Kerry twice do what they have to

IT was very much as expected and that was kind of the problem.

A Munster final is supposed to have suspense and intrigue, twists and turns and this had none of that. Tipperary were not Cork and the way they approached the day suggested they knew it too.

Tipperary gave the Kingdom the type of respect that the blood and bandages never would and as a result Kerry cruised to a comfortable 3-17 to 2-10 victory. There was a certain timidity to their performance that in hindsight looks even more baffling.

After this Munster final few would have imagined Liam Kearns’ would go on to do what they did later in the summer. Few would have imagined the victory over Galway in the quarter-final or the scare they gave Mayo in the semi-final and, yet, Tipperary did do those things.

All of which combines to make this year’s Munster final feel like an opportunity missed. Even with a very healthy attendance, there was something lacking to the atmosphere for a Munster final Sunday. It was as if the fans knew what was coming as well as the players,

Not even a goal for Tipperary inside the opening sixty seconds could change the trajectory of this Munster final. Not with Tipperary persisting with a short kick-out strategy that allowed Kerry put them under all sorts of pressure high up the pitch.

Not with Paul Geaney in the kind of form he was in. Nearly everything the Dingle man touched turned to gold that day. He sent over two beautiful points early in the game and later in the half scored a goal to kill the game as a contest. There were just 17 minutes on the clock.

The victory set up Eamonn Fitzmaurice’s men for a quarter-final contest with Clare. A somewhat disappointing turn of events for all concerned. Having reached the quarter-finals for the first time ever Clare would surely have preferred to face anybody but Kerry and Kerry would have preferred a stiffer test ahead of an All Ireland semi-final with Dublin.

The game itself turned out to be the dampest of damp squibs. Kerry ran out 2-16 to 0-11 winners over a Clare side who seemed to have learned the wrong lesson from the Munster semi-final in June.

Clare approached the game cautiously, hoping to keep it tight, instead of having a go at Kerry much in the manner they did in Fitzgerald Stadium. Whatever approach they took Kerry’s class was likely to tell.