Brick by brick, the long Kerry rebuild brought a sweet family feast 

The Kerry managers had taken over a team of poor culture, lukewarm commitment, and no meaningful success. 

TG4 All-Ireland Ladies Senior Football Championship Final, Croke Park, Dublin 4/8/2024 Kerry vs Galway Kerry’s Niamh Carmody is lifted by teammates Cait Lynch and Aishling O’Connell with the Brendan Martin Cup Mandatory Credit ©INPHO/Tom Maher

Looking up at Dublin’s Carla Rowe as she lifted the Brendan Martin Cup, Darragh Long turned to his fellow Kerry joint-manager Declan Quill out on the Croke Park field and said, “that’s it for us”.

Quill issued no rebuttal. He offered no disagreement. He made no attempt to dismiss the comment as fuelled by devastation in the minutes after yet another final defeat.