Rossies are up next
County Board PRO John O’Leary with all the GAA news
DUBLIN opened their Allianz League campaign with an emphatic victory over Kerry at Croke Park in front of an attendance of 30,000 on Saturday last.
Dublin were on the front foot from the start and Kerry did well to recover to be on level terms at the break but the home side had passed up a number of gilt edged goal scoring chances particularly in the first quarter.
It was a different story in the second half however as Dublin converted their dominance into scores and an early goal from Paddy Andrews and another form the penalty spot by Diarmuid Connolly had Dublin in the driving seat.
Indeed the winners could afford the luxury of hitting the crossbar twice in that half as Kerry struggled to stay the pace and eventually, the All Ireland champions prevailed by a six point margin, (2-14 to 0-14), a scoreline that certainly flattered the visitors a little.
So the Metropolitans’ recent dominance over the Kingdom continues, for the moment at least, and no doubt, despite the fact that Kerry can point to the absence of a number of regulars as an excuse, Kerry manager Eamonn Fitzmaurice and his selectors will hardly have been happy with the display of his charges.
It may be only the second game in the competition but already Kerry’s Allianz Football League encounter with Roscommon in Killarney’s Fitzgerald Stadium on Sunday is being labelled as a must win game for the home-side.
This situation in the league is nothing new to Kerry in recent years however, and invariably, the unavailability of some of their regular players has been the major cause for poor starts to the league campaigns. Sunday is no different.
The likelihood is that Aidan O’Mahony, an absentee last weekend due to an eye injury, will be the only addition to the match day squad named for the first two League games. Colm Cooper and Marc Ó Sé have both resumed training while Kieran Donaghy, on basketball duty for the past few weeks, will return next week.
Kieran O’Leary, the Geaneys, Anthony Maher, Jack Sherwood and Peter Crowley are not due back until March, while James O’Donoghue is expected to return in late April.
It’s all of thirteen years since Kerry and Roscommon have crossed swords in league action and Sunday’s encounter in the Stadium has a unique feeling about it. Like Kerry, Roscommon are also seeking a first win but there was a distinct difference in the manner of their defeats.
Roscommon were regarded as unlucky to go down to Monaghan courtesy of a late goal while Kerry’s fate against Dublin had been sealed much earlier in the game. As already stated, it’s a must win game – for both sides – and for that reason alone there is bound to be a bit of bite to it. Expect a far hungrier Kerry side to take the field on Sunday. Throw-in is at 2pm with Fergal Kelly of Longford the referee.
After Sunday’s game there is a three week break before the League resumes on February 28 when Kerry are away to Down.
Tickets
SUNDAY’S game is an all ticket affair.
Tickets may be pre-purchased or are available on the day at the ticket vans which will be located at both the Dalton’s Avenue and Lewis Road entrances to the ground. Stiles will open at 12:30pm. €5 discount for pre-purchased tickets for Sunday’s Allianz League game
A pre purchase discounted price of €10 applies for all of Kerry’s games in Division 1 Football and Division 1B in Hurling. Please note that the cut off time for the pre-purchase discount will be midnight on the night before the fixture (Saturday night at 12 for the Roscommon game).
Tickets purchased on match day will be the usual €15. Admission for OAPs and Students is €10 on the production of valid I.D and Under 16s are free.
Tickets are available from the usual sources including participating Centra and Supervalu stores throughout the county and from the Kerry GAA Store in the Outlook Centre in Killarney.