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Post by southward on Jan 24, 2017 21:48:28 GMT
Again I ask where is Alan Fitzgerald ? injured or what? Retired from intercounty Really ?? Why so? Looked a good prospect.
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Post by gamechanger10 on Jan 24, 2017 23:32:58 GMT
January !! it's a long lean financial month with its annual conclusion being the peak of the pre season reviews,,, We have just tried the engine without even putting the fecki'ng tyres on and we have the doomsday annalists busily rehearsing the chorus why didn't they do that.... we will drive the real machine to Dublin in September on September 17th,, the, Wizards will fin that tiny missing ingredient, it just might come from a South West Island ,,, we are Kerry
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Post by piggott on Jan 24, 2017 23:40:02 GMT
Consistency my dear boy. Consistency!
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pony
Senior Member
Posts: 385
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Post by pony on Jan 27, 2017 12:39:41 GMT
Really ?? Why so? Looked a good prospect. Can anyone else add to this? Would be interested to know. Looked a great option at full forward and from frees.
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Post by kerrybhoy06 on Jan 27, 2017 13:12:37 GMT
Really ?? Why so? Looked a good prospect. Can anyone else add to this? Would be interested to know. Looked a great option at full forward and from frees. There isnt much to add really! He has retired- he isnt based in Kerry and it phenomenally hard to make a county panel even without having to commute on a very regular basis. I'd imagine the injury issue compounded this level of frustration. A good player and a nice fella
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Post by Annascaultilidie on Jan 27, 2017 13:21:26 GMT
Can anyone else add to this? Would be interested to know. Looked a great option at full forward and from frees. There isnt much to add really! He has retired- he isnt based in Kerry and it phenomenally hard to make a county panel even without having to commute on a very regular basis. I'd imagine the injury issue compounded this level of frustration. A good player and a nice fella On another thread it says he is training the Castlegregory team.
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Post by kerrybhoy06 on Jan 27, 2017 14:02:51 GMT
There isnt much to add really! He has retired- he isnt based in Kerry and it phenomenally hard to make a county panel even without having to commute on a very regular basis. I'd imagine the injury issue compounded this level of frustration. A good player and a nice fella On another thread it says he is training the Castlegregory team. He's not the manager though- doing sessions with your own club wouldnt be at the same commitment level as all the work that must be done at intercounty level. I'm open to correction but is Alan Fitz not teaching in Dublin or its surrounds? Missing the odd session at club level is fine- at intercounty level it would never be an option
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Post by givehimaball on Jan 27, 2017 15:09:07 GMT
On another thread it says he is training the Castlegregory team. He's not the manager though- doing sessions with your own club wouldnt be at the same commitment level as all the work that must be done at intercounty level. I'm open to correction but is Alan Fitz not teaching in Dublin or its surrounds?Missing the odd session at club level is fine- at intercounty level it would never be an option He's definitely a teacher and the last I remember it was up the country. I remember Fitzmaurice made a comment on Tadgh Morley and the fact that he had been teaching in Dublin and how this was a handicap. Morley is teaching in Sneem now. Having a quick scan through the list of players who featured for Kerry in championship last year I don't think there is anyone who was working outside Munster bar Morley (and he was off for the summer) [This might not be 100% as I'd wouldn't be sure on where all the lads would be/or they might have moved since I last heard/and I wouldn't be as up-to-date with some of the younger/fringe lads] but from the lads who I do know where/what they are working at a serious chunk of the players are in Kerry or failing that in Cork or Limerick.
