
Share
13th January 2022
09:24am GMT

Kerry fans will like to hear that. They'll also like to hear how well he's taken to the role of club captain this year.
"It was in the middle of the college year last year that I was asked on Zoom [to be captain]. It was a phone call by Wayne (Quillinan) just to let me know that they had it in mind to make captain for the year. It was a serious privilege and proud moment for me to captain Stacks seniors at 21.
"Wayne at the management were very good with me at the beginning. They said, 'Not much is going to change. It's going to be the exact same role you had in the squad the last two or three years'. There are plenty of leaders in the dressing room like Barry Shanahan, Kieran Donaghy, these fellas have done it before me. They'd won a championship in 2014, and they know what it takes. It's easy to learn off them. If there was ever a moment where I was undecided or just struggling to get to grips with it, they were always there to help me out..."
"I’m probably at the age (21) where (I know most of) the group in general, there are fellas younger and older than me, it’s handy that I get on with everyone in there. I’m comfortable within the group, so it doesn’t affect me if I have to speak and voice my opinion.
"It’s not just me that can say that, it’s everyone inside the dressing room. The emphasis isn’t on me that now I’m captain, it's not that I’m the only fella that speaks. There are times where it could be a 19-year-old and he is speaking on behalf of the group and telling us what to do. It’s not a free-for-all, but anyone can voice their opinion."
Watch this space. Both for the Stacks and for Kerry.
[caption id="attachment_246535" align="alignnone" width="1200"]
12 January 2022; Austin Stacks footballer Dylan Casey, left, and St Finbarr’s footballer Alan O’Connor ahead of the AIB Munster GAA Football Senior Club Championship Final, which takes place at 1:45pm in Semple Stadium, Tipperary, this Sunday. This year’s AIB Club Championships celebrate #TheToughest players in Gaelic Games - those who keep going and persevere no matter what. Photo by Brendan Moran/Sportsfile[/caption]Explore more on these topics: