Kerry going into overdrive

Mayo 0-14 Kerry 2-13: A crowd just five shy of 13,000 turned up in Castlebar yesterday. Crowd congestion meant the game was delayed by five minutes. There appear to be few grudges held in Mayo against the players for their managerial purge last autumn but if these types of results and performances continue, the pitchforks won’t be long in being sharpened.

Kerry’s third win on the bounce didn’t come easy, yet their superior efficiency counted most. It was only three years ago at this same venue that they went a second half without a score. On this occasion, they posted 1-10, kicking one wide, as they stood a class apart from the team that could have been steamrolled in the opening half.

Five league games had come and gone since Kerry last beat Mayo, which came in McHale Park in 2011. This one will be put down to being battle-hardened, momentum and grit, particularly the latter in the 17 crucial second half minutes when they were a man down due to Kieran Donaghy’s second yellow card.