{"id":566204,"date":"2026-07-24T16:20:24","date_gmt":"2026-07-24T16:20:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/566204\/"},"modified":"2026-07-24T16:20:24","modified_gmt":"2026-07-24T16:20:24","slug":"darragh-o-ses-player-by-player-guide-to-kerrys-starting-team-for-the-all-ireland-final-the-irish-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/566204\/","title":{"rendered":"Darragh \u00d3 S\u00e9\u2019s player-by-player guide to Kerry\u2019s starting team for the All-Ireland final \u2013 The Irish Times"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"1 Shane Murphy<\/p>\n

Age: 33<\/p>\n

Club: Dr Crokes<\/p>\n

Debut: v Clare, 2018<\/p>\n

For years, people would have thought Kerry would be in trouble without Shane Ryan but Murphy has been flawless this season. Makes no mistakes, has improved massively with his kick-outs and pulled off a couple of big saves against Dublin the last day. Probably the best goalie in Ireland this year.<\/p>\n

\"\"2 Paul Murphy<\/p>\n

Age: 34<\/p>\n

Club: Rathmore<\/p>\n

Debut: 2014 v Clare<\/p>\n

Owes Kerry nothing after all these years. Has been man-of-the-match in an All-Ireland before so the stage won\u2019t faze him. Didn\u2019t have his best game in the semi-final so he\u2019ll be keen to rectify that here. Very good decision-maker, never does anything silly.<\/p>\n

\"\"3 Jason Foley<\/p>\n

Age: 30<\/p>\n

Club: Ballydonoghue<\/p>\n

Debut: 2018 v Clare<\/p>\n

Kerry\u2019s best defender for the past few seasons. Nearly always sent after the opposition\u2019s main man, so could be given the job of shadowing Ryan O\u2019Donoghue. Kerry will have no fear of him if that\u2019s the case \u2013 he\u2019s consistent, very quick and a fine tackler.<\/p>\n

\"\"4 Dylan Casey<\/p>\n

Age: 25<\/p>\n

Club: Austin Stacks<\/p>\n

Debut: 2022 v Limerick<\/p>\n

Established in the Kerry defence by now but could do with a good final to put and end to any doubts about him. Got caught out a couple of times with his positioning in the semi-final against Dublin. Very honest defender.<\/p>\n

\"\"5 Graham O\u2019Sullivan<\/p>\n

Age: 28<\/p>\n

Club: Dromid Pearses<\/p>\n

Debut: 2019 v Mayo<\/p>\n

An underrated player who has had a couple of great seasons. Started as a wing forward last year but was always a defender at heart. Got forward for a couple of points in the championship and well able to take a score. But needs to be tighter defensively.<\/p>\n

\"\"6 Mike Breen<\/p>\n

Age: 28<\/p>\n

Club: Beaufort<\/p>\n

Debut: 2021 v Clare<\/p>\n

Has become the linchpin of the Kerry defence, holding the middle and organising everyone around him. Whether you think the ball was over the line or not in the Dublin game, Breen was there when it mattered. Very solid, never flashy, always dependable.<\/p>\n

\"\"7 Gavin White<\/p>\n

Age: 29<\/p>\n

Club: Dr Crokes<\/p>\n

Debut: 2018 v Clare<\/p>\n

One of the Kerry players who is on another tier to most of the rest of the squad. He has been carrying injuries all season but looks to be back to close to his best now. So explosive in possession when he\u2019s fit, which he looks to be. Brilliant in last year\u2019s final.<\/p>\n

\"\"8 Mark O\u2019Shea<\/p>\n

Age: 28<\/p>\n

Club: Dr Crokes<\/p>\n

Debut: 2025 v Clare<\/p>\n

Has come on leaps and bounds from last year when he was finding his feet and doing a job. This season he\u2019s a better player, taking on more responsibility and becoming a vital player in that midfield battle zone. An excellent team player.<\/p>\n

9 Se\u00e1n O\u2019Brien<\/p>\n

Age: 24<\/p>\n

Club: Beaufort<\/p>\n

Debut: 2024 v Cork<\/p>\n

Was never mapped as a Kerry footballer as a young fella but look at him now. You can\u2019t imagine a Kerry team without him. Can adapt to any situation, huge value as a ball-winner around the middle and gets forward to be a factor in and around the square as well.<\/p>\n

