Kernan’s kick-out conundrum

THERE are those who would suggest that recently-retired Kerry goalkeeper Diarmuid Murphy’s greatest achievement as a footballer was finding a way of changing his kick-out technique over the course of his last season in green and gold.

After an indifferent 2008, where he took as much blame as any individual on the Kerry team for the All-Ireland final defeat to Tyrone, Murphy was forced into a period of deep introspection where the very basic elements of his game were called into question. Kicking the ball out to a dominant midfielder, Darragh O Sé, should have proven the easiest of tasks for an experienced keeper but against the cleverest of midfield diamonds, the conventional kickout wasn’t always what was required anymore. In the last 18 months, a traditional goalkeeper like Murphy was in danger of becoming obsolete but the real problem was when he tried to be clever or inventive with his kicks he invariably ended up looking silly or worse still, conceding scores while looking silly.

I thought of the Murphy conundrum quite a lot while watching Galway’s opening league game against Mayo last month. At a time when the premium on clean possession from kick-outs is higher than at any stage in the history of the game, and during a period of relative experimentation by all Division 1 squads with their goalkeeping options (with both of tonight’s Páirc Ui Rinn teams on their third different goalkeeper this campaign, has there ever been as much tinkering between the sticks?) Paul Doherty’s struggle was telling.