Barry John Keane could be speaking for a lot of Kerry footballers when he talks about the lost years. Not the years Kerry lost All-Ireland titles they deserved to win – who ever does? – only the years things might well have been different. Simple as.
Keane was 24 when he won his first All-Ireland with Kerry in 2014; it turned out to be his last and Kerry’s too. Sunday’s showdown against Galway at Croke Park can now end that wait.
Keane comes eminently qualified to assess things. Though his Kerry career finished in 2018, he still plays club football with Kerins O’Rahillys alongside David Moran, his last season with Kerry overlapping with David Clifford, who he also played alongside with the Tralee IT Sigerson team.
“Yeah, jeez loads,” Keane says of the All-Ireland titles he feels Kerry left behind.
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“Every time you lose, you dissect it and feel it got away. 2011, 2013, I wasn’t with the squad at the time but that one was a cracker . . ., the ‘15 final, the conditions, Dublin were probably better on the day. The ‘16 semi-final, Dublin.
“We probably got the luck last week that Dublin were getting for a few years. You have to create your own luck as well and thankfully it was on our side last weekend.”
In truth, few expected Dublin to win six on the trot after Kerry in 2014, Keane least among them; still he gives them due credit.
“To be honest, they have been a brilliant team. Once you cross the white line it’s game on. Everyone’s a fan of football in general. You have to respect it. They brought it every day.
“Ourselves, the likes of Mayo, we threw everything we could at them. Maybe sometimes they got the rub of the green as you do. Kerry got it probably last week. Seanie O’Shea put over a ridiculous free to turn the tide. That’s sport. Kerry won it all in the 80s. It changed then for a bit and hopefully it will change now again.”
An ambassador for football sponsors AIB, Keane also believes the Clifford factor will be pivotal; he’s always seen the ability of the Fossa man.
“With David, you wouldn’t even think he is who he is. I could meet him for coffee, breakfast for two hours and we mightn’t even talk about football. You know that kind of way. He will give time to any kid that wants to come over. Very down to earth. Likes his golf, likes his soccer. Football, probably would only even talk little bits and then it’s on to something else.
“Of course you could see it. One training session, you were just like ‘Jesus, this fella is way beyond his years, he’s showcasing it now’.
“Really, to be fair, he’s just so down to earth that he just takes it in his stride. And you know what, it’s a good way to keep the distraction from football. You don’t want to be thinking about football 24/7. Don’t get me wrong, when he’s in the zone, he’s in the zone but he likes to get the release as well and take the pressure off. They just need to get the monkey off the back and it’s as easy as that, but we’ll see on Sunday.
Keane has said in the past when Moran plays well, Kerry play well, and that’s likely to ring true on Sunday.
“He’s there since 2007, like, he’s probably coming to the end of his career there. Younger fellas would still look up to him as a leader. As the game has gone on, primary possession is huge. I know the short kick-out is big but everyone likes to see kick-outs and the old-style fielding, a good kick-pass or . . . you know, so it’s going to be crucial the next day, whoever wins midfield. Both sides have very good forwards so whoever creates the more chances and takes them are probably going to win.”
Believing Kerry also have “very powerful substitutions” in the forward line, “the likes of Dara Moynihan, Micheal Burns, Jack Savage in the half-forward line, then you have Tony Brosnan in the full-forward line so there’s a lot to bring on there.
“At midfield, Joe O’Connor is the captain, Paul Murphy has been around a while, Gavin Crowley has been around a while so there’s a lot of household names there.”
Ultimately Keane believes Kerry’s time has come.
“I think if they perform, performance is the main thing. You could get in and dissect the whole game, go over and back, match-ups and Kerry, just, if they perform they will have enough.”
