Kingdom clubs chasing glory
October 7th, 2011 by Kevin EganOf all the football action taking place across Ireland this weekend, it’s fair to say that for sheer quality, it would be difficult to find anything on a par with the three County championship quarter finals taking place in Kerry on Saturday evening and Sunday afternoon. The unique divisional system in the Kingdom is such that every player in the county has the opportunity to play in their senior championship, and so by the time we get to the quarter final stages, the standard of football is invariably very high.
East Kerry have already taken their place in the last four with a narrow win over Dingle last weekend, while both Mid Kerry and Dr Crokes are expected to join them and possibly contest the final later in the autumn.
Dr Crokes face Austin Stacks in a repeat of last year’s county final and on that occasion the Killarney men were very much the better team. Having beaten South Kerry to reach this stage, it’s fair to say that the standard of football in Crokes hasn’t dropped this year, and after Colm Cooper missed out on the chance to lift the Sam Maguire Cup, there should be a huge push in the club to get him back to Croke Park via the club route.
However there are injury doubts surrounding both Cooper and Eoin Brosnan, and this game will take on a very different complexion if either of those two key men miss the tie. With such uncertainty, recommending a bet is simply not possible.
Mid Kerry face Rathmore as part of the same double header on Sunday afternoon, and while big things are expected of Mid Kerry this year, the continued progression of Milltown/Castlemaine is likely to impede on their progress to some degree at the very least. Kerry players in junior and intermediate clubs are well used to serving two masters, however it’s been three months since Mid Kerry have played together, and it will be difficult to rediscover that cohesion against a Rathmore side that have played competitively each of the last two weekends.
Indeed Rathmore’s 3-9 to 0-15 win last weekend over Dr Crokes in the club championship (as opposed to the county championship) came despite Crokes rattling off the first eight scores of the game. The self belief that comes from a result like that will be a huge asset against Mid Kerry and if the pressure comes on, expect Rathmore to come very close. At 13/5 with William Hill, they look like genuine contenders for an upset here. Of course there is a risk attached to opposing a forward line containing Donncha Walsh, Sean O’Sullivan and Darren O’Sullivan, but the odds justify just such a play.
The stand alone fixture on Saturday night is between West Kerry and Kerin’s O’Rahillys, with Paddy Power calling it an even game while most other bookies side with the club side. Milltown/Castlemaine’s win in the intermediate championship last weekend came at the expense of An Ghaeltacht, whose players are integral to the West Kerry cause, and if there is any kind of rebound from that performance, it could be worth siding with West Kerry here.
Kerins O’Rahillys have the significant advantage of lining out with St Kilda’s Tommy Walsh, but he didn’t have the best of games last weekend in the club championship when they lost out to Laune Rangers. West Kerry could be worth a small investment here at the even money price on offer, particularly since Marc Ó’Sé’s form should be enough to curtial Walsh yet again, while up front West Kerry have some fine young forwards with real potential.
Top Tips:
Rathmore v Mid Kerry: Rathmore @ 13/5 (William Hill)
West Kerry v Kerins O’Rahillys: West Kerry @ 1/1 (Paddy Power)
Clonakilty better prepared for provincial campaign
November 6th, 2009 by Kevin EganOdd though it may seem, there is one peculiar anomaly in the GAA which can, if a certain set of circumstances come into play, result in a team being eliminated from the race for the All Ireland club championship even though they might be the best club team in the land. Of course bad days can happen to anyone, that’s simply football or hurling in action, but this past weekend Dr Crokes were eliminated by South Kerry and thus were ruled out from competing for the All Ireland club championship, despite certainly being among the top three or four clubs left in contention before Sunday, and possibly even being the most talented of the lot.
