All-Ireland MFC final preview: Kerry’s record numbers

Eoghan Cormican crunches the numbers ahead of the All-Ireland Minor Football final. 

1: Number of teams in the past four years to come within one point of Kerry. Back in May of 2015, Spa’s Mike Foley split the posts in the last minute of extra-time at Tralee to hand Kerry a 0-16 to 1-12 win over Cork in a breathless Munster semi-final. Next in line are Mayo and Donegal who both ran the Kingdom to four points in the 2014 All-Ireland semi and final.

2: Minor winners who’ve since made their championship debuts at senior level. Brian Ó Beaglaoich, full-back on the 2014 minor team, was named at right half-back by Eamonn Fitzmaurice for Kerry’s 2016 Munster championship opener against Clare. He’d start the Munster final and All-Ireland quarter-final too, but did not make the starting XV come the All-Ireland semi-final showdown with Dublin. Tom O’Sullivan was thrown in at wing-back for the recent semi-final replay against Mayo.