John Fogarty: The shadow of an All-Ireland win was never as long

If it seems like Kerry have been champions for an inordinate amount of time — 170 days and counting to be precise — that would be down to the split season

BACK THEN: Kerry’s Seán O’Shea celebrates with the Sam Maguire after the All-Ireland final last July — 170 days ago. Pic: Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile

Tue, 10 Jan, 2023 - 08:00

John Fogarty

John Fogarty is the Irish Examiner’s GAA correspondent, with unique insights into the action on the pitch and in the Gaelic games’ corridors of power.

Boy does the split season have a lot to answer for. David Clifford intimated on Saturday he mightn’t be in a position to win a sixth straight final this weekend were it not for the compartmentalisation of the 2022-23 Gaelic football year.

“A lot easier this year, in fairness,” he said of his multiple commitments. “Like, every other year you would have been playing a game here and there, whatever, then coming back to Kerry and maybe training once a week. Whereas, the nature of the split season, you were able to give your sole focus to one of them.”