have proved invaluable in the rebuilding of the team and her qualities as a player were not only a major factor in our promotion to the Championship, but in our subsequent survival there and now our challenge for promotion.
“Grace, I just want to say thank you for six years of brilliant service. You have been a pleasure to work with. You are the ultimate role model for the players around you and I hope you enjoy your retirement safe in the knowledge that you have been instrumental in the identity of the team we see today and a superb ambassador for Sunderland Association Football Club and Women’s football in general.”
Everyone at Sunderland AFC would like to thank Grace for her outstanding contribution to the Club.