NIGHT AND DAY. That’s how Jack O’Connor sees it as he rolls back the years to his first All-Ireland final as Kerry manager in 2004 ahead of his ninth on Sunday.
“I just did an interview there with Dara Ó Cinnéide as Gaeilge. He was captain the first year, in 2004, and he was just asking me how different it is now,” says O’Connor.
“Look, it’s night and day. At the time, I was doing most of the coaching and Pat Flanagan was doing the training. I had two selectors – Ger O’Keeffe and Johnny Culloty – but the backroom team was a lot smaller. The world seemed a bit simpler.
“Now I kind of have two teams. I have a team on the field and a team off the field, so my role has changed. I’m more of an overseer, more of a kind of a director now, whereas at the time I was very hands-on. I was doing most of the coaching myself and obviously that requires huge energy and that’s why maybe after three years that time and reaching three finals, I had to have a bit of a sabbatical. I think the way I’m doing it now is more sustainable.”
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O’Connor is 65 now, and he has learned a thing or two along the way. About managing the collective and the individual. The team and himself.
He is an early riser and likes his routine. He brings his dog, Buddy, for a walk in the morning and does his utmost to stay fit for his physical and mental health.
O'Connor celebrating his first All-Ireland win as Kerry manager in 2004. INPHO
INPHO
“The fact that I’m retired is a massive help,” he adds. “I was trying to do this job 22 years ago when I was working full-time and it was tough going at the time.”
O’Connor’s All-Ireland final record is five wins (2004, 2006, 2009, 2022 and 2025) and three defeats (2005, 2011, 2023) across three terms. Add in two more successes as selector under Páidí Ó Sé in 1997 and 2000; his experience of the biggest football day is unparalleled.
The big question: what does a manager need to get right? “The build-up to the day. Sometimes you have a tendency coming up to finals to overdo it, that you think you have to do extra. Sometimes that’s not the right thing to do.
“I think freshness is key, because All-Ireland finals take a lot of emotional energy out of you. And if you have players tired going into an All-Ireland final, you’re in trouble. They need to be fresh, they need to be energetic, so if anything, you have to pull back a bit and make sure freshness is key.”
As Kerry target back-to-back titles for the first time since 2006 and 2007 – and first time ever under O’Connor – he’ll face the same team he did in his maiden final as manager.
Mayo star Kobe McDonald. Laszlo Geczo / INPHO
Laszlo Geczo / INPHO / INPHO
Mayo are back on the biggest stage, and O’Connor is full of praise for Andy Moran’s side and their “version of David Clifford,” Kobe McDonald.
“Look, you’d have to say that both Kerry and Mayo are kind of coming pretty right at a good time,” says the Dromid Pearses man. “Mayo seem to be developing and progressing and getting better game by game.
“They have a very exciting forward line. Ryan O’Donoghue is obviously in Player of the Year form. But those young fellas, like Darragh Beirne and Kobe McDonald, they’ve given the Mayo followers real hope.
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“Kobe McDonald is the nearest we’ve seen to David Clifford. He’s the Mayo version of David Clifford. You’ll remember all the hype about David when he started off with Kerry after his exploits underage.
“They’ve really latched onto this team, the Mayo followers, and they’ve given them great hope. The manager has backed youth and they’ve backed him. That’s a potent mix.”
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Jack O'Connor: 'Kobe McDonald is the nearest we've seen to David Clifford'
NIGHT AND DAY. That’s how Jack O’Connor sees it as he rolls back the years to his first All-Ireland final as Kerry manager in 2004 ahead of his ninth on Sunday.
“I just did an interview there with Dara Ó Cinnéide as Gaeilge. He was captain the first year, in 2004, and he was just asking me how different it is now,” says O’Connor.
“Look, it’s night and day. At the time, I was doing most of the coaching and Pat Flanagan was doing the training. I had two selectors – Ger O’Keeffe and Johnny Culloty – but the backroom team was a lot smaller. The world seemed a bit simpler.
“Now I kind of have two teams. I have a team on the field and a team off the field, so my role has changed. I’m more of an overseer, more of a kind of a director now, whereas at the time I was very hands-on. I was doing most of the coaching myself and obviously that requires huge energy and that’s why maybe after three years that time and reaching three finals, I had to have a bit of a sabbatical. I think the way I’m doing it now is more sustainable.”
O’Connor is 65 now, and he has learned a thing or two along the way. About managing the collective and the individual. The team and himself.
He is an early riser and likes his routine. He brings his dog, Buddy, for a walk in the morning and does his utmost to stay fit for his physical and mental health.
“The fact that I’m retired is a massive help,” he adds. “I was trying to do this job 22 years ago when I was working full-time and it was tough going at the time.”
O’Connor’s All-Ireland final record is five wins (2004, 2006, 2009, 2022 and 2025) and three defeats (2005, 2011, 2023) across three terms. Add in two more successes as selector under Páidí Ó Sé in 1997 and 2000; his experience of the biggest football day is unparalleled.
The big question: what does a manager need to get right? “The build-up to the day. Sometimes you have a tendency coming up to finals to overdo it, that you think you have to do extra. Sometimes that’s not the right thing to do.
“I think freshness is key, because All-Ireland finals take a lot of emotional energy out of you. And if you have players tired going into an All-Ireland final, you’re in trouble. They need to be fresh, they need to be energetic, so if anything, you have to pull back a bit and make sure freshness is key.”
As Kerry target back-to-back titles for the first time since 2006 and 2007 – and first time ever under O’Connor – he’ll face the same team he did in his maiden final as manager.
Mayo are back on the biggest stage, and O’Connor is full of praise for Andy Moran’s side and their “version of David Clifford,” Kobe McDonald.
“Look, you’d have to say that both Kerry and Mayo are kind of coming pretty right at a good time,” says the Dromid Pearses man. “Mayo seem to be developing and progressing and getting better game by game.
“They have a very exciting forward line. Ryan O’Donoghue is obviously in Player of the Year form. But those young fellas, like Darragh Beirne and Kobe McDonald, they’ve given the Mayo followers real hope.
“Kobe McDonald is the nearest we’ve seen to David Clifford. He’s the Mayo version of David Clifford. You’ll remember all the hype about David when he started off with Kerry after his exploits underage.
“They’ve really latched onto this team, the Mayo followers, and they’ve given them great hope. The manager has backed youth and they’ve backed him. That’s a potent mix.”
With reporting from Fintan O’Toole
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GAA Jack O'Connor Kerry v Mayo