The world of rugby has been paying tribute to Rory Best after the Ulster and Ireland captain confirmed he will retire from professional rugby after the Rugby World Cup in Japan.
Best will bow out with a hugely impressive list of honours and will go down as a legend of the modern game, having spent 15 seasons at the top level.
Originally starting his rugby development at Banbridge RFC, Best would go on to represent Portadown College, Belfast Harlequins RFC and Ulster at club level, before making his international debut for Ireland as a replacement against the All Blacks at Lansdowne Road in November 2005.
The hooker would then go on to become Ulster’s most-capped international with 116 appearances (10 tries) and helped Ireland win the Six Nations Championship on four occasions, including two Grand Slam successes (one as captain).
And his achievements haven't gone unnoticed, with fans of the game taking to Twitter to pay tribute to the 36-year old.
Ulster and Ireland rugby star Rory Best to retire from the sport
Ulster Rugby legend Rory Best holds back the tears during press conference to announce retirement
Ulster injury news as prop Marty Moore is ruled out for rest of the season
Keep up-to-date with all the very latest news, what's on, sport and everything else in Belfast and beyond with the Belfast Live app.
Only select news that interests you by picking the topics you want to display on the app's homepage. Plus, our enhanced user experience includes live blogs, video, interactive maps and slick picture galleries. Download it now and get involved.
Click here to get it from the App Store or here for Google Play .
