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Okunbor, Murphy, O’Donoghue and Roche among nine additions to Jack’s Army

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4 years ago

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Stefan Okunbor of Na Gaeil is one of a number of black GAA players to speak out about the racial abuse he has been subjected to on the pitch. The former Kerry minor now plays for Geelong in the AFL. Pic: Piaras Ó Mídheach/Sportsfile

Jack O’Connor has added nine new faces to his extended Kerry senior football squad ahead of the 2022 season, which is scheduled to get underway at the end of January.

The Dromid native replaced Peter Keane as Kerry manager in October and as expected he has set about moulding his own team which he hopes will be capable of challenging for next year’s All-Ireland. The Kingdom were unexpectedly beaten by Tyrone in the 2021 All-Ireland semi-final and it has now been seven years, going on eight, since Sam Maguire resided in Kerry.

O’Connor will be under pressure to deliver immediate results and after keeping a close eye on the recent Club and County Championships, he has called in a number of promising reinforcements.

Stefan Okunbor is perhaps the most high-profile of these call-ups. After spending three years in the AFL with Geelong, Okunbor returned to Ireland in September and wasted no time getting back into the swing of things with his club, Na Gaeil, and his divisional side, St Brendan’s. The former Kerry minor and U20 star can play in a variety of positions and his skillset and athleticism has led many supporters to suggest that he could be a potential starter.

Okunbor’s call-up is not just significant in purely sporting terms. The son of a Nigerian father and a Moldovan mother, the 23-year-old Tralee man could become the first person of colour to represent the Kerry senior footballers.

MURPHY

Dr Crokes goalkeeper Shane Murphy has been recalled to the fold, three years after falling out of favour under previous manager Peter Keane. Murphy made his debut for Kerry in 2018 after impressing for the Crokes in their 2017 All-Ireland and County Championship triumphs but was subsequently dropped by Eamonn Fitzmaurice during the Super 8s.

Keane opted to play Shane Ryan in goal for the duration of his three-year term with Brian Kelly providing back up in 2019 and 2020. Kelly subsequently retired and Kenmare’s Kieran Fitzgibbon was drafted in. When Ryan got injured at the start of the 2021 campaign, Fitzgibbon was promoted to starter with goalkeeping coach and former No. 1 Brendan Kealy briefly filling in as back-up keeper.

Murphy is an expert kicker and his reintroduction to the panel comes as little surprise. He is currently recovering from a concussion he sustained during the county semi-final against Kerins O’Rahillys but he is expected to be back in action some time in the New Year.

Fellow Killarney man Dan O’Donoghue of Spa has also been added to the squad following a string of impressive seasons with his club and also in the red and white of East Kerry. The composed centre back captained his district to County Championship glory in 2019 and 2020 before playing a key role in Spa’s intermediate final victory earlier this year.

O’Donoghue’s former East Kerry teammate Darragh Roche will join him back in Currans. The Glenflesk sharpshooter has caught they eye time and again in recent championships; most recently he kicked 0-13 and picked up the Man of the Match award in his club’s defeat to Spa in the O’Donoghue Cup semi-final.

STACKS CONTINGENT

Austin Stacks claimed their 13th Kerry SFC title two weeks ago and three of their players have been rewarded with call-ups to the Kerry team. Full back and captain Dylan Casey, energetic corner back Jack O’Shea and imperious midfielder Greg Horan have all been added to Jack O’Connor’s new-look roster.

The Kerry championship’s top scorer, Jack Savage of Kerins O’Rahillys, has been brought back in having previously lined out under Eamonn Fitzmaurice, and Andrew Barry of Na Gaeil (brother of Jack) is also back in the camp. The commanding No. 6, who last featured for Kerry in 2018, was excellent for St Brendan’s on their run to the Kerry SFC semi-final.

Meanwhile, Firies veteran Jack Sherwood has reportedly stepped away from the fold, following Tommy Walsh into intercounty retirement.

Kerry get their 2022 season up and running with an away game against O’Connor’s former team, Kildare, on Sunday, January 30.

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Home cup tie for St Paul’s could be epic

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2 months 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 months 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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