
Tyrone handed major double boost as key Kerry pair ruled out of All-Ireland Semi-Final dust-up
O'Sullivan suffered a calf muscle injury in the first-half of the Quarter-Final win over Armagh and left Croke Park after the game wearing a protective boot on his left leg.
O'Sullivan's Dingle clubmate, Barry Dan O'Sullivan, is the other player not available to the Kerry management having suffered an ACL knee injury in the All-Ireland Group Two win over Cork.
Beyond that trio, Kerry are playing a waiting game on the fitness of another few players – Paul Geaney, Tadhg Morley, Mike Breen and Tony Brosnan among them – before making a call on their availability or otherwise for Saturday's Croke Park showdown with Tyrone.
'Barry Dan obviously is gone for the season, and Diarmuid is unavailable as well. Tom won't be available for this game either. It's a calf injury. They're all losses,' the Kerry manager said on Monday.
'I think all the others are on their way back in some shape or form. Tony Brosnan is back training, that's all I'll say, and any fella back training has a chance. That's about the size of it. How their level of readiness is, I'm not too sure. We have two sessions left, this evening (Monday) and Wednesday, and we'll make a decision on them then.
'Mike Breen and Tadhg Morley are back doing some training. Paudie (Clifford) no ill effects, not that I'm aware of, he seemed to get through that half alright.
'Paul Geaney is training away but, again, has he gone at it one hundred per cent? Probably not yet, but he is close.
'We've had a bad run with injuries. It was only afterwards that I was thinking about it, but we were down anything up to seven starters the last day. I don't think any team in the country could ship that kind of attrition and try and survive.
'We'd be in a stronger position if we had a clean bill of health, but we have to deal with what we have to deal with.
'It has been a very tricky season. Not alone have we had to deal with a lot of injuries, but we've had to deal with trying to get players back from the clubs and incorporate them into the system.
'The Crokes players came back late, you have to give them time off. We had to give players like Gavin White five, six weeks off after the club season ended. It's a very tricky one.
'We've managed to incorporate them in, and just as well that we had as many players as we had because a lot of them have been used and we've needed those panel players.
'There are players who thought that they would have been on the periphery, they are now pushed into action and we're delighted with the way they're reacting.'

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Belfast Telegraph
5 hours ago
- Belfast Telegraph
Ex-Donegal boss reveals the one player who must be at his best in All-Ireland Final against Kerry
And preventing the ball from entering his net is only one of a list of duties that the modest and unassuming Patton will be expected to fulfil as his team set their sights on the ultimate glory. The introduction of the new playing rules have added to goalkeepers' responsibilities but Patton is certainly not weighed down by the burden with which he is confronted. With the spotlight falling fairly and squarely on goalkeepers' kick-outs now and their brief in taking long-range frees including 'Fifties', the players wearing the No.1 shirt can find themselves immersed in non-stop action in certain games. Patton is aware that Kerry will be on a goal hunt on Sunday just as they were in their Semi-Final against Meath when they totted up 3-26 to their opponents' 0-15 but this time round they might find scoring rather more difficult given Donegal's rigid defensive set-up. Former Donegal manager Declan Bonner is convinced, though, that Patton can flourish on this occasion given his hunger for success. 'There is no doubt that Shaun is a very accomplished goalkeeper. He took time to get adjusted to the position but he is on top of his game right now,' maintains Bonner. 'He will have a big part to play for Donegal against a Kerry side which will be keen to ripple the net.' His view is shared by current boss Jim McGuinness and every member of the Donegal squad. 'We have played 10 Championship matches within a restricted period and this has certainly shown that we can cope with pressure,' he says. 'We are hoping that we can keep things tight at the back and come out on the right side.' Patton's goal-kicks and free kicks will be tested to the full tomorrow but given his ice-cool demeanour and accuracy they are likely to prove Donegal's first line of attack in their bid to unhinge their opponents' defence. If Donegal are taking all possible steps to avert conceding a goal – or goals – Shane Ryan will again be between the posts for the Kingdom charged with keeping a clean sheet. Given that in Jason Foley and Gavin White the Kingdom possess two of the best defenders in the country, Donegal might just have to dig deep into their skills set to put scores on the board.


Belfast Telegraph
5 hours ago
- Belfast Telegraph
County legend warns Donegal about the part of Kerry's game they must keep in check during All-Ireland Final
It was a significant success for the north-west side and since then McShea has played a prominent part in helping to promote football within the county. Right now, though, he is on edge ahead of Donegal's meeting with Kerry in the All-Ireland Senior Championship final at Croke Park on Sunday afternoon (3.30pm). McShea, who has watched the current Donegal side lift back to back Ulster titles over the course of the past two seasons, is particularly keen to see the team take delivery of 'Sam' conscious that the trophy has not rested in the county since 2012. And while he believes the current side can test Kerry to the full, he is hugely aware that the Kingdom's track record in the competition is such that they will go into the game as warm favourites. That, however, does not deflect the popular McShea from holding onto the belief that his beloved Donegal could come good on this particular occasion. 'Obviously Kerry have some very big guns in their side and they will pose a huge threat to us no matter how you look at it,' points out McShea. 'I think the important thing is that Donegal hit the ground running and keep the pressure on if they can. Kerry have established a tradition of winning All-Ireland Finals and their players know what will be expected from them on this occasion.' As a polished full-back, McShea grew accustomed to thwarting opposition sides when he was at his peak and he sees several Donegal players in this light going into tomorrow's match. 'We have players like Micheal Murphy, Ryan McHugh, Brendan McCole, Paddy McBrearty, Michael Langan and others who have given outstanding service to the county and it would be great to see the side lift the trophy,' smiles McShea, 'This is a huge challenge for Donegal but I still think that they can rise to the occasion. They will certainly have plenty of backing from thousands of their followers.'


