Keane sees Crokes as All-Ireland contenders

RAY Keane knows a thing or two about Kerry football. He played with St Marys in Cahersiveen and South Kerry for long enough to appreciate what Dr Crokes bring to the domestic club scene too.

Keane has worked the oracle in Cork to guide The Barrs to a first county title in 33 years but in facing Dr Crokes Keane and his team were facing different gravy altogether.

“They won’t hide the fact that they’re trying to go the whole way (to All-Ireland title), don’t be fooling yourselves about that. They’re good enough, they’re not bad,” Keane said in one of the year’s great understatements. “Once you go down to the last four they’re all there for a reason and there won’t be any easy games. And small things will twist and turn it, but they’re in with a good shout, there’s no doubt about that. You need a lot of luck along the way, but if they all stay injury free and keep at it over the Christmas because there’s a massive break, which is baffling in a sense. A lot can happen in that space of time but if they’re not there or thereabouts at the end I’d be amazed to be honest.”

As for his and St Finbarrs position Keane was sanguine.

“Better quality simple as that. We were probably getting to the forty-five or thirty-metre line and losing control of the ball and they’re going to punish you, that’s what Crokes do. That’s the reality of football at this level.

“You could go away and think about this and drive yourself demented to be quite honest, and if you do that you’ll forget about where we’ve come from and what we’ve done. I’ve no intention of getting too worked up about that.

“We’re after a great year, simple as that. That’s our third game to lose all year in all levels, whatever shape or form. You can get too depressed but there are more important things in life.

“At the start of this year we sat down to try to make the county final in Cork, which is what we did, and we got over the line. That’ll be the first thing again next year, and we’ll be looking to move on again. But if you don’t win your own patch you can’t move to this level,” Keane added.