Dr Crokes drive for five in East Kerry decider

A marathon few weeks of football for Dr Crokes draws to a close tomorrow with Pat O’Shea’s charges rounding out 2018 with an East Kerry final against Kilcummin.

Victory for the Crokes at Fitzgerald Stadium (2.15pm) would deliver the panel a fifth piece of silverware this year, adding to the Kerry club championship, Division 1 county league, county championship and Munster club championship titles.

Such a haul of trophies would indicate that defeats have been few and far between in 2018, and, indeed, the Crokes have lost just one of the 28 competitive fixtures they’ve been involved in.

In total, Pat O’Shea’s charges have racked up 26 wins and one draw from 28 outings. That sole defeat arrived in the second round of the county championship on September 9, the Lewis Road club squandering a nine-point lead against Kerins O’Rahilly’s.

“The lads have shown consistency and appetite right through the year,” said Crokes’ selector Vincy Casey yesterday, ‘and I suppose the Kerins O’Rahilly’s game was probably the turning point in the season in that we were either going to go one way or the other after that game.

“Kerins O’Rahilly’s deservedly beat us on the day. We were well ahead, didn’t keep pushing on and paid the price.

“But the team have learned from that.

“The team, five years ago, did something similar. It was after being beaten in an All-Ireland club semi-final by Ballymun.

“We might not have played as many games because club championship in Kerry was knockout at that time, but we won the Kerry club, the Kerry county, the county league, the O’Donoghue Cup and the Munster club. That is before we were beaten by Castlebar in the All-Ireland semi-final in 2014.”

Since the loss to Kerins O’Rahilly’s, Crokes have taken the verdict in four county championship fixtures, three Munster club games, the county league final and three games in a much delayed East Kerry championship.

Tomorrow’s divisional decider is their 11th game over the past 12 weekends, their fourth game in 16 days and third in eight days.

“Thankfully, we have got to the position where the East Kerry championship will be finished before Christmas. It was looking at one stage that it might not be finished until after Christmas,” Casey continued.

The East Kerry championship has worked out well from the point of view that we have given plenty of game-time to lads who had not got an opportunity.

It is much easier to face games at this time of the year when you are winning, as opposed to having to wait a long time for just one game. Some of the teams had to wait five or six weeks before they had their second game in the East Kerry championship.

We are very much looking forward to getting it wrapped up before Christmas. The players need a break, just to refresh.