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Kenmare man crowned Fantasy Club champion

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5 years ago

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Kenmare native John Crowley has been declared the winner of the first ever Killarney Advertiser Fantasy Club game after he romped home to victory with a whopping 51 points to spare.

Crowley, who is a garda in Killarney, finished head and shoulders above the competition thanks in part to the high-scoring exploits of his clubmates Dan McCarthy, Paul O’Connor and Seán O’Shea. The trio combined for 212 fantasy points over the course of the Kerry Senior Club Championship, which accounted for roughly a third of Crowley’s 653-point total.

The Kenmare man walks away with the grand prize: a brand new set of jerseys courtesy of league sponsors Gaelic Plus.

Kerry and Killarney Legion goalkeeper Brian Kelly made a late burst to overtake Philip O’Connor (Dr Crokes) in second; Kelly’s final round total of 104 was one of the scores of the round (no one else in the top five registered more than 55). The All-Ireland-winning keeper will be the toast of his Legion teammates as he claims the runner-up prize: 20 pairs of club-crested Gaelic Plus gloves. O’Connor, meanwhile, will receive a Gaelic Plus hoodie, training shirt and leisure shorts.

Castleisland’s Graham O’Connor finished just outside the prizes in fourth with Gneeveguilla senior footballer DJ Murphy rounding out the top five.

 

 

DREAM 15

A quick glance at the overall Team of the Tournament throws up one interesting stat as only two players from club champions Austin Stacks ended up making the dream 15.

This is perhaps explained by the fact that it was a real team effort by The Rockies. They had a spread of fantasy scorers both at the back and up front, and the manner in which key forwards like Darragh O’Brien, Shane O’Callaghan and Seán Quilter were rotated in and out of the starting line-up meant that they had no standout scorer over the course of the championship.

Beaten finalists Kenmare are the best-represented club in the Team of the Year with six players in total, and having the top forward (Seán O’Shea), top midfielder (Kevin O’Sullivan) and top “back” (Dan McCarthy) underscores how impressive a campaign they had.

 

 

It will be of scant consolation to them after the disappointment of last Sunday’s defeat but at least their friend and clubmate, John Crowley, will be bringing a new set of jerseys back to Fr Breen Park in not-too-distant future.

Speaking at the conclusion of the inaugural Fantasy Club competition, Killarney Advertiser Sports Editor Adam Moynihan congratulated the winners and thanked all of the participants for playing.

“Well done to our top three, especially to John who managed to select the perfect team,” he said. “This was our first year trying this out so we’re very grateful to everyone who got involved, not least our sponsor, Shane Cronin of Gaelic Plus.

“The feedback has been really positive so we’re looking forward to coming back bigger and better for Fantasy Club 21.”

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Home cup tie for St Paul’s could be epic

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2 weeks ago

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7 November 2025

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Paudie O’Connor National Cup (Round 1)

Utility Trust St Paul’s v GCU Brunell

Saturday 7.30pm

Killarney Sports and Leisure Centre

The St Paul’s women’s team will be hoping to get their National Cup adventure off the ground on Saturday when they welcome 2024 champions Brunell to Killarney. Tip-off in the Killarney Sports and Leisure Centre is at 7.30pm.

Paul’s have displayed some fine early season form, although their unbeaten start in the Super League came to an abrupt end last weekend when they lost to the Trinity Meteors in Dublin. James Fleming’s side weren’t at their best on the day but they were well in contention heading into the final quarter with the scores at 47-45 in favour of the hosts. The Meteors pushed on in the fourth, however, eventually running out 63-53 winners.

St Paul’s scorers on the night were Maisie Burnham (13), Tara Cousins (12), Lorraine Scanlon (12), Lovisa Hevinder (9), Denise Dunlea (5) and Leah McMahon (2).

The Killarney club are now joint second in the table alongside the Meteors with both teams holding a 4-1 record. Killester are top having won each of their first five games.

Paul’s opponents on Saturday, Brunell, have won three out of five league matches so far.

LAKERS

The Utility Trust St Paul’s Lakers have now won three of their last four games in Division 1 of the Men’s National League following an impressive home victory over Moycullen in Killarney.

Eoin Carroll and Jack O’Sullivan made significant contributions of the Boys in Black; Carroll hit 17 points and collected 13 rebounds while O’Sullivan had 14 points, 12 rebounds and some spectacular blocks.

Steve Kelly posted 30 points and the durable Sam Grant played every second, adding 21 points along the way.

The Lakers started well before the visitors found their footing and the sides went in level at the half-time break after scores by home captain Carroll. There was still nothing to separate the teams entering the fourth quarter (68-65) but buckets by Carroll, Pablo Murcia and Grant opened up a nine-point lead. Moycullen fought back admirably, however, cutting the deficit to just four, but Luke O’Hea’s charges held firm to prevail by eight (88-80).

Next up is a cup tie against the Tipperary Talons, a side they defeated by 30 points just a couple of weeks ago. The cup can be very different to the league, though, and they will need another solid performance to advance to the next round. Tip-off in in Killenaule is at 6.30pm on Saturday.

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Chances of Kerry v Cork Munster final in 2026 decrease as Munster GAA delay seeding plan

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2 weeks ago

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7 November 2025

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After facing a backlash from Limerick, Clare, Waterford and Tipperary players, Munster GAA have postponed their plan to keep Cork and Kerry separate in the 2026 Munster Football Championship.

The new seeding system – which gives the two highest ranked Munster teams in the National League byes to separate semi-finals – will now come into play in 2027, twelve months later than initially planned.

This will give Clare and Limerick a chance to earn promotion to Division 2 of the league, potentially overtaking Cork if the Rebels were to get relegated to Division 3.

Despite traditionally being the two main contenders for Munster football honours, Kerry and Cork haven’t met in a provincial decider since 2021. The Kingdom have won each of the finals since then (one versus Limerick and three versus Clare) by an average margin of 15.75 points.

More high-profile Kerry v Cork finals might be desirable for fans of those teams, businesses in Killarney and Cork, and neutrals alike but Munster GAA’s plans to effectively keep the great rivals on opposite sides of the draw understandably drew criticism from the other participating counties. A statement by the GPA confirmed that players from Limerick, Clare, Waterford and Tipp had met via Zoom to discuss the matter. They were said to be “deeply disappointed and concerned” by the decision.

The 12-month delay will at least give two of those disaffected teams an opportunity to benefit from the new seeding process.

The draw for the 2026 Munster Football Championship will take place on November 27 under the old rules. As 2025 finalists, Kerry and Clare will get byes to the last four (but they will not necessarily be kept apart).

Nine members of Kerry’s squad are up for All-Stars at tonight’s awards ceremony in Dublin with Joe O’Connor and David Clifford also in contention for the prestigious Footballer of the Year award.

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