KERRY SFC FINAL: Dr Crokes 2-8 Mid Kerry 0-8:AN EXPLOSIVE opening helped holders Dr Crokes assume instant control of the Kerry SFC final at Fitzgerald Stadium yesterday.
From the throw-in Dr Crokes midfielder Johnny Buckley gained possession and found Kieran O’Leary in the left corner, he burst past his marker only to allow the ball to get away as he was about to shoot, but it fell invitingly to ace predator Colm Cooper and he shot low to the Mid Kerry net from off the turf.
This was a body blow that Mid Kerry took the best part of 20 minutes to recover from, as Crokes controlled matters in typical fashion with the attack moving with menace. Only some sloppy finishing saved Mid Kerry, who had started with Donnchadh Walsh at midfield, but they were sluggish in the extreme on a heavy surface and in driving rain.
Crokes boss Harry O’Neill was delighted with the win, which was the club’s first back-to-back success for almost 100 years, while it was the club’s first ever county championship win in their native Killarney.
“We got off to a great start and I thought we were in control of the first half. Yet they turned the game around after half-time and it was back in the melting point. But we were all told that we were going to concede a goal from a high ball but we put one in on top of them and got one,” he said.
“I felt we controlled it after that and once we didn’t concede a goal, we’d be okay.”
Points from Brian Looney, Daithí Casey and Cooper again saw Crokes lead 1-3 to 0-0 after 20 minutes and if Cooper had not drilled a great goal chance wide in the 11th minute, it might well have been game over.
Mid Kerry – who dropped the experienced Gary Sayers – just could not buy a score with three wides as Darran O’Sullivan and Donnchadh Walsh tried in vain to get the divisional side going.
Defender Pa Kilkenny scored Mid Kerry’s solitary first-half point as their wide count increased to five and it was Cooper with a beauty from play, that saw Crokes lead 1-4 to 0-1 at the interval.
Mid Kerry resumed a fired-up side with Fergal Griffin’s move to midfield making a difference and four points on the trot from Gavin O’Grady (2), Darran O’Sullivan and Sean O’Sullivan, within the opening six minutes, reduced the deficit to just two points as Crokes appeared rattled.
However the game was decided in the 40th minute when Cooper sent in a high ball that keeper Mike Moriarty left his line for but when he failed to make contact, Daithí Casey (already a Cork county championship winner with UCC) shot to the empty net.
Despite a Bernard Murphy point for Mid Kerry, three unanswered Crokes points from Cooper, Kieran O’Leary and Johnny Buckley saw the champions move 2-7 to 0-6 clear and there was no way back for Mid Kerry. Dr Crokes now play Waterford champions, Ballinacourty on Sunday next in the Munster Club.
After the game Cooper was asked about the likelihood of him captaining Kerry again next season. “I haven’t really thought about it to be honest. There are five guys involved with Kerry at the moment and three of the more established, as we would call them, would be Kieran (O’Leary), Eoin (Brosnan) and myself. The club have not discussed it or had any conversation with us yet so I don’t know what the story is with it right now.
“I enjoyed my year as captain and it was a wonderful achievement to captain Kerry to an All-Ireland final though it would have been better if we had been successful.
“But look we will enjoy tonight and we will move on and prepare for Sunday.
“There is plenty time anyway for that decision to be made so we will wait and see.”
DR CROKES:A Kelly; J Payne, L Quinn, D O'Leary; F Fitzgerald, E Brosnan, S Myers; A O'Donovan (0-1), J Buckley (0-1); A Kennelly, D Casey (1-1, 0-1 free), B Looney (0-1); C Cooper (1-3, 0-1 free), K O'Leary (0-1), J Doolan. Subs: C Brady for J Doolan, B McMahon for A Kennelly.
MID KERRY: M Moriarty; A Cahillane, F Griffin, G Hartnett ; P Kilkenny (0-1), M Mangan, B Murphy (0-1); D Walsh, M Burke; D Kelliher, S O'Sullivan (0-1, free), D O'Sullivan (0-1); G O'Grady (0-2, frees), C Kerins (0-1), J Flynn. Subs: G Sayers (0-2) for S O'Sullivan, C McGillycuddy for C Kerins, C Moriarty for J Flynn.
Referee:Paul Hayes (Kerins O'Rahillys).
