Austin Stacks and Kenmare battle to avoid dreaded drop in Kerry

KEY MAN: Sean O’Shea will be a key man Kenmare Shamrocks as they battle to avoid the drop to intermediate. Pic: Brendan Moran/Sportsfile

It might come across as a bad Kerry joke, but no-one’s laughing in the Austin Stacks or Kenmare dressing rooms.

Both sides were edged out of the Kerry SFC at the quarter-final stage — Kenmare Shamrocks by three points to championship favourites, East Kerry, and Austin Stacks, who succumbed by a single point after extra time to Feale Rangers 24 hours earlier.

That was on October 8 — two weeks on, the sides face off next Sunday in Killarney with the loser relegated to the Intermediate Championship in 2023. What gives?

Unfortunately for both, their presence in a relegation play-off was decided at the tail end of the summer in the Kerry Club championship, a cutthroat precursor to the blue riband that is limited to the eight senior clubs in the county. Two groups of four play three games each with the two bottom teams pitted against each other for the right to survive at senior. The great and the good of Kerry football have found themselves with the noose around the necks — last year Dr Crokes had to defeat local Killarney rivals Legion to survive at senior level.

The only escape for either cellar-dweller is to make it all the way to the Kerry SFC final itself — which neither managed to do this time around.

The system has been widely credited with creating a razor-sharp edge to the senior club competition but has also been panned for being too cut-throat. Only seven senior clubs survive in the grade every year. The winner of the Kerry Club SFC will be decided at the same Fitzgerald Stadium venue next Sunday as Tralee’s Kerins O’Rahilly’s play Templenoe — with an extra incentive now on offer for the victors.

Dingle’s unlucky defeat in Sunday’s SFC semi-final at the hands of East Kerry eliminated the last club from the main competition and removed the option of the county champions representing Kerry in the Munster Club SFC. Hence, the winners of the club competition on Sunday will represent Kerry at provincial level in a November 27 semi-final against the Waterford or Clare champions.

Austin Stacks manager Wayne Quillinan will not want to finish what has been a very successful stint as manager overseeing his side’s relegation from the senior grade. They were county champions only a year ago, beating Kerins O’Rahilly’s in an all-Tralee decider. Quillinan has been appointed Kerry minor football manager for 2023.

Stacks have been hampered by a number of long-term injuries to key players this season and could be vulnerable to a Kenmare side that features Kerry’s Sean O’Shea and Stephen O’Brien. That game is scheduled for 1.15pm in Killarney with the club final at 3pm.

The Kerry SFC final itself is fixed for Tralee the following Sunday between East Kerry and Mid Kerry at 2.15pm.