Shooting from the lip

Obesity, ill discipline and the state of Kerry football. Just the headline acts in a two-hour chat with Pat Spillane. Michael Moynihan did the listening.

AS interview subjects go, Pat Spillane isn’t a challenge. Some candidates you have to pry and poke, some you have to cajole, but not the former Kerry star. A casual opener about the league final leads ultimately to modern full-back play, and there aren’t too many degrees of separation.

“I thought the league final was a reality check for Kerry,” says Spillane. “I didn’t expect them to get to a league final, but once you get there you don’t turn your back on it. But they were so unfit — they looked six or seven weeks behind in terms of fitness. And there was an 11-point turnaround in 50 minutes. Kerry teams don’t normally do that.