\"\"10 Joe O\u2019Connor<\/p>\n

Age: 26<\/p>\n

Club: Austin Stacks<\/p>\n

Debut: 2022 v Cork<\/p>\n

Back to his best after losing a lot of time early in the season through injury. When Joe goes well, Kerry tend to go well. The best tackler in the Kerry team, not just through his huge strength but his technique as well.<\/p>\n

\"KerryKerry Football-S-OShea 11 Se\u00e1n O\u2019Shea<\/p>\n

Age: 28<\/p>\n

Club: Kenmare Shamrocks<\/p>\n

Debut: 2018 v Clare<\/p>\n

Huge leader in this Kerry panel. Still finding his way back to full fitness but still was able to put in a big display in the semi-final. His excellence is routine at this stage. Great at knowing what Kerry need at a given moment in the game.<\/p>\n

\"\"12 Diarmuid O\u2019Connor<\/p>\n

Age: 27<\/p>\n

Club: Na Gaeil<\/p>\n

Debut: 2019 v Clare<\/p>\n

By his own standards, it\u2019s been a hit and miss season but he was improved against Dublin in the semi-final and looks to be going in the right direction. Matches up well against Mayo and I could see the game suiting the best parts of his game, his fielding and his kicking.<\/p>\n

\"KerryKerry Football-PClifford 13 Paudie Clifford<\/p>\n

Age: 28<\/p>\n

Club: Fossa<\/p>\n

Debut: 2020 v Cork<\/p>\n

The most unmarked player in Gaelic football. Another who missed a good bit of the season but he\u2019s coming right at the right time. Almost never takes the wrong option, knows when to shoot and when to pass. Top-class player. Mayo will leave him unmarked at their peril.<\/p>\n

\"KerryKerry Football-DClifford 14 David Clifford<\/p>\n

Age: 27<\/p>\n

Club: Fossa<\/p>\n

Debut: 2018 v Clare<\/p>\n

Gave a fine performance against Dublin in a team player role. But we all know he can take any game away from the opposition on his own too. We all judged him by a very high standard but I think he could explode in this final. I hope he goes for it and cuts loose.<\/p>\n

\"\"15 Dylan Geaney<\/p>\n

Age: 24<\/p>\n

Club: Dingle<\/p>\n

Debut: 2024 v Meath<\/p>\n

Was having the year of his life up until the semi-final, where he was quiet enough. But has the ability to hurt any team when he gets into space. If Mayo pay too much attention to David and Paudie and Se\u00e1nie, Geaney will punish them with his score-taking.<\/p>\n

Subs<\/p>\n

Kerry have a very strong bench this year, with the likes of Paul Geaney, Tom O\u2019Sullivan, and Brian \u00d3 Beaglaoich all available to do a job if needed. Jack picks on form, especially when it comes to making subs. So whoever comes on, you can take it they were flying in training.<\/p>\n

16 Shane Ryan (Rathmore)<\/p>\n

17 Evan Looney (Dr Crokes)<\/p>\n

18 Tom\u00e1s Kennedy (Kerins O\u2019Rahillys)<\/p>\n

19 Keith Evans (Keel)<\/p>\n

20 Paul Geaney (Dingle)<\/p>\n

21 Armin Heinrich (Austin Stacks)<\/p>\n

22 Brian \u00d3 Beaglaoich (An Ghaeltacht)<\/p>\n

23 Tadhg Morley (Templenoe)<\/p>\n

24 Miche\u00e1l Burns (Dr Crokes)<\/p>\n

25 Tom O\u2019Sullivan (Dingle)<\/p>\n

26 Killian Spillane (Templenoe)<\/p>\n

Management<\/p>\n

Jack O\u2019Connor is going into his ninth final so Kerry must have an advantage here. He has a strong backroom around him and he is well able to delegate and let everyone do their job when it comes to All-Ireland final week. Winning a sixth All-Ireland would be some achievement.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"1 Shane Murphy Age: 33 Club: Dr Crokes Debut: v Clare, 2018 For years, people would have thought…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":566205,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[6937,110979,61,60,4185,112],"class_list":["post-566204","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sports","tag-kerry-gaa","tag-football-championship","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-mayo-gaa","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/566204","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=566204"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/566204\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/566205"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=566204"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=566204"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=566204"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}