Éamonn Fitzmaurice: Taking off Paul Geaney may have been a mistake

Éamonn Fitzmaurice accepts he may have made an error in taking off Paul Geaney in the closing stages of last Sunday week’s All-Ireland semi-final defeat to Dublin.

Speaking to Dara Ó Cinnéide on Raidió na Gaeltachta, he also said referee David Gough made slip-ups but didn’t hold him accountable for Kerry’s loss. “The referee made mistakes on the day... but even with the mistakes, we should have won. We made mistakes, particularly in the last 10 minutes and they are costly mistakes. We need to improve our composure at the end of matches, that’s our challenge for next year.”

On the subject of Geaney, Fitzmaurice remarked: “Perhaps we should have left Paul on the pitch. He’s the best forward in the country at the moment. It may have been a mistake. But the analysis always points to the person who’s not there as the key to a win, but that’s too easy.”