Supersub Walsh ‘can be Kingdom’s Darby’
FORMER Kerry defender Aidan O’Mahony believes that Peter Keane will hold Tommy Walsh in reserve until the last 20 minutes of Sunday’s All-Ireland final and hope that he can become a Séamus Darby figure who halts the five-in-a-row. Speculation is growing down in the Kingdom that Kerry may be tempted into using the former AFL player from the start, as a way of unsettling the Dublin full-back line, with Kieran Donaghy suggesting that Walsh, with whom he formed the twin towers in 2008, has to start the final. Five-time All-Ireland winner O’Mahony has a different opinion, though, as he says, if Kerry start Walsh, it will be a disadvantage when the game becomes more open during the secondhalf. ‘If you start him, do you have a Plan B?’ O’Mahony wondered. ‘If you look at the fullforward line, you have David Clifford, Paul Geaney and young Killian Spillane and they all offer pace. Killian has played well so far. I’d be throwing him in first and holding Tommy until the second-half when the game opens up. That would suit him better. ‘I think Peter will hold onto him and if the game is tight near the finish, he is a player that can be used. No more than Dublin holding onto Rory O’Carroll for Tommy. But I think with 15 or 20 minutes to go will be the time to use him because that is when he can make a difference.’ Given Walsh’s chequered career since returning from Australia – this is his third coming as a Kerry footballer – there will almost be a fairytale element if he was to be the Darby of 2019. ‘His mentality now is different,’ said O’Mahony in his role as Paddy Power ambassador. ‘He has been through highs and lows in his career and he has come back stronger than ever. In the Tyrone game, he was fantastic and he has bought into that role where even if he has 20 minutes the next day, he can make a difference because he offers Kerry something that maybe Donaghy did in the past. ‘And wouldn’t be unreal if Tommy Walsh was the Séamus Darby after his father had played in ’82 and all. ‘It would make a great headline.’