Kennelly gets shiver from an old haunt

GAELIC GAMES:A YEAR ago Tadhg Kennelly was in the middle of a furore over his foul on Nicholas Murphy in the opening minutes of the All-Ireland final.

By that stage it was less the foul and more the self-satisfied description of it in his autobiography, ghosted by an Australian reporter, that was causing the fuss.

Kennelly himself was also on the way back to Australia to resume his AFL career in Sydney. Speaking on his return yesterday at the Croke Park launch of this year’s International Rules series in which he will be playing for Ireland, the player reflected on the controversy.

“That’s the Australian lingo, if it was written by an Irish journo it wouldn’t have been as bad. It still would have been said that in the first 10 minutes I was going to be physically hard, I think the way the game had panned out.

“If I hadn’t hit Nicholas I would have wrote the same thing, that I wanted to be physically tough in the game just to let them know we’re in the game – that we’re a different outfit basically. I wasn’t going to be going out trying to clean up every fella in the field. That’s not the way I play football.

“Definitely with an Irish author it would have been different and that’s the difference between the two cultures as well.”

Nonetheless he is pleased to be home.

“It is funny coming back and just there seeing the stadium again it just gives me a shiver. It just has that affect on me and Croke Park has that affect on a lot of people.

“I have played big games in Melbourne, in the MCG and in our own stadium, the SCG, but nothing compares to this place. I suppose a lot of it has to do with my childhood, watching the Bomber and watching my father playing here. It is great to be back.”

Now half way through a two-year contract with the Swans, he doesn’t rule out another return home, like last year when his 12-month sabbatical included an All-Ireland and All Star.

“It was a challenge again for me and it was great to play the year out and have a good year. I never say ‘never’.”

A familiar face from both Kerry and Australia is rookie international Tommy Walsh, now on the books at St Kilda and adapting to life in the AFL.

“Every time I’m down there (in Melbourne) I meet up with him,” says Kennelly. “I’m constantly on the phone with him. I ring most of the players over there to see how they are. I have been through a lot of it.

“I know how hard it is being in that situation. Tommy has had a great year. He played a lot of games in the reserves. They played him all over the park to see where he was comfortable. But I have no doubt he will play senior football next year.”

He doesn’t feel that the rules have inhibited the Australians’ natural physicality.

“I don’t think so. I think the game itself had just been cleaned and played like a game of AFL football. I said it in the past, I have got dirtier digs playing club games or playing for county than I ever have got playing AFL.”