*Darragh Bohannon and Brian McNamara battle with the O’Connors, Diarmuid and Joe. Photograph: Gerard O’Neill
CLARE’s performance against Kerry in the 2024 Munster senior football final proved that they are entitled to play at this level.
So said team manager Mark Fitzgerald when reflecting on the game shortly after the final whistle on Sunday.
Seven points separated the sides as Kerry for the second year in a row overcame Clare in the provincial final.
Speaking to The Clare Echo, Tralee native Fitzgerald outlined, “These are the games we want to test ourselves in. There was a lot of idiotic stupid talk during the week about Clare being in this competition. I think we proved today that we are entitled to be here. I’m happy to go on record and say that, these lads are a proud proud bunch of players. They showed today what they are capable of”.
“We took them on and I thought we, maybe, left another goal after us. We just wanted a performance out of the lads, better than last year and I think we got that. Look there are a lot of learnings there as well, Kerry are a brilliant side, they punished us in the first half with five points from silly turnovers from our point of view”, Fitzgerald said.
Having managed Limerick last season, Fitzgerald succeeded Colm Collins as Clare manager with the Kilmihil man having had ten years at the helm.
Fitzgerald went on to say “we are coming on and there is a bit more learning in us and a bit more in us as well. I am relatively pleased but you are never happy to lose a game. I asked for a performance from the boys and for the most part that is what I got”.
Commenting on the performances of the players, the manager said “Dermot Coughlan is as good as what’s in Ireland, there is no doubt about that, Darragh Bohannon was brilliant, Manus (Doherty) did a decent job on David Clifford, we had good performances all around the pitch”.
It will be later in the week before Clare turn their attention to the All-Ireland series and the visit of Cork to Cusack Park. “We will have a few beers tonight, dust ourselves down and get ready for Cork in two weeks”.
