Kerry praying for victory: Faithful indulged

If the company of a person who has no passion to animate their soul seems a dull enough prospect, then the idea of visiting a place without a collective obsession is hardly inviting. Why bother?

This week, as the days before Kerry’s Saturday All-Ireland football replay with Dublin slip by, the Kingdom’s enduring obsession with the big ball is at fever pitch.

Though the county has won the title 37 times — a proud record — a victory at the weekend would be all the sweeter, as it would deny five-in-a-row aspirants Dublin a chance to add to their 28 titles.

With that objective in mind, the diocese of Kerry has announced that Saturday Mass times have been changed, so the priorities of the faithful might not be unduly tested.

This seems a practical proposal, in a country where there is a footballer or two behind every bush — even if Dubliners will argue that Kerry will need all the prayers they can muster to stop the five-in-a-row.

This raises an obvious question — will Dublin follow the Kingdom’s example, or do they think that Sam Maguire’s destination is immune to divine intervention?