Fennelly: Conal Keaney up there with Henry Shefflin among the greats

Kevin Fennelly handed retiring Dublin hurler Keaney his debut

Conal Keaney of Dublin celebrates following the 2019 Leinster GAA Hurling Senior Championship Round 5 match between Dublin and Galway at Parnell Park in Dublin. Photo by Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile

Kevin Fennelly, the Dublin manager who handed Conal Keaney his Championship debut 20 years ago, has placed him as one of the players of his generation.

Keaney has called it quits at 38, just weeks shy of the 20th anniversary of that Leinster SHC debut against Laois in 2001.