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Post by kerrybhoy06 on Jan 27, 2017 15:19:34 GMT
He's not the manager though- doing sessions with your own club wouldnt be at the same commitment level as all the work that must be done at intercounty level. I'm open to correction but is Alan Fitz not teaching in Dublin or its surrounds?Missing the odd session at club level is fine- at intercounty level it would never be an option He's definitely a teacher and the last I remember it was up the country. I remember Fitzmaurice made a comment on Tadgh Morley and the fact that he had been teaching in Dublin and how this was a handicap. Morley is teaching in Sneem now. Having a quick scan through the list of players who featured for Kerry in championship last year I don't think there is anyone who was working outside Munster bar Morley (and he was off for the summer) [This might not be 100% as I'd wouldn't be sure on where all the lads would be/or they might have moved since I last heard/and I wouldn't be as up-to-date with some of the younger/fringe lads] but from the lads who I do know where/what they are working at a serious chunk of the players are in Kerry or failing that in Cork or Limerick. He was in Dublin last year anyway- but dont know if he is still there
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Post by Seoirse Ui Duic on Jan 27, 2017 15:47:30 GMT
Managed to make the final of the McGrath Cup. Many, many, many thanks to a very good friend for making it happen. To say it was a very entertaining game for a January game is an understatement. The first half was dull, but the second half and the two goals set it alight. It was almost like a championship game in intensity. Yet, we might not see too many of the players return during the championship. Kerry did enough to win, but Limerick must be kicking themselves for not winning the game. Despite Kerry winning by 4 points in the end there were quite a few instances where Limerick had costly wides that could have won them the game. Though Kerry did well to win it and showed character to do so, it was Limerick that in my opinion should be the happier. Limerick set up defensively, but defence wasn't all they did. I can see them cause trouble to a few more counties if they keep developing like they do. On the other hand we shouldn't read too much into the game as both Limerick and Kerry featured many players that might not see much action in the championship and with both teams not having much training done the differences will be much more visible in the spring/summer.
Limerick are always hard to put away. More than once Cork and Kerry have found it tough to beat them and winning margins are never huge.
From the beginning Limerick opted to start with Ger Collins of Monaleen instead of Seamus O'Carroll of Cappagh. Given how impressive Collins has been in the full forward line in the Limerick championship and in their game against Carbery Rangers. Danny Neville was the star of the day though and caused real trouble for the Kerry defence. I thought Kerry's defence did well though, especially Tom O'Sullivan and Tadhg Morley. Killian Young was everywhere and a real leader. As an experienced campaigner players would have looked at Killian to lead and he lead by example. Jason Foley too did very well despite having to deal with a very, very clinical Limerick full forward line. By comparison I thought Shane Enright could have done, especially since he is with the seniors a few years now. Then again, the team has just returned back to training and this was Enright's first game of the year with kerry. Given we still have Mark Griffin, Brian Ó Beaglaoich, Fionn FitzGerald, Jonathan Lyne, Peter Crowley, and possibly Tom Leo O’Sullivan, Andrew Barry and Daniel O’Brien, to play in the backs it can be argued we have options galore. There is possibly others as well that are slipping my mind currently. With the league coming up and Eamon forced to unearth a few new players I think we will see some more competition and experimentation. It all depends on how well the U21s do as well of course as some of those will have to go back to U21s after the first 1 or 2 league games. Given that Donegal have used the McKenna cup to try their youngsters, and not to great success in my opinion, they too might be forced to try a few youngsters in the league. The retirement of the warrior that is Aidan opens new doors for Kerry's next generation as he has said himself. Hopefully we will be much stronger by the time the championship starts, but early indications bode well. Morley is a gamewinner and might become as legendary as the Ó Sé's. Foley too is doing very well, as is Tom O'Sullivan, but both probably need a bit more strength and conditioning. Ó Beaglaoich was immense last year and will be keen to nail a spot in the team this year.
Midfield was disappointing in my opinion on Sunday and Moran looked very slow compared to the Limerick players. The hunger was there in Limerick and they turned over Kerry ball far too easily. Moran too is just back from an injury and a spot on the bench in the Cork game so I doubt he was fully fit anyway. Once he has had a few more training sessions I'm sure he will be the Moran we can rely on. I wonder if we will see Bryan Sheehan back in midfield or on the wing as the mark might suit him very well. He is a very good fielder of the ball and we all know how well he can strike a ball. Jack Barry is an option for midfield, and Morley has been used there as well, but I was not impressed with him in the McGrath Cup final. Most of the Kerry team looked complacent in the first half, most likely thinking all they had to do was show up and win it, but when the game gained momentum in the second half most others upped the intensity, but Barry did not. Not helped of course by the ferocity and the hunger of the Limerick midfield, but he will experience much tougher opponents in the league and the championship. Barry surely has the talent to become a Kerry midfielder, but I suspect he will do well with the U21s this year and get another chance next year. He is still young and we shouldn't expect too much too early. We weren't being destroyed in midfield either so I'm cheerful that we will be much more dangerous in midfield Sunday week.
