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==Maturing & Mentoring: 2001-2006==
In what would turn out to be a mixed few years for Séamus Moynihan, Kerry lost heavily to [[Meath GAA|Meath]] in the All Ireland Semi Final of 2001 but were back in an All Ireland Final again in [[2002]], where they were stunned by a now fully formed [[Armagh GAA|Armagh]] side, playing the GAA equivalent of "total football", where every position on the field was interchangable, subs were used in an unconventional way and traditional oppositional counter-tactics just failed to work. Like many Southern teams, Kerry were slow to deal with the tactical creativity and intensity of the Northern style of play and Moynihan often found the pace of these encounters would show up his increasingly noticable lack of pace. After a semi-final defeat and a change of management in 2003, Kerry found themselves back in the All Ireland Final in 2004, yet again facing Mayo. To make matters worseUnluckily, Moynihan had suffered an ankle injury during the earlier part of the season and found himself in a quasi-managemnt role for the latter stages of the All Ireland campaign; his input in the final limited to a short run-on when Kerry were well in control of the game. Now 30, Séamus Moynihan began to look for a way to go out "at the top".
The chance to go out in style arrived in September 2005 as Kerry returned to Croke Park to face Tyrone. Again, the tactical creativity and zeal of Mickey Harte's side caught Kerry off sideguard and they were comprehensively beaten by a much stronger [[Tyrone GAA|Tyrone]] team, in no small part driven by the imminent retirement of [[Peter Canavan]], the risng stars of [[Eoin Mulligan]] and [[Stephen O'Neill]] along with the spirit of the late [[Cormac McAnallen]]. Observers noted again how Séamus Moynihan struggled against the stealth and pace of the Tyrone play and many, including himself, saw it as a clear sign that he should nowconsider retirement from inter-county retirelevel.
A number of weeks of reflection followed and when Jack O'Connor announced he was willing to give it one more chance, Moynihan agreed to rejoin the panel. After many months of personal training by [[Ger Hartmann]] in Limerick and following the 3rd year of the "speed and strength" conditioning approach of [[Pat Flanagan]] with the Kerry Seniors, Moynihan emerged a visibly renewed force. Despite his excellent physical condition, he was surprisingly slow to build the intensity of his play during the early games in the championship, up to and including the Munster Final Replay defeat to arch rivals [[Cork GAA|Cork]]. RumoursMedia rumours were riftrife of a 'split in the camp' and of 'internal squabbling' but a new look team, incorporating the rangy skills of Austin Stacks' [[Kieran Donaghy]] at [[Fullfull Forwardforward]] seemed to give the team a new dimension along with new forward-play options. From this point, and playing in an visibly more settled side, Moynihan began to exert considerable influence as Kerry cruised past [[Longford GAA|Longford]], [[Armagh GAA|Armagh]] and Cork, into their 68th All Irelnd Final. What followed in the final was a unexpected tour de force of stealth, speed and power as the Kerry Seniors, driven by a resurgent Moynihan, disproved all doubters by helping inspire Kerry towinning their 34th All Ireland title, roundly demolishing an ill-fated and rudderless Mayo side. Alongside Man of the Match [[Aidan O'Mahony]] and midfield dynamo [[Paul Galvin]], Moynihan's performance captivated the crowd; he even managed to punch over one point from play.
After the game, an emotional Séamus Moynihan was quoted as saying:
==Retirement and Plaudits==
Since early 2006, itIt was strongly rumoured throughout 2006 that Séamus Moynihan's 2006 campaign would be his last in a Kerry shirt - a suggestion that was strongly appealed by pundits and fans alike during the week of celebrations that followed their storming victory over [[Mayo GAA|Mayo]]. Despite these pleas, Moynihan announced his retirement from inter-county football on Saturday, September 23rd through an article in The Irish Times.[http://www.hoganstand.com/ArticleForm.aspx?ID=66817] On the following Monday, Kerry team manager Jack O’Connor hailed Moynihan as “a one-off player” and said Kerry football would never see his like again. He also acknowledgedstated that heSéamus was an inspiration to the entire Kerry team, particulary the younger players and that he would be missed. Announcing his decision to quit lining out for Kerry, Séamus Moynihan said: “All good things come to an end.” [[http://www.the-kingdom.ie/news/story.asp?j=21929&cat=news]]
==Career Awards==
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