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The County League begins tomorrow and the highlight of all the fixtures is the delayed Dr Crokes v Austin Stacks, 2015 Credit Union Senior Football League Division 1 Final at Lewis Road (3pm)…
Shane O’Callaghan of Austin Stacks with Dr Crokes Mike Moloney when the sides met in the championship last autumn. Photo by Dermot Crean.
FOR the second year in a row the Austin Stacks v Dr Crokes county league fixture will double up as the previous year’s final.
The unquestionable two most dominant forces in Kerry club football over the last five years will do battle once again.
Over the winter, there has been a regime change at the Killarney club with former Kerry All-Ireland winning manager Pat O’Shea now at the helm.
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Stephen Stack has pledged another year with The Rock and will aim to retain their league title this Sunday to add to the plethora of honours he has won while in charge.
2015 was as eventful a year of the rivalry between the two clubs. In May, Stacks defeated Crokes after extra time, but Gooch and co would get their own back the following October when they knocked the Rock out of the county championship.
That defeat meant Stacks had to fight for their senior status 10 months after they were just one step away from playing in Croke Park on Paddy’s Day.
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Both sides have had players involved in Kerry teams over the last week. For the seniors, Kieran Donaghy, Johnny Buckley and Colm Cooper all saw action in the victory away to Mayo.
While in Munster U21 action the Crokes men involved were, Tony Brosnan, Micheál Burns, Jordan Kiely and Gavin White and for Stacks, Greg Horan was involved.
The two sides are stocked with quality and we can nearly always expect a decent game. There is no love loss either and with silverware at stake this one should have a championship feel to it.
Last week, Stacks got their season up and running with a win against Kerins O’Rahilly’s in the town league – a Shane O’Callghan goal proving the difference on the day.
With it being so early in the year, it’s difficult to gauge what way both teams will show up. Pat O’Shea will really want to start his term with a trophy and his players will want to impress the new manager, so it’s hard not to see a big home performance from them.
Verdict – Dr Crokes by 5
