Polished player on and off the field

All-Ireland SFC final countdownSeán Moran talks to Kerry captain Declan O'Sullivan, who says the responsibility puts no extra pressure on him

The old system of picking the captain from the county champions has created quite a few problems up and down the country down the years. Even in Kerry there's been the occasional disturbance as well as the inconvenience of not being able to select one leader and stick with him.

Declan O'Sullivan doesn't fall into the contentious category. Although only 21, he's in his third year as a regular on the Kerry team and well on the way to fulfilling considerable under-age promise at senior level. South Kerry's victory in last year's county championship meant an emotional medal for Maurice Fitzgerald but also that O'Sullivan, from Dromid Pearses, would be captain for the defence of the Sam Maguire.

At last week's Kerry media night O'Sullivan was one of only four players on show but it's an indicator of his maturity that the management obviously had no qualms about letting him loose amongst the ravening hordes of reporters. "It's just fallen that I'm the captain of Kerry this year," he says, "but it's an experience I'm enjoying and it's no extra pressure on me. I've been left to focus on my own game." His own game hasn't been as good as last year's.

O'Sullivan has spent most of his career moving between centre forward and full forward. His pace on the inside line makes him hard to mark and he is a good finisher but his work rate on the 40 is phenomenal and last year manager Jack O'Connor - a club mate and former teacher - opted for the latter role. "Throughout my career that's the way it's been," says O'Sullivan. "I've played centre forward, I've played full forward. I'm comfortable in both positions. I'm happy to play wherever the management pick me. They pick the team based on the opposition and that's worked well all year."

That has largely meant the captain's position depending on whether or not Dara Ó Cinnéide gets selected. In the recent semi-final against Cork last year's captain didn't start and O'Sullivan moved onto the edge of the square. But his subdued display suggested that he and the team might be better served by the deeper role.

The presence of Tyrone in the All-Ireland final is a reminder of the abrupt ending that befell O'Sullivan's first senior season two years ago in the landmark semi-final when Mickey Harte's team first cut Kerry to ribbons and then hounded them to distraction.

Ironically O'Sullivan played an almost prototype Tyrone game that afternoon covering tirelessly backwards and forwards - at one stage clearing a shot from Owen Mulligan off his own goal line.

"We lost the game and it doesn't matter about performance or anything else," he recalls. "We lost. Fair play to Tyrone. They came with a game plan and were the better team on the day and went on to win the All-Ireland. We'd no grudges.

"New management came in after that and they set up the way they wanted the team to play so we followed suit and played to the style they wanted and over the last two years that's been successful."

So far so uneventful. Then comes a question that momentarily gouges beneath the polished surface of O'Sullivan's smooth performance. The query takes as its starting point the feeling that last year's All-Ireland might have been a soft one. Before the question has finished, there is a scalded intervention. "I'm not sure where you're getting that. The word 'soft' hasn't been used by any of the players or management within our circle. I couldn't comment on that."

Regaining equilibrium, he is back on message when the endlessly fascinating topic of revenge for 2003 crops up. The Kerry line is careful not to attach too much additional significance to this final despite its build-up as a clash of footballing cultures. "As has been said many times before it just happens to be Tyrone. This is an All-Ireland final and it's about us getting reward for the work we've put in all year. We got as much satisfaction from beating Mayo as the lads did in any other All-Ireland they'd won.

"There's no extra motivation this year. It's just the fact that it is Tyrone and that's out of our control. We're preparing like any other All-Ireland."

After devastating Cork in the semi-final they are apparently not even preparing specifically for Tyrone. "Not particularly. We try and get our own house in order. The performance in the semi-final won't be good enough to win the final so we've to step up training and preparation."

Tyrone will hardly be fazed by that but it might scare Cork.