NFL build-up continues with analysis of Kerry squad and Division 1 opponents

BRIAN KELLY, SHANE MURPHY, SHANE RYAN

Of all the positions on the pitch, the battle for the number 1 shir t is surely the hardest fought – if only for the simple reason that there can only be one. Miss out on the full-back’s ber th and you might have a shot at the corner-back’s role, or even a place on the half-back line. For a goalkeeper, however, that simply isn’t an option. Nor is a place on the bench much cop for a goalkeeper. Barring injury or a complete meltdown, the goalkeeper who starts the game is the goalkeeper who finishes the game and once he has that number one shir t it’s a darned hard thing to do to dislodge him. The goalkeeper is the foundation stone of the defence (and the team) and as such it’s not something coaches like to chop and change all that often. That, of course, hasn’t quite been the case with the Kingdom for the last couple of seasons. There was a real tug of war between Brendan Kealy – an All Star winner in 2015 – and Brian Kelly for most of Éamonn Fitzmaurice’s tenure and even last year, when it looked like Shane Murphy had laid claim to the number one shir t, there was a change between the sticks following a disappointing performance by the Dr Crokes man in the first round of the Super 8s. Brian Kelly was elevated the following weekend against Monaghan and held his position for the last round against Kildare in Fitzgerald Stadium. Kelly did perfectly well in both games and is a serious option for this year, but we have a feeling that no matter upon whom he eventually alights Peter Keane will be loathe to change horses mid stream, as it were, in the manner in which the Kingdom did last season. Whoever emerges from the league as Kerry’s number one – and the margins are likely to be very tight indeed – is going to be number one for championship and, we suspect, the management team won’t change their mind on that one. Time and space to grow, to make mistakes and to learn from those mistakes will be – or at least should be – provided. Sounds simple right? Well, yes and, well, no. In this year’s league Peter Keane will have to find adequate game time for three keepers of a high calibre and at the end of it he’s going to have to weigh up the pros and cons of each and come to a conclusion. It’s possible that one of the three will emerge head-and-shoulders above the others, but our suspicion is that there won’t be much of anything between them. These type of decisions, of course, are the bread and butter of high-performance management. This one is the very definition of a high-class problem. Each of the three keepers the Kingdom has on its books right now would likely star t for most other counties. Ever since the first of Kerry’s five All Ireland minor titles in succession, Shane Ryan (left) has been considered a Kerry number one in waiting. After a little bit of a false start in 2017 after which he walked away to concentrate on club football, the Rathmore man is hungry and eager for that yellow goalkeeper’s shirt. Even without seeing him play yet in this year’s league he’s considered by many to be the obvious choice to star t between the sticks come championship. We’ll know more on that score after the opening couple of rounds of the league. Brian Kelly, meanwhile, will take confidence from last year after a difficult 2017 campaign. He’s a very good keeper – prone to the odd mistake and the odd off day – but, with the momentum there is for change, he might find it hard to retain a star ting role. Finally Shane Murphy (below) might find himself in the most difficult position of all because of Dr Crokes’ run in the All Ireland club championship. His game time in the league could be limited and in a close run thing that could be critical. Cer tainly a battle to watch with interest.