Kerry FC’s Axworthy the latest goalkeeper to leave the club

KERRY FC have confirmed the departure of goalkeeper Lee Axworthy from the club.

Dublin-born Axworthy, who spent much of his childhood in Kerry before moving to England for his formative years, had originally signed for the club in July of last year.

The one-time Brentford academy prospect played thirteen times for the Kingdom in his nearly nine months with the Mounthawk Park outfit, most recently getting ninety minutes in the Munster Senior Cup.

Kerry’s acquisition of Croatian keeper Antonio Tuta in the off-season, however, would seem to have limited his prospects for game-time, going from first-choice keeper at the end of last season to back-up keeper under the new signing.

Reserve keeper Aaron O’Sullivan was on the bench for last Friday evening’s game with Bray Wanderers in Mounthawk Park. Axworthy’s departure, understood to be for a club in the Middle East, was confirmed on Monday by first-team coach James Sugrue. “Yeah Lee’s gone,” Sugrue said.

“It was on his side [the decision to leave]. He just wanted to go elsewhere. We said that’s okay and that’s it. There’s not much about it. It’s an opportunity now for the other goalies, that’s just the way it is.”

The turnover in goalkeepers at the club has been substantial in its short existence – Axworthy joining Wayne Guthrie and Arthur Nganou as former Kerry FC shot-stoppers – but Sugrue was upbeat despite Axworthy’s departure.

“Darragh Foley our Under 20s keeper is now being brought in training with us, which to be honest has worked out nicely because I wanted to bring him in earlier on anyway,” he commented.

“He’s one for the future, he’s a very good keeper, very confident so he’s in training with us at the moment so it’s worked out nicely really.”