Former Shannon Rangers selector backs North Kerry amalgamation

FORMER Shannon Rangers footballer and team selector John Paul Leahy is backing any plans to amalgamate Shannon Rangers and Feale Rangers into one North Kerry divisional team to compete in the County SFC.

When Leahy was playing for Shannon Rangers he would never have been in favour of such a coming together, but now, having served as a selector with that divisional team the Ballyduff native sees a lot of positives in the proposal.

“I would say a definite ‘yes’ for one team now. Going back seven or eight years, I would have said no because the likes of myself probably then wouldn’t have been able to play county senior championship football,” Leahy, who is managing the Ballyduff senior footballers this year, told The Kerryman.

“I remember being on a North Kerry under-17 panel way back in 1996 or 1997 and we got to a county semi-final where we lost to Mid Kerry. We had Noel Kennelly, Paul and Enda Galvin, Trevor McKenna, Liam Boyle.

“We all played under the one jersey, which was green and gold. There was no social media then, and we just got on with it. There would be no animosity there whatsoever now between the players if we had a combined North Kerry team.

“And, if one North Kerry team got the go-ahead, it would actually make the North Kerry Championship even better, because the winner of that would then provide the captain for the following year’s North Kerry team, which would be another little prize at the end of the rainbow.”

Could a combined North Kerry team lift the Bishop Moynihan Cup?

“The players are there, for sure. Imagine if you just took three players out of every club. If you actually sat down and drew up a list, there’s an awful lot of great players. I’m not saying that North Kerry would win a county championship, but they would certainly be competitive, which we certainly aren’t at the moment.”