The Kerryman (South Kerry Edition)
Huge piece of history for Sheehan as he scoops an 11th South Kerry Championship
THE South Kerry senior football final was played in the Con Keating Park, Cahersiveen, on Saturday, December 1, between St Marys of Cahersiveen and Dromid Pearses.
A large crowd was present, many from outside Iveragh, in anticipation of a close and hard-fought game. However, St Marys had a facile win on a score of 3-17 to 2-9.
Congratulations to St Marys on achieving the five-in-a-row, which was last achieved by them from 1940 to 1944.
Interestingly, the wins of those far off years were sandwiched in between a South Kerry championship win for the Valentia Young Islanders in 1939 and another in 1945.
A glance at the records indicate that Valentia’s win of 1939 was achieved through a league system. They defeated Waterville by a score of 2-6 to 1-1 in 1945.
Congratulations also to the St Marys midfielder and free-taker supreme Bryan Sheehan on equalling his fellow St Marys player Austin Constable by winning his 11th medal and also being named man of the match. His wins came in 2001, ’02, ‘03, ‘09, ‘10, ‘11, ‘14, ‘15, ‘16, ‘17 and ‘18. Austin played in 15 finals, losing four. He won his first in 1995 with a win over St Michaels-Foilmore.The rest came in 2001, ‘02, ‘03, ‘09, ‘10, ‘11, ‘14, ‘15, ‘16 and ‘17. Previous to these achievements, Valentia’s Pat O’ Connor, the late Seamus O’Connor and Paddy ‘Boss’ Walsh of St Marys held the record with 10 each. Pat’s medals came in 1979, ‘81, ‘82, ‘83, ‘86, ‘87, ‘88, ‘90, ‘93 and 2000. The late Seamus O’Connor (uncle of Maurice Fitzgerald) won his championships in 1940, ‘41, ‘42, ‘43, ‘44, ‘47, ‘49, ‘52, ‘54 and ‘55. ‘Boss’ Walsh’s medals came in 1932, ‘37, ‘38, ‘40, ‘41, ‘42, ‘43, ‘44, ‘47 and ‘49.
St Marys will next year be endeavouring to win an unprecedented six-in-a-row, with Bryan Sheehan endeavouring to stand alone with a whopping 12 South Kerry senior football championship medals.
The 25th anniversary of Valentia’s championship final win over Waterville was marked on the South Kerry final day with an introduction of that team and representatives to spectators at half time.
Valentia and Waterville played a draw at 10 points each, with the islanders going on to win the replay by 10 points to eight.
The team of 1993 was: Tommy Gilligam, John Daly, Brendie Murphy, Nealie Lyne, PJ O’Sullivan, Seamus O’Connor, Ger Lynch, Fionan Murphy, Paul Curran(RIP), Mike O’Donoghue (captain), Michael A O’Connell, Declan Lynch, Pat O’Connor, John Paul Curran, and Richard Quigley.
Subs were: Michael Gallagher, Mícheál Lyne, Joe Lynch, Mike ‘Rocky’ O’Shea, Noel Curran, Patrick O’Connor, Junior Murphy, and John Shanahan.
The trainer was Brendy Murphy, and co-selectors were John Shanahan(RIP), Joe Lynch, Mícheál Lyne, and Pat O’Connor
Footnote: James McCarthy (Tuosist and Kenmare); Arthur O’Sullivan (Kenmare, and fresh from a holiday in Tenerife); Tom Spillane and his son, Conor, of Templenoe all travelled the long distance for the South Kerry final.
We met with them afterwards in Josephine Keating’s Corner House Bar in the centre of Cahersiveen.
In attendance also was the renowned singer Sean Garvey of Cahersiveen, Ger Lynch, Dermot Walsh, Diarmuid Lynch and Eileen Jack O‘Sullivan of Valentia.
Odhran O’Mahony of Cahersiveen, who was the Kerry minor goalie of 1989, was there.
Josephine Keating dished out the sandwiches, Seán Garvey sang the songs, Arthur O’Sullivan and James McCarthy were the spell-binding storytellers, and Tom Spillane and Ger Lynch talked of footballing times past to make for a memorable evening in the centre of Cahersiveen