Connect with us

Sport

Brian Spillane picks his Killarney Celtic Dream Team

Published

5 years ago

on

Former Killarney Celtic defender and current senior manager Brian Spillane picks a fantasy team made up of the best Celts he has ever played with.

 

GK - Roy Kelliher

Roy is a quiet lad on and off the pitch but his qualities are there for everyone to see. He’s fearless and he comes for everything, and he’s also a great shot-stopper. The thing with Roy is that the bigger the game is, the better he plays.

RB - Alan Nagle

Alan was really calm under pressure and he never let the team down. He had a fantastic first touch and great quality going forward – he was one of the few players in Kerry who could get the ball and go past three or four players. He didn’t always have the finish to go with it, though!

CB - David Hayes

The best defender I ever played with. David was excellent in the air and he could control the backline. He was a good ball-carrier as well. He knew how to break lines and open up the opposition.

CB - John McDonagh

John McDonagh, better known as Smiley, is our current club captain. He’s very good with the younger players. The fact that he’s left-legged is also a bonus as it adds great balance to the back four. The man has won seven league medals, which says it all really.

LB - Brendan Falvey

Mr Celtic. You always get 100% commitment from Brendan Falvey. He’s the best trainer at the club. He’s very competitive and an absolute warrior, especially in the big games. Heart in the mouth stuff when he slides into tackles!

DM - Matt Keane

This guy has an amazing passing ability. He always wants the ball and he controls a lot of games. Matt is a box-to-box midfielder and he follows the play everywhere. He has a great engine – he just never stops running.

DM - John Doyle

When it came to soccer, the late John Doyle had it all. He wasn’t the tallest but he was brilliant in the air, he always picked the right pass and he scored so many vital goals when his team needed them the most. A born leader on the field but, above all else, a great man.

RM - Stephen Hayes

Nickamed Helmer, Stephen has always been a very underrated player in my book. Blessed with pace, he would have been the main outlet for us on many occasions. He’s very versatile and could play any role for the team. He has had a long career with Celtic and Kerry in the Oscar Traynor Cup and he’s still playing and coaching. A great clubman.

AM - Gary Keane

There’s not too much you can say about Gary that hasn’t been said before. I’ve been involved with soccer in Kerry my whole life and he is without a doubt the best player I’ve ever played with. He does the work of two players and he’s unbelievable on the ball.

LM - Jimmy Falvey

The late Jimmy ‘Grimble’ Falvey was a very busy footballer. Similar to his younger brother, Brendan, in that he never pulled out of a tackle. I certainly wouldn’t fancy playing on the right-hand side of the opposition’s team with the two Falveys on the left! He always covered a lot of ground and would provide great support to the full back, while also offering a lot going forward.

ST - Peter McCarthy

Peter was the most professional player I have ever seen. He was always the first to training and the last to leave. He never stopped working on his game so it was no mystery when he popped up with winning goals. He would still score 30-plus goals a season if he was playing now.

 

Subs - Vladimir Sirotiak, Pa McGrath and Jamie Spillane

 

Managers - Karl McMahon and Noel Brosnan

Karl and Noel have managed and been involved with many a Celtic side down through the years. They were always fully committed to the senior team and are great supporters to this day. They both have a lot of respect for each other and they get on very well, which is vital in any management team. Sorry Noel. It’s a tough job but someone has to mind Karl!

 

 

Related Topics:
Advertisement

News

Home cup tie for St Paul’s could be epic

Published

2 weeks ago

on

7 November 2025

By

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.

Attachments

Continue Reading

News

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

Published

2 weeks ago

on

7 November 2025

By

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.

Attachments

Continue Reading