To see Sydney training today...

Corica said he sat in the dressing room after a Sydney loss around four weeks ago and made the decision to retire. He held on just to make sure that he was making the right move but confirmed it with teammates this morning.

And it wasn't easy particularly with other FC foundation players in the current sky blue camp.

He said there were a few tears shared with his sky blues comrades.

"The bottom lip went [when telling them], they didn't bring me any tissues" he said with a laugh.

"I told them in the changing room. It was really tough. I've been with them from the start. Especially guys like Terry McFlynn and Clint Bolton, who are two of the originals from season one left at the club.

"It's a difficult one to bring up. People don't know what to say to you. But they were very supportive."

Corica said his gut feeling was to finish on a good note. That good note takes shape on Sunday when Sydney play rival Melbourne Victory in a blockbuster Premiership decider.

"We have a great opportunity [for the Premiership] so let's not waste it away, it doesn't come around very often,  I told them," the veteran said of his chat with his soon-to-be ex-teammates.

"It means a lot to me. We won it in the first year and it would be nice for another grand final win but we've still got a lot of hard work to do."

The classy playmaker added that aside from paying tribute to his family and club he also hailed the work of osteopath Kay McPherson for helping his body endure the rigours of professional football in his 30s.

McPherson was instrumental in helping another former Socceroo in Paul Okon overcome serious long-term injury.

Corica, 37 in March, said he won't miss pre-season training but will miss the banter in the changing room as he morphs from player to a coach at the club he loves - although he skipped training with them today.

And he hailed Melbourne Victory's Kevin Muscat as the toughest player he's locked horns with in the A-League.

At international level, the former Marconi man says being part of a 1993 Socceroo World Cup squad playing against Maradona's Argentina was for him the highlight.

Corica added: "I've learnt a lot from [coaches] Pierre Littbarski and also Vitya [Lavicka] but I've had a good relationship with all my coaches. There are times you don't agree with them but they are the boss

"My game's changed from my days at Marconi, but obviously now you become smarter and learn a lot more."

To see Sydney training today...