Kelly: Ending Banner odyssey with another title would be special

Clare’s Tony Kelly admits victory in Saturday’s All-Ireland U21 final would register on par with last September’s senior success.

This Clare team, under Donal Moloney and Gerry O’Connor, have been on the road since 2010, with two provincial minor championships, three Munster U21 and two All-Ireland titles annexed in the process.

“We’ve been on the go for five years, we all know each other. We’ve been to school in St Flannan’s, half of us, and the other half probably went to Caimin’s. That bond has been built over a number of years and to sign off with a win with this group of players would be special,” said the county’s U21 captain. “I think it is the closeness that defines this group. Everyone enjoys coming training. As Paul Kinnerk said Tuesday night, this is one of the last weeks he’ll have until maybe next season starts up again and he says he’ll miss this over the winter and the players are the exact same.”