Kerry used lockdown to add brawn to their brains as they challenge Dublin dominance

Lockdown has allowed the Kingdom to improve their conditioning

TOUGH TASKMASTER: Appointed by Kerry in late 2018, Jason McGahan became only the second full-time strength and conditioning coach employed by a county board, the other being Bryan Cullen in Dublin. Picture: Piaras Ó Mídheach/Sportsfile

At the start of the pandemic, a spinning bike was sent to the homes of each of the Kerry players so that they could maintain and improve their conditioning. Through Zoom, classes took place with head of athletic performance Jason McGahan supervising and their conditioning remained constant throughout the year.

The work that had been done was not going to be lost just because they couldn’t meet up. Conditioning had been an issue for some players in last year’s Championship, not because of the programmes they were doing but their age.