Aged thirty-three, Northern Ireland international Rory McArdle played twenty-one league games for Exeter City in 2020/21. He joined from Scunthorpe and moved to Harrogate. In a long professional career Rory made 650 league and cup appearances for his various clubs.

Rory became a Sheffield Wednesday trainee in 2003 turning professional the following year. Over the next three years he made two substitute appearances for the Owls - one in the league, the other in the League Cup - whilst spending two spells on loan at Rochdale. On release from his hometown club in 2007 Rory made the switch to Spotland on a permanent basis and appeared in over 130 league and cup games before heading north to Aberdeen in 2010.        

Having played under-19 and under-21 football for Northern Ireland Rory made his full-international debut shortly after joining Aberdeen where he was to make nearly 70 appearances in all competitions over the next two seasons. Next stop was Bradford City where - in a five-year stay - Rory won promotion, was awarded player of the season and made 231 appearances in all competitions. He also took his tally of Northern Irish caps to seven. After leaving Valley Parade, Rory played 117 league and cup games in his three years at Scunthorpe United. 

Then aged thirty-three, this put Rory on over 580 senior appearances when he joined Exeter City in August 2020.  He made his debut for Exeter on 5 September 2020 in the League Cup against Bristol City and his league debut on 12 September 2020 against Salford City. Rory scored his only goal for the club on 2 February 2021 and left City to sign for Harrogate Town at the end of the season.  

Rory missed around three months of the 2021/22 season because of injury and only played in around half of Harrogate’s matches. He signed a further one-year contract with the Yorkshire club in May 2022 but, featuring even less-regularly, Rory retired from football at the end of the 2022/23 season.