A DOWNBEAT JACK O’CONNOR lamented the concession of a goal from a sideline ball as he tried to come to terms with Kerry’s All-Ireland Quarter-Final defeat to Donegal at Croke Park on Sunday.

“I suppose we finished stronger and the lads didn’t throw in the towel,” he told TV3, “but it was all a bit frantic. We needed to get the goal earlier to give us a bit of confidence and pick off the points.

“At the end of the day it was a sideline kick in the first half that gave them the confidence to build a lead and that goal was the difference.”

O’Connor, while clearly disappointed, said that the margin at the end was very fine and that his team never gave up. He wish Jim McGuinness’s side well in their semi-final against Cork.

“You can’t question the heart of the commitment (of our players), and this team have given great service. I thought there wasn’t much in it, in the end, and I just want to wish Donegal well against a tough Cork side.”

Finally, O’Connor was asked about his own future, but said it was still far too soon to make any kind of a call on that front.

“It’s five minutes after a titanic battle so we won’t be making any decisions yet, but we’ll do that in due course.”

Donegal advance to face Cork, Kerry go home >