O'Connor primed for another go at it

"Fire away, lads," said Jack O'Connor yesterday afternoon in executive suite 686 of the Hogan Stand in Croke Park. In good form was Jack. The Kerry boss drew admiring nods as he turned each hard question into rubble, while also providing enough juice to placate the hacks.

What about last September, Jack? Just after Tyrone beat Kerry in the All-Ireland final a naturally disappointed O'Connor was unsure of the future. The next day he hopped off the train in Killarney only to be greeted by an RTÉ microphone. When asked whether he would stay on he replied, "Probably not."

"Yerra, lads, you see you get reporters like yourselves sticking microphones under fellas' noses an hour after losing an All-Ireland. When (all) you feel like saying (is) that's it for me. There is always an emotional response after losing but after a few days we kind of calmed down and said, 'look, this is a bad way to go. We just need to have another go at it.' We weren't playing any games."

Kerry are having another go at it. A 34th All-Ireland title is what O'Connor seeks. Then he might just say "slán".

The shots came thick and fast but O'Connor was well able for them, especially when the same question was asked in several different dialects. Basically, how can Kerry attain the highest standards with such a simple championship draw? Last year they lost to a Tyrone team who had been in the trenches for nine games - three of them against Armagh and two scraps with Dublin in a packed Croke Park. Hell, before all that they even tackled Down and Cavan. The latter was another replay.

Kerry stuffed Cork twice and strolled through Mayo. Battle-hardened was how O'Connor described the Tyrone onslaught in the second half of the All-Ireland final.

O'Connor refuses to disrespect the opening challenges of Waterford and Tipperary or depart from his initial response: winning the league is preparation enough.

"In many ways we have learned a lot from the league because we have had some tough matches. We had a good battle with Mickey's (Harte) boys up in Omagh. We had a good game against Monaghan in Scotstown and obviously against Dublin in Killarney. The league final was a tough game for us for about 50 minutes. (Then) we got a couple of breaks at the right time."

It comes back around to what if. Would it have been different if Kerry had a few more scares coming into the All-Ireland final?

"I still don't believe there was an awful lot in the final. Three points in the end. It would have been interesting when we got them back to a point if Darragh Ó Sé (had not) kicked narrowly wide into the scoreboard goal. It would have been interesting if we had drawn level with them and test our mettle a bit more.

"I can't take it away from Tyrone on the day, they played exceptionally well and took every chance that came their way. They were just a driven team."

Maybe a team needs to lose such a game to gain that inner resolve. When speaking of easy rides through Munster, O'Connor is quick to bring up Cork and Billy Morgan, who for three years has been building a team to scalp the green and gold. They are in an under-21 All-Ireland final on Sunday.

"We feel there are going to be a lot of obstacles in our way this year, not just Tyrone. Cork are going to be . . . not dismissing Waterford or Tipperary but if we get as far, Cork are going to be very hungry.

"Billy Morgan is three years in charge this year and he is a very driven man as well. He'll have them riled up big time if that's the Munster final that transpires in Killarney. We'll certainly not get ahead of ourselves."

The theory about an over-reliance on Colm Cooper is also addressed. O'Connor highlights the nine points from the half-forward in the league semi-final against Laois and a further 2-2 against Galway in the final. All from play.

"Obviously Colm Cooper is getting a lot of attention. In the league final I think they had three or four different guys surrounding him, which can be difficult to handle, mentally as well as physically. I think he is used to it at this stage.

"I'm confident we have the spread of players to stand up for themselves and take a bit of the heat off Cooper later on."