Moloney at home between the sticks

When the season began David Moloney was an interested spectator as Dr Crokes began plotting their Kerry senior football championship defence.

But a quirk of fate catapulted the 35-year-old into the side which has progressed to Sunday’s county decider against a Dingle side contesting their first final since 1951.

Yet that is only half the story of Moloney’s incredible elevation, with the former star midfielder now goalkeeper for the Killarney giants.

Moloney began life between the posts by accident rather than design. He explained: “I started as an outfield player and I couldn’t get on the St Brendan’s College team so then I became a keeper and got my place.

“I played in goal at minor and U21 level for Kerry, winning a Munster medal in 1997 and the All-Ireland U21 final in 1998. I was also in goals for IT Tralee when they won the first Sigerson Cup in ’97.”

“But unfortunately I couldn’t get on the Crokes senior team in goal. At the time Peter O’Brien was in goal and was a superb keeper and then Kieran Cremin came along, so we were well served.

“So I took my chances outfield and played there until I retired in 2009. The last time I played in goal before this year was that 1998 All-Ireland final.

Moloney campaigned for almost a decade outfield in an era when Dr Crokes struggled to achieve success.

“I made the breakthrough in 1999 as a midfielder under Harry O’Neill and then went on to play in the county final in 2000 as a midfielder when we beat An Ghaeltacht in the final. I thought I would win a few more county championship medals but to lose to South Kerry in three finals was a tough blow. After the 2009 loss I’d had enough and I retired.

“I went into the dressing room and into the shower and that was it, I made up my mind to go there and then. South Kerry were a superb side and I suppose we thought we might beat them in the first final and then in the second final we had a good feeling we could do it, by 2009 we were certain we would beat them but we didn’t. It was bound to take its toll on us.

“I suppose it was ironic that when I retired the lads finally beat South Kerry and went on to win back-to-back titles. I kept playing away with the B team and when I got the call earlier in the year I was still pretty fit for a 35-year-old.

“About two to three weeks before our first championship game against St Michael’s Foilmore the lads knew that Alan Kelly [regular keeper] would be going to Poland for the European Championships and they asked me to fill the void.

“I always wanted to be a goalkeeper. That would have been my preferred position so to get the chance at this late stage of my career is fantastic.

“There was a joke at the time when I went four games this year without conceding a goal that in fact I hadn’t conceded a goal in over 14 years!”