Kurt Baptiste's social media account was flooded with well wishes from his old Canberra teammates when he announced his retirement from footy, highlighting the impact he left with the club.

"I had two shoulder surgeries before I was handed a lifeline from the Canberra Raiders. I will always be incredibly grateful to Ricky for this," Baptiste wrote on Instagram.

"Canberra was the start of something great."

The 30-year-old played his first NRL game way back in 2011 for the Broncos.

He went on to have two stints with Canberra, as well as Leigh Centurions in the UK, and the Roosters and Cowboys.

The hooker also earned seven caps representing Papua New Guinea on the international stage.

Baptiste played last season with the Sunshine Coast Falcons in the Queensland Cup before finally deciding to call time on his career.

The journeyman counts his experience in the capital as the best part of his career though.

"I still have very good friends in Canberra," Baptiste said.

"The 2016 season was a highlight of mine. It was my best season playing footy.

"I was playing every game and we had a really good run that year, getting to the preliminary final.

"I just remember that whole season. We went on a really big run winning 13 or 14-straight. It was a memorable year for me definitely.

"Whenever anyone asks me who I go for, I tell them, 'Canberra'. It was special there."

Baptiste is adamant he's ready for retirement, but conceded he will miss the roar of footy fans, especially those wearing green.

"I miss the Raiders fans. I always received a lot of support from them when I was down there," he said.

Baptiste now calls the Sunshine Coast his home and is eyeing a new career path in civil engineering.

He is currently in his last semester of a university degree he began in 2009, and is working as an undergrad engineer for a major firm.

While some players can struggle with the adjustment to 9-5 jobs, Baptiste believes he won't have those issues.

"It's a little bit sad. I'll miss footy but there's a lot to look forward to in the next stage of life," Baptiste said.

"I don't have to work around football anymore.

"My last year of NRL was 2019 so I've had time to make this transition. I'm ready for it.

"I will enjoy watching footy from the couch."

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