Fitzmaurice sees Division One football as the next challenge for St Marys

ST Marys manager Maurice Fitzgerald completed his tenure with the squad after a few trophy laden seasons, and departs having left behind a squad of players fully equipped to challenge for further honours in the coming years.

“I felt that, maybe, we were playing in fits and starts coming into the Championship, trying to get a bit of rhythm back into our play,” Fitzgerald said. “And in fairness to the Rangers they came into the game on the back of two games against Dromid, and a nice bit of momentum over Ballyfilemore. That was a good win so they had good momentum coming into the game. But we have a very mature and a lovely blend of older and younger players coming through over the last three, four years, and I felt they were in a good place coming into the final. You could say there was no sense of complacency or anything like it, they just have a big appetite for the game, and we are all delighted just to have got through it,” the Marys manager said.

“They put fierce work and fierce time into their game, all the individuals and that’s twenty-five, twenty-six players, and it’s only a pity we couldn’t get more in and so on, but I think everybody understands. They work hard in training, the standards are high, we have a difficult job of selecting these teams when we sit down to it.

“We also have a couple of nice minors coming through as well and we are very much looking forward to those lads getting involved with the Seniors. We will take a break now for a few weeks and they will set out their plans for next year, and try to go at Division One of the County League, which will be a big step up for us,” he said, even though it will be a new manager in charge in 2017.

“It’s a huge day in the calendar of the South Kerry footballers. I think to be top of the pack in your own home territory means everything. What I would say that it’s one of the big days in the calendar of Weeshie Fogarty, and normally when I would have an interview after I would always have a word with Weeshie, so I want to send my best wishes, because I know he has a big passion for the Championship down here. He was missed here today. I feel sorry he is not here, and all the best wishes from all the group in South Kerry to him.”

Paulie O’Donoghue of St Marys in full flight under the close eye of Seamus O’Sullivan of Skellig Rangers during the South Kerry SFC Final

Daniel O’Sullivan of Skellig Rangers puts Darragh O’Sullivan of St Marys underpressure during the South Kerry SFC Final