.
Barry O’Shea
THOUGH Eamonn Fitzmaurice might not have wanted a replay, it was a great bonus to them. Kerry got two very tough games and learned an awful lot about the squad.
The few changes made the difference; Aidan O’Mahony, laid down a few physical markers, he definitely led by example. I think Kerry went out and said we’re not going to be pushed around today, we know they’re well able to play football, but they’re well able for the physical side of things.
It was a dirty, wet, horrible evening. It was the type of night where mistakes could have been made so players had to be alert and they were. You could say that all of the defence played well, both individually and a unit.
Continued below…
The two Rathmore men who came in made an impact. Aidan O’Mahony has proven himself over a long space of time and Paul Murphy, even though has only be in the side a short time, has shown he’s more than capable at this level.
Paul Murphy is such a good footballer. He’s very smart on the ball and he’s brave. For a guy who’s not big in stature he uses every bit of what he has, he has no regard for his own safety and just throws himself into everything, but that’s what you need.
It was great to see that Kerry still have the hunger, because with a lot of teams who win All-Irelands, that hunger to throw yourself on top of the 50/50 ball can be taken off you.
David Moran and Anthony Maher dominated midfield from start to finish. David was outstanding and so was Maher, you wouldn’t argue with either of them getting man-of-the-match.
David Moran and Anthony Maher were immense on Saturday. Photo by Dermot Crean
They’re a good partnership and they complement each other well. They’re well used to each other and they seem gel seamlessly. It seems to be a natural thing, they just know what each other are doing and Cork had no answer for them really. Alan O’Connor, dominated the first game, but he looked a pale shadow of himself on Saturday night.
One thing I think we overdid was the long ball into the full-forward line, but it’s something they’ll learn from. We can play nice handy ball into James O’Donoghue and Paul Geaney too, with passes with a lower trajectory and open up teams that way. It’s about getting a bit more balance with the balls going in.
Colm Cooper spots Donnchadh Walsh making a run towards goal. Moments later Kerry were three points to the good. Photo by Dermot Crean
There is place for both styles, but the trick is not to overuse either of them. With Donaghy we can mix it up. You can throw in the odd high ball, but they just seemed to be using it too much. The ball was being lamped in constantly. Even Kieran, will tell you he doesn’t want every ball coming in from 70 yards either.
They just have to be a bit smarter with it, get in a bit closer, and pop in a little floater. Getting it from 70 yards on a wet night, you might as well be throwing grenades at a fella.
Kieran Donaghy looks for a way through on Saturday night. Photo by Dermot Crean
Brendan Kealy’s save, just minutes after Paul Kerrigan hit the net, might have been the most important moment of the match. Even though Kerry had dominated the game up to that point if a second Cork goal went in they could have been going in behind at half-time which would have scary situation. If Kerry conceded a second goal it would have a travesty considering how dominant they had been.
The victory over Cork means Kerry avoid the perceived trickier route to an All-Ireland final, with Donegal, Dublin and Mayo on the other side, but I’d be still wary about it.
If Kerry overcome what will be most likely either Westmeath of Fermanagh, they will possibly face Monaghan in the semi-final, who have beaten Donegal twice in three years and we know how hard it is to get past Donegal.
James O’Donoghue celebrates a vital score towards the end. Kerry showed great hunger on Saturday night. Photo by Dermot Crean
Eamonn Fitzmaurice and his selectors might have one eye on the likes of Dublin, Monaghan, Donegal and Mayo, but they won’t be telling the players that.
The current management is very professional and thorough, they will have every eventuality covered, but they have to keep the players focused for the quarter final.
We’ve seen what has happened in recent years. Kerry have got what have been perceived to be handy quarter-finals and they’ve not destroyed any team in them. They’ve always seemed to play average enough in quarter-finals.
In 2009, Kerry scrope through a qualifier against Sligo at home. Same thing happened when they went to Westmeath in 2012. I don’t think anyone needs reminding of what happened when Kerry played Down in a quarter-final in 2010.
These are dangerous fixtures, it’s the one big time teams can be caught by lesser outfits.
