KEIGHLEY Cougars club captain James ‘Buster’ Feather has announced he is to retire from playing at the conclusion of the current season after 15 years with the club.

He has accepted a position on the coaching staff under Craig Lingard for the 2018 season, when he will move into the backroom team.

In a lengthy statement on the club's website, Feather said: “It’s something I’ve been toying with all year to be honest since pre-season as I’ve found it hard to keep myself in condition.

“I’ve gone self-employed by setting up my own business and it’s been really tough especially going back into the building trade.

“But the biggest thing for me is that I’ve found it harder than I’ve ever found it before and it’s been tough to keep myself fit and as sharp as the others because when I’m out on the field I feel okay but there’s certain stuff I’m missing.

“There might be a tackle that I know in the past I could have got to or there would be half a gap that I know I could have got through and little things like that mean a lot to me as I’m a percentage type of player and I know I could have made 30 or 40 tackles a game.

“But now I’m only making 20 tackles a game and that breaks my heart so that’s the reason I’m going to retire.

“This has been the hardest decision in the world and I want to play on forever but I feel the sport is cruel as if you play snooker or darts as a kid you can play well into your fifties and earn good money from it.

“But for us as professional Rugby League players you’ve got a ten year stint I’d say if you’re lucky to be mostly injury free which I have been but the sport is cruel, you get a short period and you train all your life from when you’re 8 years old and you play for the reserves and break into the first team and then one day you’re career is over because you’re too old."

Feather joined the club in 2003 and went on to make his senior debut in a 2006 Northern Rail Cup defeat away at Oldham Roughyeds before being appointed captain by Barry Eaton the following season after the retirement of Phil Stephenson.

Feather in the past decade has captained the club on 247 different occasions and led the side through two promotions in 2009 and 2011, relegations in 2010 and 2014, administration in 2010 and the tragic death of Danny Jones in 2015.

In that time Buster has made 304 appearances for Cougars and has scored 62 tries including hat-tricks in the emotionally charged home victory over Coventry Bears in May 2015 and again against the Hemel Stags later that year.

He has also played under four different head coaches and recently passed the milestone of playing alongside 200 different team-mates.

Feather is looking forward to learning new coaching skills under boss Lingard, who he has been impressed with since the former Batley assistant-coach succeeded Paul March at the Cougar Park helm last autumn.

Feather said: "I wish he would have been brought in sooner, which is no disrespect to Paul March because Marchy is a good coach, but I feel that I have learned a lot from Craig and he could have developed me further as a player.

“I did speak to Craig at the start of this year and told him that I could give him two more years but as the year has gone on I can’t see myself doing another year playing as well as I know that I can. I don’t want to be one of those players who is 18th or 19th man every week.

“When I spoke to Craig about my decision to retire he was keen to keep me on as a part of his coaching staff but in a different role as more of a 'step into the background' coach to allow me to learn as I’m not in a position to coach anyone at the moment.

“I would be setting myself up to fail by going straight into coaching and I have to learn my trade first.

"Craig is a really good coach and the Cougars are in good hands with him and will take us forward. I’m really looking forward to learning from him.

“I’m going to venture out a little bit too as I have friends at other clubs and I want to see what other clubs do as Keighley Cougars is all I’ve ever known.

"It will be good to see how other clubs operate aside from the Cougars."