The Kerryman (South Kerry Edition)
True to form Dr Crokes will win
MUNSTER CLUB SFC SEMI-FINAL
Dr Crokes v Loughmore-Castleiney
(Tipperary) Sunday, November 13 Lewis Road, Killarney at 2pm
HARRY O’Neill understands that in these situations the Kerry team is always the favourite to win. That doesn’t mean he always agrees with it, and it certainly doesn’t mean he or his players are going to be duped by it.
“Every time you go in [to the Munster Championship] as Kerry representatives, with the exception of playing against the Cork champions, the expectation is that you should be winning. I can sort of understand that, but we’ve found almost to our cost on more than one occasion that the Tipperary or Clare champions or whoever else are serious operators and no pushovers,” the Dr Crokes team selector says.
On Sunday the Kerry champions will, once more, be hot favourites to advance to a provincial final at the expense of the Tipperary representatives. In this case that’s Loughmore-Castleiney, and O’Neill knows a thing or two about them.
Three years ago the mid Tipperary dual club came to Lewis Road for the Munster semi-final, and though they were scalded by Crokes to the tune of a 17-point beating that day, O’Neill knows next Sunday will be most definitely quite a bit closer.
“To be fair to them that year they had won the Tipperary football and hurling double and were fighting in Munster on two fronts. They certainly caught up with them against us. I’ve no doubt they’ll be somewhat fresher next Sunday than they were three years ago,” O’Neill says.
Dr Crokes didn’t send and spies to the Tipp final in Cashel on the same Sunday they were seeing off the spirited, but limited, challenge of Kilmurry-Ibrickane above in Quilty, and O’Neill won’t be drawing much insight from the surviving video of that Munster semi-final meeting which will be three years ago next week.
“We can’t read a whole lot into that game. Obviously it was three years ago, a lot has changed. Lads who were 17 or 18 then have now broken on to both teams. The experienced fellas then are three years older still.
“What we do know is that they have serious footballers. Noel and John McGrath are known as Tipperary hurlers, but they are skilful hurlers and you don’t win hurling All-Irelands and All Stars without being a serious competitor,” O’Neill, who reports that Crokes have a fully fit squad to select from, says.
“All we’ve been doing, whether is county championship, county league, O’Donoghue Cup or whatever, is prepare as professionally for every game as we can and take each opponent on merit. We can’t do any more and we can’t afford to do any less,” he adds.
As long as they do that the belief, all round, has to be that Dr Crokes will have too much raw talent for Loughmore-Castleiney.
The expectation is that Dr Crokes will win; they shouldn’t upset the form book on this occasion.
Verdict: Dr Crokes