Kerry Under Greater Pressure Than Tyrone.

Friday 20.07.2012

Club

There is a lot of talk about Kerry gaining revenge over Tyrone on Saturday in their third round qualifier game in Killarney. Having read Darragh O’Se’s column in the newspaper this week it seems this was the draw that all Kerry folk wanted. At last they would get the opportunity with home advantage at their favourite venue to finally defeat the upstarts from the north. Imagine after being denied three All Ireland titles when they went into those deciders as hot favourites they can set the record straight with a home win over their nemesis.
Well maybe they really do believe that or perhaps O’Se is just trying to fire up his former team mates so that they approach the game in the right frame of mind. He knows better than most what happens if the mind is not right and complacency sets in. He has watched Kerry several times this year and knows only too well the problems the team faces as they struggle to get a winning formula. It is not that they don’t have the talent. Indeed they still have the most talented bunch of forwards in the country who if they click could give any side a serious beating.
However thus far they appear to lack the motivation and hunger required for a serious attempt at winning the championship. They were poor by their standards against Tipperary while they seemed to accept against Cork that their best chance of a victory was by defending deep and hoping for the best. They got a victory over Westmeath in a game where they did not play all that well and came in for a lot of criticism from many of their own supporters. Hardly the type of form that would cause Dublin or Cork to tremble in their shoes but as always with a team like Kerry there is the chance of a sting in the tail.
Tyrone’s visit on Saturday will tell Jack O’Connor all he needs to know about his team and whether they still have the hunger for the job. Many of these players have been on the campaign trail for more years than they care to remember. They might well feel that they are still as hungry as ever and train and prepare for the big games with the same intensity as always. Perhaps that is true but do they still have the hunger for it when it comes down to it? Former Down manager Pete Mc Grath once said about hunger, it can come like a thief in the night and you don’t really know it has gone until you find yourself chasing a two or three point deficit late in the game and discover you are running on empty.
Kerry may well get themselves up for this game and rediscover the passion for the cause because of who their opponents are on Saturday but whether that is enough to see them regain their former poise and glory remains to be seen.
Of course Mickey Harte’s team are not making the long trip to Killarney as tourists. They know the size of the challenge that awaits them but with so many of these players not having faced Kerry in the championship before this they won’t be going into this game with any inferiority complex. They are finding form at the right time and showed last week that they still have the talent and hunger when required. This game will test the character and commitment of them all but with Tyrone’s younger legs that might just be enough to see them home.