Star: We missed our chance

KIERAN DONAGHY has all but dismissed Kerry’s chances of reaching the Allianz League Division 1 final — despite winning three of their last four games.

The 2006 footballer of the year was instrumental in the Kingdom’s latest victory in Armagh on Sunday and with two games remaining, they are just two points off a final spot, in fourth place.

However, Donaghy believes Kerry missed out on their chance to win the Allianz Cup for the second in three years when they lost to table-toppers Dublin and second-placed Cork.

“I think we lost the two important games,” said Donaghy. “And I think that has probably ruled the league final out for us but that’s fine, we have got enough good tests now in this league.

“We got a great test in Castlebar, we got an unbelievable test up in Croke Park off the Dubs. Cork came down after only two weeks of training and beat us in Tralee, that was another good test. We have two more great games coming against Monaghan and Down. There will be plenty of challenges in those games for us to build on and set us up for the championship.”

It’s worth mentioning all three of Kerry’s All-Irelands won under Jack O’Connor have been preceded by Division 1 crowns. But while Donaghy feels league honours may be out of Kerry’s grasp, he is buoyed by how the side are moving. Aside from Tommy Griffin, who is recovering from ankle surgery but is expected to be back in training soon, the unit is complete at the minute and Marc Ó Sé will be available for the trip to Monaghan on Sunday week.

“The team is coming together nicely, fellas are coming back in at the right time,” enthused the Austin Stacks man, who turned 28 earlier this month. “We have fellas like Daniel Bohane, Paul Galvin and Declan O’Sullivan who are going to add seriously to our panel. They have been out for various reasons so it is nice to be getting the team coming at the right time. There is a lot of freshness there. I was delighted the way David Moran came on and played, I thought he won a lot of ball. Once we are winning ball around the middle of the field we have enough up front to do damage.”

Donaghy wouldn’t have been so prominent against Armagh were it not for the excellent supply of ball he received from Darran O’Sullivan.

After the full-forward, the Glenbeigh-Glencar man was a man-of-the-match candidate. Having already picked up awards from TG4 for his performances against Cork and Mayo, O’Sullivan is in excellent form.

Donaghy agrees. “Exceptional. He’s playing the football of his life, I think, at centre-forward.

“His movement and speed causes teams hassle and he could have had two goals (on Sunday).

“The goalie (Philip McEvoy) made a great save from the first one — I suppose it cost him coming off but when Darran takes a shot like that if a goalie takes it in the face, it is going to knock him out. Darran is lifting and it’s great for us. He is a guy who used to be coming off the bench but now he is taking games by the scruff of the neck

“He was always a centre-forward with the Kerry minors and U21s. It’s a role that suits him. Darran can play anywhere, he can play in the corner or on the wing. His confidence is up which is crucial for a footballer.”

Donaghy was also appreciative of the calming effect the introduction of Declan O’Sullivan and Galvin had in the latter stages of Sunday’s game. Their return to the panel has ramped up competition for starting places.

“What it does is make training games better, it makes training more intense which is what we want,” he said.

“The backroom staff and the management are doing a great job. They are making training interesting and enjoyable, which for a team like us on the road for so long is important.”