Pain is on the cards when dad's the boss

The dynamic is always bound to be strange with a father-son/manager-player relationship at an elite level. Nobody knew what it was really like until both Kingstons gave their insights recently

TOUGH LOVE: Former Cork manager Kieran Kingston and son Shane. ‘There is no doubt that I was harder on Shane than I should have been,’ recalled Kieran. Pic: Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile

Eddie Brennan has never been shy to share his opinions on Twitter but he was in overdrive during the 2021 All-Ireland semi-final between Cork and Kilkenny. Brennan’s insights ranged from Eoin Murphy’s brilliance, to Kilkenny’s resilience, to the psychological test Cork had passed, before his closing tweet focussed on the man-of-the-match.

“I can just picture Shane Kingston sitting in behind the wheel of the car tonight,” wrote Brennan. “And as the father sits in, he hands him the MOTM award. ‘Put on the belt there and hold that Da like a good man.’”