BBC News
7 hours ago
- BBC News
Superstar Clifford was marked for stardom from young age
Stardom and the pressure to deliver can make or break a player, but temperament must compliment talent - and David Clifford is lacking in neither 26-year-old - who bids for his second All-Ireland senior title on Sunday when Kerry take on Donegal - was once described as Gaelic football's answer to Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Johnny Sexton. Hyperbole or a fitting comparison?As a teenager, Clifford was marked for tally of 2-5 helped St Brendan's College to the 2016 Hogan Cup (All-Ireland schools) title and he found the net later that year in the All-Ireland minor final as Kerry beat it was in the following year's minor final when a remarkable haul of 4-4 in victory over Derry made the wider sporting public sit up and take notice."I was at that game and you were thinking, 'no minor can deliver under that pressure', but he did at 17," Dara O Cinneide, a three-time All-Ireland winner with Kerry, told BBC Sport NI."The year before when they beat Galway he produced exceptional stuff. Sean Mulkerrin marked him well, but 50 minutes in, he goes on a crazy solo run and puts the ball into the top corner - one of his quieter games that year." The man from Fossa - who has hit 8-53 in eight championship games this year - is the latest in a long line of Kerry forwards who have lit up Gaelic lineage is quite remarkable as prior to Clifford's emergence, there was Colm 'Gooch' Cooper, preceded by Maurice Fitzgerald, Mikey Sheehy, Pat Spillane and Denis 'Ogie' Moran to name but a few.O Cinneide, now chairman of his club An Ghaeltacht, is another whose name is firmly enshrined in the Kerry hall of fame - how does the county continue to produce generational talents?"I don't think it's coincidence," says O Cinneide."A young David Clifford is in St Brendan's in Killarney and there's a picture of Colm Cooper up there - I'm sure a hero to him and his vintage when they were kids."When 'Gooch' was there, he'd probably look up to Maurice Fitzgerald."I know his father is a GAA obsessive and a great supporter when I was playing. His uncle went to college with me and, again, they obsess about the game." 'There is pressure to deliver in Kerry' Clifford was added to the Kerry senior panel in 2018 as an 18-year-old, and although that summer was far from vintage with an early championship exit for the Kingdom, he proved his worth by scoring a clutch last-gasp goal against Monaghan to secure a performances earned him the Young Player of the Year award that season as well as the first of his five All-Stars that have also been complimented with Player of the Year awards in 2022 and it was in 2019 when he first got to grace the Croke Park pitch on All-Ireland final day - twice in fact. Taken to a replay, Kerry were beaten by Dublin, who completed an unprecedented five on the grandest stage would come three years later as Clifford scored eight points in Kerry's 0-20 to 0-16 victory over Galway, although to date that is his only Celtic Cross in a county where success is measured only in All-Ireland Kingdom lead the roll of honour having lifted Sam Maguire 38 times and, aside from Dublin, their 24 losses on final day is more than any other county's of those losses came in the past three finals and, should they fall short again this week, it would represent a poor return in the eyes of the Kerry public."You need that bit of fear going into a final and knowing what needs to be addressed," O Cinneide stressed."I like to tell people who love to eulogise Kerry football that nobody has lost more finals than Kerry. "We know that feeling of waking up on the Monday morning having lost, the vitriol that pours down when supporters turn on you. We saw that five or six weeks ago [after defeat to Meath], so it should motivate them even more." Perhaps it is unkind to say Clifford has just one All-Ireland title as, aside from his underage exploits, there was an All-Ireland Junior Club win for Fossa in is striking to see after many of those club games, and indeed countless outings with Kerry, that young supporters make a beeline for him at the final whistle. He may be a superstar on the pitch, but his humble nature is also part of the still comes down to talent and Clifford has it all: left foot, right foot, balance, power, pace and is also a bravery in his play as although there are periods in games where the radar is off, he continues to back himself, just as he did in this year's All-Ireland semi-final against Tyrone when a couple of misses were a prelude to a superb goal which formed part of his haul of 1-9 on the day."Before that [goal] he kicked a couple of wides but you know he's the type of fella who processes that and there will be something exceptional coming," O Cinneide added."Like all of the great forwards, the strategy is to get them on the ball."I don't know what Donegal's plan is for Clifford but provided he's fully fit and there's a supply line there, he'll deliver because he always does."