No way Jack O’Connor was leaving this special group of Kerry players

Jack O’Connor was advised at the start of the year to walk away from the Kerry minors as a champion, to wait patiently in the wings and return when the next star group emerged.

He didn’t, of course, and if there is one reason why O’Connor opted to remain with the bunch of players who will jog out in Tullamore this afternoon it’s Cormac Linnane. Now, Linnane won’t actually feature for the All-Ireland holders, owing to the cruciate knee ligament injury suffered in the Munster final defeat of Tipperary.

However, according to the man who guided Kerry to three senior All-Irelands and returned last year to land a minor title, Linnane’s giant heart neatly sums up this year’s squad.