In the forwards we lacked in my opinion. Also due to a very dogged Limerick defence, but players like James O'Donoghue, Jack Savage, Paul Geaney and BJ Keane should be able to destroy any team. Lyne and Mike Geaney on the other hand played very well and that was important. Both Geaney and Lyne have had chances to get starting spots for the seniors and have had good games and bad games, but I feel they really need to step it up a gear or two to keep their spots. With Donnchadh Walsh and Bryan Sheehan probably in their last championship year for Kerry others need to show they will be taking over. Both are very good players and both have the talent to make it. Both showed hunger and skill in the game and I'm hoping they will both have huge years.
I was glad to see Jamesy back and he did well. Like the others he won't have had much training with the kerry team yet so I'm sure he will improve. Showed flashes of brilliance and it was horrifying to see him go off injured. Most likely it's a precaution though and he seemed fit enough after the game. Barry John was quiet in my opinion, but that might also be due to Limerick's excellent defence. I expected more of Savage, but given the great game he had last time out I'm sure he will be back soon. Limerick kept the Kerry forwards very quiet and it wasn't until Conor Geaney came on that Kerry improved. Conor brought so much speed and such excellent runs that the Limerick defence were all over the shop. It meant others too were finding it easier to pierce the Limerick defence as Conor had to be watched constantly.
With so many substitutions by both teams it was always going to be tough to get a very coherent game. One or two substitutions change the dynamic so 9 substitutions meant we were treated to 3 or 4 different games. Limerick too made a lot of substitutions and they could have won the game regardless. It goes to show how good a panel they have at the moment and I hope they go far this season. Limerick will have to do it the hard way this year by beating a very tough Clare team before facing Kerry in the semi final. If they beat Kerry in Munster it will be Cork or Tipperary they face. I expect Limerick to come close once again against Kerry in the championship and give us a good rattle, but I hope that like Tipperary last year they can make it to through the qualifiers into the Quarter finals.
All in all, this is january and Sam isn't won in January, nor is it won in May. Kerry are only just back training and some of the players aren't back training yet. Add Darren O'Sullivan, Anthony Maher, Gooch, Kieran Donaghy, Bryan Sheehan, Fionn Fitzgerald, Stephen O'Brien, Johnny Buckley and so on to above team and a potential return of Sam to the kingdom seems possible.
Scorers for Kerry: C Geaney 1-2 (2fs), D Moran 1-1, J O’Donoghue 0-4 (3fs), B O’Sullivan 1-0, J Lyne & B.J. Keane (2f) 0-2 each, P Murphy and M Geaney 0-1 each. Scorers for Limerick: I Corbett 1-2 (1-0 pen), S O’Carroll 1-1, D Neville 0-3, J Lee 0-2 (1f), S O’Dea, D Treacy, G Collins, and S McSweeney (f) 0-1 each. Kerry: B Kealy; S Enright, J Foley, K Young; P Murphy, T Morley, T O’Sullivan; D Moran, J Barry; J Lyne, J Savage, M Geaney; B.J. Keane, P Geaney, J O’Donoghue Subs: G Crowley for Murphy (inj., 30), B Sullivan for Savage (45), B Ó Seanacháin for M Geaney (46), B O’Sullivan for Barry (46), D Daly for Crowley (inj., 59), C Geaney for O’Donoghue (inj., 65), C Keane for P Geaney (79), K McCarthy for Keane (80), A Spillane for T O’Sullivan (83). Limerick: D O’Sullivan; D Daly, J McCarthy, S O’Dea; P White, I Corbett, P Hannon; D Treacy, B Fanning; P Nash, S O’Carroll, B Donovan; S McSweeney, D Neville, G Collins Subs: J Lee for McSweeney (48), G Noonan for Nash (49), D Ward for Daly (51), C Fahy for Hannon (60), J Naughton for O’Carroll (69), J Bridgeman for White (70+1), C Sheehan for Collins (75), P Quinn for Fanning (83), K Ryan for Treacy (85).
