Jack O'Connor: ‘Being involved in it so long now, I go off my instinct to know what is appropriate and what isn't'

Irish Times

4 days ago

Despite his now three comings as
Kerry
football manager, Jack O'Connor has never been one for looking back. Instinct is what guides him, some natural recall, too. But if he banked on what worked before always working again, he'd never have lasted this long.
Sunday's showdown against
Donegal
will be his eighth
All-Ireland final
as Kerry manager. His first was 21 years ago. He could tell you Kerry beat Cork that year, and beyond that, every final is different, an entirely new script which can only be written on the day itself.
'I wouldn't be a diary man, no,' O'Connor says. 'I go off memory and instinct. And being involved in it so long now, I go off my instinct to know what is appropriate and what isn't.
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Darragh Ó Sé: The margins are tight but Kerry have one thing that Donegal don't
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'Particularly nowadays with social media. You can spend a whole day looking at it if you want, and I think it's very important for players when they get away from training that they get a bit of a break mentally from it. You can't be tuned in for every waking hour of the day.
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'A lot of it now is mental. Because the way the season is, it's very hard to get the physical training spot on. You don't have a lot of time to train in between matches. We played eight games in nine weeks in the league, and there wasn't a lot of time for training there. We got some bit done the three weeks we had between the league and championship and then we had three weekends in-a-row of matches, when we didn't top our group.
'You're basically just tipping away and relying on the matches themselves to keep you right. The mental side is very important in keeping players fresh because you don't want what they are calling cognitive overload. You just can't throw too much at players.'
O'Connor's seven previous finals are spread throughout his now three comings as Kerry manager: winning in 2004 (against Cork); in 2006 (against Mayo); in 2009 (against Cork); and in 2022 (against Galway). His three defeats came in 2005 (against Tyrone) and in 2011 and 2023 (both against Dublin).
Kerry manager Jack O'Connor after the final whistle in the All-Ireland quarter-final against Armagh. Photograph: James Lawlor/Inpho
Donegal on Sunday will be Kerry's fourth successive Ulster opponents this season (after Cavan, Armagh and Tyrone), and Jim McGuinness, in his second coming as Donegal manager, also knows all about winning and losing All-Ireland finals.
'He [McGuiness] is having as big an effect on them this time,' says O'Connor. 'Like he did the first time. He's a revered figure in the county, who is able to unify them, and there has been no such thing as players opting out like in previous years. He's a formidable coach and has improved Donegal no end.
'We just see the next opposition as a challenge, the next day we go out regardless of where they are from. We don't see it [the Ulster factor] as a big deal. All I know is that there are a lot of good teams up in Ulster, it's a strong province, so there is always tough opposition up there.'
The new playing rules have also presented O'Connor with a different challenge this year. And while he describes the game now as 'more enjoyable to watch, play, and to manage and coach', there may well be something of a clash of styles on Sunday.
'I don't think there will be too much change in approach from both teams. Yes, we like to kick the ball, but the opposition don't always allow you to do that. You can only play a match that you see in front of you. It depends what the opposition do to your kicking lanes, and Donegal have a powerful running game, which is natural to them because club football seems to be played like that up there.
Kerry's David Clifford kicks a point during the 2023 All-Ireland final against Dublin. Photograph: Evan Treacy/Inpho
'Ultimately, it comes down to good decision making and players that are comfortable on the ball. There are a lot of ways to skin a cat. And while we will be trying to move the ball as fast as possible, it's not something that is always possible.'
What is certain is that O'Connor's current role is unrecognisable compared to when he first took over Kerry in 2004, his involvement in coaching in the county now stretching back 33 years to when he was a selector with the Kerry under-21s.
'It was a bit simpler when I got involved first. I was doing nearly all the coaching myself, with some bits and pieces of input from the selectors. I was stuck inside in the middle of the training games and coaching the drills. In some ways that was more enjoyable.
'Nowadays, I'm managing a back-room team who manage the players. I'm not saying I don't have input here and there, but I'm not as hands-on as I used to be. It's maybe better, because with back-room teams the size they are, you have to change. You can't do it the same way you did it the first time.'
Still, he's picked up plenty of lessons along the way: 'Mainly in terms of what you need to avoid, and being economical with your energy. There is no point in being all wired to the moon, having all your energy spent by the weekend of the game.
'I've made plenty of mistakes myself. I remember one of my early years, I reckon I had the match played in my head a 1,000 times beforehand, but when you come to the day itself, you're spent. One of the most important things on All-Ireland final day is the ability to be able to think on your feet. And that's important for the coaching staff as well as the players.'