There’s talk of Paul Galvin being played in a half-back role rather than his favoured half-forward position, but Gavin O’Connor says both lines are already rich with talent…
Paul Galvin in action for Kerry.
IT was in the tunnel after losing to Dublin in the league last year in Croke Park when Paul called time on his career in green and gold.
There’s a strange symmetry that 13 months on, in the aftermath of the recent Kerry victory over Dublin, it was announced he would return to the fold once more.
It was also against Dublin, when Galvin made his last appearance for Kerry in the championship.
Though, he bagged two points from play in that classic, the former player of the year struggled with the pace of the game and was hauled off with 20 minutes to go.
Quite a lot has changed since Paul walked out of the Kerry dressing room in Croke Park after defeat on a wet February evening. It had to.
He’s coming back in lower down the pecking order and looking at younger fellas who’ve picked up an All-Ireland medal in his absence. Kerry had moved on. Feeling that he still was up to it last year must have hurt himself, even though he had nothing left to prove.
Tomas Ó Sé went through that struggle also during last year and often joked about coming back. Paul, it appears, is deadly serious.
The history of players coming out of retirement is a mixed bag. Two prime Kerry examples are Mike McCarthy and Sean O’Sullivan. In 2009, McCarthy turned around Kerry’s season, while in 2012, O’Sullivan came back only to find the going too hard.
Though there had been rumblings last year that Eamonn Fitzmaurice was eyeing Galvin up for a place in the half-back line, you’d still imagine his best position would be on the half forward line.
It really is difficult to see him make an impression on the half-back line. When Eoin Brosnan, came out of retirement he made the switch from half-forward to half-back. Although at the time there was a shortage of top class talent in defence, that’s something we can’t complain about now.
Galvin would be entering a line where two players have picked up All-Stars in the last year, Paul Murphy and Peter Crowley.
Added to that, there’s Killian Young, Jack Sherwood, Aidan O’Mahony, Pa Kilkenny, Fionn Fitzgerald, Mark Griffin all lads who could do a job there and all ahead of Galvin.
Making his return to the Kerry setup on Tuesday night in Caherslee, Galvin came on as a sub at half-forward in a challenge match against the U21s, which the seniors won handy.
With all players fit, you’d imagine Fitzmaurice’s first choice in that half-forward line is, Colm Cooper, Donnachadh Walsh and Bryan Sheehan. Donnachadh Walsh is probably the only nailed-on starter so the rest of the spots are up for grabs.
Listing off the players battling for a position in that line, you can see competition is fierce.
Colm Cooper (31), Donnachadh Walsh (30), Johnny Buckley (25), Darren O’Sullivan (28), Bryan Sheehan (29), Tommy Walsh (27), Jonathan Lyne (25), Kieran O’Leary (28) and Mikey Geaney (25).
Though the half-forward line isn’t exactly bursting with youth, Paul is almost a full eight years older than its average age of 27 and a half.
This is the sticking point. Maybe the year out will have rested his body, because he did not feel right when he retired. But given the type of role he played, it’s difficult to see how he could have an impact again when he was on the slide in the last year of his career.
Eamonn Fitzmaurice is not a sentimental man, so there is a plan for Galvin. His drive, experience and love for the Kerry jersey will be something the panel will be able to dip into regardless of the game time he sees.
Whatever happens, it’s another little subplot for GAA fans to enjoy and you’d never know, that book might have another chapter in it yet…
