NOT EVEN the return of Jim McGuinness to the Donegal hotseat could have persuaded Michael Murphy to park his retirement plans and to continue playing for another season.

That was the declaration of the freshly retired Donegal great who said he wished to clarify ‘in the strongest possible way’ that he would have quit regardless of who took over.

In the end, Paddy Carr was the surprise choice to replace Declan Bonner and with long-serving captain Murphy announcing his retirement three weeks later, it was inevitably speculated upon that the two developments were linked.

Speaking at the announcement that he will work as an analyst for Championship broadcaster GAAGO next season, Murphy insisted that the two things weren’t connected and said, in reality, he was ’90%’ sure about retiring following the June qualifier defeat to Armagh in Clones.

But what if McGuinness, the man who initially made Murphy captain and who led the Glenswilly star to All-Ireland success in 2012, had returned — might that have changed things?

“No is the definite answer,” responded Murphy. “Whoever was the manager, I’m not in a position where I am able to give (less) than what I know I need to give. I know some players can do that and I know some players can manage and mind themselves at the beginning of the year, maybe take a Tuesday out or a Thursday out. That would absolutely crawl me, I would be an antichrist around the place. I wouldn’t be an influence. I wouldn’t be doing Donegal a service in any way.

“So whoever it was coming in to manage the group, it wouldn’t have changed things a bit, and I mean that in the strongest possible way.”

Murphy, who captained Donegal for over a decade and played for 15 years in total, said it ultimately came down to him losing his ‘energy’ and enthusiasm for the level of work required to remain at the top.

Carr’s appointment was merely coincidental.

“It had zero to do with it,” said the 33-year-old. “It was a decision for myself. For me to give Paddy Carr what was required this year and for us all to give Donegal what was required, I knew the level required and I just knew myself in my heart I wasn’t going to be able to give it. It’s a difficult thing to say after all those years but that’s essentially where it is at. I’m content with that now.”

Murphy recalled being the last player to leave the dressing room in Clones after the Donegal loss to Armagh and said he travelled home with his parents from the game instead of joining his colleagues on the team bus.

“I don’t know if something came over me but I met the father outside and normally I’d give him the bag to bring home but that time I was bringing it home myself,” he said.

“I threw it in the boot and went home with him. That just further cemented my decision. I shared my first drive up there with him and I’ll probably share my last drive with him, that kind of thing. Listen, I asked myself, ‘Why did I do that? Was it a selfish thing to leave the team that time?’ Potentially, but that was the decision I came to at that time. It probably further underlined that it was my first step towards detaching.”

Despite winning the All-Ireland, five Ulster titles and three All-Stars, Murphy still leaves with regrets.

“Without a doubt,” he said. “There’s regret after every year. There’s regret over five Ulsters (final losses). There’s regret over this year just gone. (Losing the All-Ireland final in) 2014 is a big one, definitely, that stands out. And the Ulsters, a couple of them, that we didn’t win. Not taking anything from the winners of those games, that’s important to say, but there were times when we just didn’t perform.

“We couldn’t say that we performed eight or nine out of 10 and just came up short. In comparison to where we had been beforehand when we were up at that level, we dropped down on those days to six or seven. And we were still close, were still within a kick of a ball. They’re definitely regrets.”

Supporters would love to see Murphy return at some stage to aid the management team or, perhaps, to lead the county.

“You need to have so many ducks in a row there to be able to give 100 percent of your energy to it,” he said of managing Donegal. “I would have a bit more of a question mark around that now than I would have had maybe four or five years ago.”

Carr, who will be aided by experienced coach Aidan O’Rourke, will have a stiff task to replace Murphy though the player himself is adamant his departure doesn’t have to spell a period of transition where results tail off.

“Does transition give you grace and allow you time to build? I don’t think so,” he said. “I think this year our boys are well capable. They’re in Division 1, they’re well capable of competing there, they’re well capable of competing in Ulster. I’ve no doubt the ability is definitely there. I definitely wouldn’t be putting the label of transition on it. I think they’re well capable of going and doing it. That’s not putting pressure on them or anything, that’s just where I see it.”