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. 

They were young and cramp was a common issue for a number of them towards the end of matches.

The same three players - Adrian Spillane, Brian Ó Beaglaioch and Gavin Crowley - were substituted in both All-Ireland final games. They wouldn’t exactly be spring chickens but they had run themselves into the ground.

When it was confirmed in June that not only would the Championship be knock-out but it wouldn’t resume until October the need to be physically ready for the rigours of winter football was underlined, their extra efforts vindicated.

Having their state-of-the-art gym in Currans available to them again this last while will have allowed for a mini pre-season of sorts, topping off what they had done individually.

The change in their physique has been noticed on the street as much as in club games. As Pat Spillane said earlier this week: “The one thing I notice about them and I know lots of the lads around here, there is four from Templenoe, three from Kenmare on the panel, physically these lads have developed and they can match Dublin in that department and they couldn’t last year.”

Adrian Spillane was one of three Kerry players substituted in both the All-Ireland final and the replay. Picture: Piaras Ó Mídheach/Sportsfile

Appointed in late 2018, McGahan became only the second full-time strength and conditioning coach employed by a county board, the other being Bryan Cullen in Dublin. Kerry, particularly under Éamonn Fitzmaurice, appreciated the need to follow best practice in the area, which was being delivered by their arch rivals.

In an interview with Radio Kerry last January, McGahan outlined just how far Dublin had been ahead but Kerry were cutting the gap.

“Dublin had Martin Kennedy in beforehand. Martin Kennedy then left to go to the IRFU then Bryan Cullen stepped in. Bryan is there now about five years. Martin Kennedy was there eight years. Basically, we have one year done.”

But McGahan added: “We won’t be that far away. These boys, they have definitely bought into it. They’re a great bunch to work with and I’m not just saying that for the seniors; I’m saying that for the U20s, the minors have really bought into it.

“Even looking at their scores from last November compared to this November, they have made serious strides. I would have no doubt that they will definitely look back at last year and say, ‘Right, we’re not too far away.’

And they will build on that and cherish the experience they got last year. Looking at this year, they will definitely be pushing on hard.

As Bernard Brogan recalls in his autobiography “The Hill”, Dublin in Pat Gilroy’s time regularly played Seamus McEnaney’s Monaghan in challenge games as a mean of steeling them physically. With McEnaney back in charge of his native county, Kerry arrive in Inniskeen keen to test their brawn.