DESPITE HIS SIDE having a late free to win the game, Kerry manager Eamonn Fitzmaurice was grateful for his men to get another crack at Mayo next Saturday after today’s draw in the All-Ireland semi-final.
The momentum swung rapidly between Kerry and Mayo throughout the contest but as the game entered the final ten minutes, it looked like the Connacht champions would book their place in the final.
Advertisement
“With a couple of minutes to go it looked like the game had gone away from us so we are delighted to have another go at it. We will have to improve a good bit for next weekend but it is great to be still in the championship,” Fitzmaurice said.
In the first half, Kerry bottled up the Mayo forwards and curtailed the raids from their half-back line. Fitzmaurice’s side couldn’t sustain that level of play in the second half though, and the manager isn’t entirely sure why.
“It is hard to know and hard to put your finger on it. We will definitely have to have a look at it. It was a disappointing showing from us in the second half. We sat back and invited Mayo on and that wasn’t our plan at the half. They got massive momentum and they showed great character with a man down and four points down. They fought on their backs for each other and we struggled with it,” Fitzmaurice said.
Mayo cleaned Kerry out for the majority of the second half until a frantic finish where James O’Donoghue and Kieran O’Leary kicked scores that tied the game. While he was dissatisfied with the second half performance, Fitzmaurice commended the effort of his players during the final stages.
“I am very proud of the lads that they dug in and got the goal. Kieran Donaghy made a great catch and passed to James [O'Donoghue] who stuck it in the net. We just barely got the draw. We could have stolen it in the end but we will take the draw,” Fitzmaurice said.
Kieran Donaghy’s contribution off the bench was one of the main reasons Kerry secured a draw, and Fitzmaurice was personally pleased to see his former playing colleague make an impact after a tough and injury-plagued year.
“He was outstanding in fairness to him. He has worked ferociously hard this year. He has had an injury and it has been a frustrating stop-start year for him. He has trained very well over the last weeks and he was bitterly disappointed not to get on against Galway but you could see where he was at today and I was delighted for him,” Fitzmaurice said.
Eamonn Fitzmaurice - 'It looked like the game had gone away from us'
DESPITE HIS SIDE having a late free to win the game, Kerry manager Eamonn Fitzmaurice was grateful for his men to get another crack at Mayo next Saturday after today’s draw in the All-Ireland semi-final.
The momentum swung rapidly between Kerry and Mayo throughout the contest but as the game entered the final ten minutes, it looked like the Connacht champions would book their place in the final.
“With a couple of minutes to go it looked like the game had gone away from us so we are delighted to have another go at it. We will have to improve a good bit for next weekend but it is great to be still in the championship,” Fitzmaurice said.
In the first half, Kerry bottled up the Mayo forwards and curtailed the raids from their half-back line. Fitzmaurice’s side couldn’t sustain that level of play in the second half though, and the manager isn’t entirely sure why.
“It is hard to know and hard to put your finger on it. We will definitely have to have a look at it. It was a disappointing showing from us in the second half. We sat back and invited Mayo on and that wasn’t our plan at the half. They got massive momentum and they showed great character with a man down and four points down. They fought on their backs for each other and we struggled with it,” Fitzmaurice said.
Mayo cleaned Kerry out for the majority of the second half until a frantic finish where James O’Donoghue and Kieran O’Leary kicked scores that tied the game. While he was dissatisfied with the second half performance, Fitzmaurice commended the effort of his players during the final stages.
“I am very proud of the lads that they dug in and got the goal. Kieran Donaghy made a great catch and passed to James [O'Donoghue] who stuck it in the net. We just barely got the draw. We could have stolen it in the end but we will take the draw,” Fitzmaurice said.
Kieran Donaghy’s contribution off the bench was one of the main reasons Kerry secured a draw, and Fitzmaurice was personally pleased to see his former playing colleague make an impact after a tough and injury-plagued year.
“He was outstanding in fairness to him. He has worked ferociously hard this year. He has had an injury and it has been a frustrating stop-start year for him. He has trained very well over the last weeks and he was bitterly disappointed not to get on against Galway but you could see where he was at today and I was delighted for him,” Fitzmaurice said.
Train strike, possessed animals and Mayo Kerry praise – how Twitter reacted to today’s match
5 talking points after Kerry and Mayo’s thrilling All-Ireland semi-final draw
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Comp:All-Ireland Senior Football Championship All-Ireland Senior HC World Cup 2014 Eamon Fitzmaurice Kerry Mayo We Dug Deep