'They changed the face of Kerry football for the better' - O'Shea lauds Long-Quill double act

The burgeoning rivalry between the Kerry and Armagh ladies footballers will have its latest episode this Saturday in Tralee.

Thu, 23 Jan, 2025 - 01:00

PJ Browne

Throughout last year, the Kerry ladies football panel had a strong sense it was going to Darragh Long and Declan Quill’s final season in charge.

The duo had come close to stepping down after Kerry’s 2023 final defeat to Dublin but returned to put the icing on a memorable five years with August’s All-Ireland final victory over Galway.

“They owe Kerry ladies football absolutely nothing,” Kerry forward Siofra O’Shea said at the launch of the Lidl Ladies National Football Leagues.

“They changed the face of Kerry football for the better. They raised the training levels, but they also raised everything else around it.

“We started in Division 2, and in relegation battles from senior; we ended as Division 2 champions, Division 1 champions and ultimately as All-Ireland champions, which was our goal from the start. It was a bit of fairytale ending for them.

“It’s our job now to keep those standards high and not leave it drop again because Kerry had massive success in the 80s and 90s and there was a massive drop-off there for the last 30 years.”

Long and Quill have been succeeded by Na Gaeil man Mark Bourke.

“He been brilliant so far, very knowledgeable,” said O’Shea.

“He won't be looking to change too much from the way we've played. He's bringing in new ideas, and we're all trying to learn from him. Training's going good so far. Hopefully we can grow as a team and build that bit of connection with him throughout the league.”

Shortly before Christmas, Kerry were dealt another blow - though again not a totally unexpected one - when Louise Ní Mhuircheartaigh, the Kingdom's star forward, announced the end of her 17-year inter-county career.

"I looked up to her from when I was younger and to get to play alongside her was special," said O'Shea.

"She was a top role model, the way she conducted herself on and off the pitch. We took massive learnings from her. She was probably the face of Kerry ladies football, and she took a lot of pressure off us. To see how she conducted herself with kids after, she'd be swarmed by kids and to see that she had time for every one of them."

Kerry face Armagh in the opening round of the league at Austin Stack Park on Saturday afternoon.

“They beat us in the the league last year up in Armagh and then they beat us in the league final," said O’Shea.

“We took massive learnings from both of them and then third time lucky, we beat them in the All-Ireland semi-final, so we've had a bit of a rivalry with them growing now.

“They move the ball really quickly and they have some very fast players who can break the line and that can be hard to deal with. Then they have some unbelievable inside forwards who can kick the scores at the end of it. It'll be a tough challenge ahead.”