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Post by Seoirse Ui Duic on Jan 27, 2017 16:05:32 GMT
Given the demands placed on intercounty players these days it is extremely hard for a guy living in Dublin to train with Kerry. The Donegal lads alluded to this as well and their situation is not that different from Kerry lads living in Dublin. On a good day it is about 4 hours driving, but most days there will be traffic around that time so 5 hours would be more likely. The player would then arrive in Kerry mentally drained after such a long drive. After training he'd have to drive back 5 hours and arrive back home in Dublin int he middle of night. He'd also have to take half a day off the days the kerry team are training. Add to that the gym sessions, nutrition plan and work and it is obvious it is harder than ever to live away from the Kingdom and be in the senior team. Given the amount of jobs in Kerry it is more likely that more and more players will be working in Limerick or Cork. More and more players might move to Dublin as well or abroad. And it doesn't stop there: the more people leave the Kingdom the more potential talent will grow up outside the Kingdom and not play for Kerry. For Kerry to be successful more jobs need to be created in Kerry. A friend of mine used to work in the same team as a well known Mayo footballer and there was a lot of resentment because he would be able to get days off and work half days or work for him while the same wasn't possible for other employees. The same will apply to many potential kerry players: not all employers will be as forgiving and it will be tougher and tougher to find employers that allow special rules for intercounty players. Promotions too and improving one's career will be tough for intercounty players.
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Post by veteran on Jan 27, 2017 20:13:28 GMT
That is a shame about Alan Fitzgerald. I suspect if it was his teaching up the country was the main impediment to his intercounty career the County Board would sort that problem for him. There must be other reasons - perhaps he has a legacy of his injury. As far as I can recall it was a back injury. These are notoriously difficult injuries to resolve. For instance, witness how much trouble it caused Paul Geaney, an operation needed ultimately. And usually, a back operation is the last resort because as often as not it can be unsuccessful.
I remember being at the Kerry/Roscommon NFL game in Croke Park last year when he went off injured. I don't think he has played since. Alan was a genuine intercounty player. Perhaps, he could be coaxed back next year. If it is simply a matter of his teaching location then the County Board should get cracking.
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Post by kerrybhoy06 on Jan 28, 2017 11:05:13 GMT
A little bit of misinformation about Alan Fitzgerald. He was definitely not teaching in Dublin last year or this year. He is teaching inside in a national school up by fairies cross (I don't know the name of it) in Tralee all last year and is still in there. He was informed in December by Eamon Fitzmaurice that he wasn't going to be a part of the panel this year. You would have to assume that it had to be injury related. He missed most of the summer last year because of a long-standing back problem that hasn't seen any improvement. I thought he did really well any time he played and was a very reliable place kicker. I'm relaying word for word what I heard from a lad from Castle! Also I'd be confident enough that he wasnt in Kerry last year as he used to drive up and down after school- and stay in Limerick on the way back from training.
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Post by Mickmack on Jan 28, 2017 13:40:19 GMT
A little bit of misinformation about Alan Fitzgerald. He was definitely not teaching in Dublin last year or this year. He is teaching inside in a national school up by fairies cross (I don't know the name of it) in Tralee all last year and is still in there. He was informed in December by Eamon Fitzmaurice that he wasn't going to be a part of the panel this year. You would have to assume that it had to be injury related. He missed most of the summer last year because of a long-standing back problem that hasn't seen any improvement. I thought he did really well any time he played and was a very reliable place kicker. I'm relaying word for word what I heard from a lad from Castle! Also I'd be confident enough that he wasnt in Kerry last year as he used to drive up and down after school- and stay in Limerick on the way back from training. "Alternative truth" perhaps!
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