Family commitments have dashed the hopes of Scott Chipperfield, the Illawarra's most decorated footballing export, from returning to football in Wollongong and the A-League.
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Less than a month after penning a short-team deal to link with boyhood club Tarrawanna, Chipperfield (pictured) used social media to announce he would stay in Switzerland under the urgings of his two sons, Liam and Naven.
He posted on Facebook: "No A-League for me. Asked the boys if I can go to Oz to play & they said no :). Stay in Swiss and play amateur league & look for a job :)."
The former Socceroo, capped 68 times, had signalled his intention to finish his career in the A-League after an 11-year stint with perennial Swiss champions Basel.
Fledgling franchise Western Sydney Wanderers was widely tipped as the front runner for his signature, possibly after a cameo with Tarrawanna.
But Chipperfield contacted Blueys officials earlier this week to notify them of his decision to remain in Europe.
He had signed with Tarrawanna - for free - outside a Corrimal fish and chip shop while on a one-week holiday in Australia.
Tarrawanna president Steve Naylor said the Illawarra Premier League outfit would remain open to Chipperfield making a cameo appearance in the future.
"Tarrawanna's a very family-oriented club so family definitely comes first," he said. "Scott's been a big supporter of ours in the past and I'm sure he'll be in the future.
"I'm sure if he wants to come back and play in the Illawarra, Tarrawanna will be the first club he comes knocking on the door to."
Coach Luke McGuire said Tarrawanna were realistic about Chipperfield's availability if able to return to Australia, with a sparse schedule likely to conflict with preseason commitments in the A-League.
"To be fair, everyone was excited he was going to be coming, but as far as the playing group and the coaches were concerned, it was just business as usual," he said.
"If he came, he came. If he didn't, he didn't. There was no 100 per cent guarantee. He could've been picked up in the A-League and if that was the case it was a 50-50 call whether he could actually play for us [anyway].
"It'd have been great promotion for the league and the club."
Chipperfield is the second Socceroo to turn his back on the A-League this week. Harry Kewell declared he would be leaving Melbourne Victory to return to England for family reasons.
