Strong and successful links with secondary schools
SO much of the opinion surrounding St Brendan’s College in Killarney tends to focus on its tradition of producing quality players for the green and gold of Kerry. That much is true, but often overlooked - certainly from an outside perspective - is the contribution of clubs within East Kerry to St Brendan’s College.
Many of the pupils attending the Sem over the years hail from Glenflesk, Fossa, Killarney, Spa, Rathmore, and Firies to name a few. This generational conveyer belt of players has always been complemented by a dedicated team of teachers and coaches within the college itself who give their time to encourage and foster this football talent.
No supplement on the success of East Kerry would be complete without mention of the Sem given its relationship with the East Kerry district’s success.
“The majority of the club players from around the Killarney/East Kerry area have been through St Brendan’s. It’s an historic and successful relationship for sure,” said Michael Leahy, a teacher at the Sem.
“The contribution made by these players to the success of this college at Corn Ui Mhuiri and Hogan Cup level is astounding. Certainly over 95 percent of the players come from East Kerry clubs.”
Michael is originally from Cork but is involved with the Legion club in Killarney. He mentions influential men like Kieran Herlihy from Spa, who trained St Brendan’s teams; Arthur Fitzgerald from Firies, who was involved in backroom teams with Kerry’s minor and U21 teams in recent years; while current MEP and Kilcummin native, Sean Kelly, is another with influential links with the school’s football success. A former teacher at St Brendans, Sean is a past Chairman of the Kerry County Board, and past President of the GAA.
“The O’Donoghue Cup competition is mentioned regularly in the corridors and staffroom at St Brendan’s, and if your team lost, people would be inclined to remind you of it! My connection would be with Legion; sadly, we’ve had a number of disappoints over the years.”
Michael cites Glenflesk’s Seamus Moynihan as the best and most influential player he has ever seen in his lifetime. Legion’s James O’Donoghue was another excellent collage player, who was unlucky not to win a Hogan Cup medal in 2008. Fossa’s David Clifford and Spa’s Dara Moynihan are other players of note.
“These are players who were very influential at colleges level. The East Kerry connection is strong in the school and many of our sixth year pupils would be playing O’Donoghue Cup football every year. It’s a very competitive competition. We’re also tied in with Vince Cooper of the South Kerry Development Board. We do a lot of work with them and they use the school’s facilities for training. This is an association I would like to see a lot more of in the future,” Michael said. CASTLEISLAND Community College is proud to be associated with so many from East Kerry who have contributed so much to the GAA - on and off the field. Seamus Scanlon and Mike Galwey from Currow, who won All Ireland senior medals, are top of the list. There is also outstanding Currow footballers like Sean McCarthy and JJ Hanrahan who have excelled in other sports.
Eamon John O’Donoghue of Cordal played in two All-Ireland Junior finals. Kieran Scanlon won an All-Ireland Junior medal, while many have represented Kerry Vocational Schools such as Pa Dennehy and Joe Murphy of Currow, who both won All Ireland medals. Michael Horan, Scartaglen; the O’Donoghue twins from Ballinard, Cordal, the O’Sullivan’s from Tullig in Cordal. Many others have made a significant contribution off the field such as Maurice Costello, Chairman of Cordal, and Johnny Scanlon from Currow, who also won a vocational schools medal in 1960. SCOIL Phobail Sliabh Luachra continues to play a part in the success of East Kerry football. This can often be unseen contribution, but it’s one that is prominent nonetheless. Stars like Aidan O’Mahony, Tom O’Sullivan, Paul Murphy, Declan O’Keeffe and Ambrose O’Donovan have all played football for Scoil Phobail Sliabh Luachra. Its students come mainly from the Rathmore, Gneeveguilla and Knocknagree areas. As well as Kerry players, Cork minor players have also come through the school’s ranks.
Donal Murphy is the current Chairman of Rathmore GAA and he has fond memories of his days at the school. He was on the team that won the All-Ireland Vocational Schools title in 1978 when they defeated Newry in the final. “The school was hugely important at that time as there was no underage training in clubs. The school was a hugely inspirational part of our football philosophy. Great credit is owed to men like Jer O’Donoghue, as he had a huge influence on our careers.”
Donal says that clubs have since put training and coaching at the top of their list, which means that schools are less important in that respect. But Scoil Phobail Sliabh Luachra is a still a vibrant nursery in the region. Many O’Donoghue Cup medal winners have passed through its doors over the years, and no doubt many more will in the future.
“The school was a huge part in my generation’s football education. It dipped slightly in the intervening years, but thankfully it’s strong again. The O’Donoghue Cup is the holy grail of East Kerry. It was for my generation and it is still the same,” said Donal. ST. Patrick’s Secondary School has a long and successful football tradition spanning almost 80 years with its various teams winning county and Munster titles. Central to this success has been the contribution of the players from the clubs of East Kerry. This school serves students from Currow, Scartaglen, Cordal and Firies.
Over the years, many players from these clubs have represented their club, school and their county right up to the present day. Some that come to mind are Liam Brosnan, John Buckley, John McGlynn (Currow), Donal Daly (Firies), Philip O’Connor (Cordal), Padraig Reidy, Sean and Eddie Horan (Scartaglen).
The school continues to have many talented footballers from these clubs. Through the various county development squads many have had opportunities to wear the green and gold of Kerry. The cooperation between clubs and the school is hugely successful.
It is wonderfully positive for all young players in terms of their personal and football development. Long may it continue.