CATS ruckman Hamish McIntosh has announced his retirement, effective immediately.

The 30-year-old, who played 107 games for North Melbourne before joining Geelong in the 2012 trade period, made the decision after suffering yet another ankle injury.

"It's been an emotional few days," McIntosh told CatsTV on Wednesday.

"Unfortunately, my ankle has broken down again and I need surgery next week, so it's obviously forced my hand a little bit.

"I'll be retiring from AFL footy today. It's sad ... I've been a bit of a mess, really, because it's been an amazing journey to play for 13 years for two great clubs, in North Melbourne and here.

"It's been a ball, it's been so much fun, but unfortunately it all ends today."

McIntosh played 19 games for the Cats, all of them last season.

Injury problems restricted him to just two VFL appearances this year.

To watch the full CatsTV interview with Hamish McIntosh click on the video player at the top of the page