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Kerry manager Eamonn Fitzmaurice with selector Cian O'Neill. INPHO/Lorraine O'Sullivan
Off the Mark

Fitzmaurice makes winning start as Kerry manager

It was all too easy for Kerry as they had 24 points to spare in their McGrath Cup tie against IT Tralee in Killarney this afternoon.

Kerry 4-22
IT Tralee 0-10

New Kerry manager Eamonn Fitzmaurice saw his team cruise to victory in their preliminary round McGrath Cup tie against IT Tralee this afternoon.

The Kingdom had 24 points to spare at the final whistle of the clash in Fitzgerald Stadium in Killarney as they proved far too strong for the students.

The game, which was preceded by a minutes silence in memory of Páidí Ó Sé, transpired to be an extremely one-sided affair.

Kerry had wrapped up victory by half-time when they enjoyed a 3-9 to 0-4 lead and booked their spot in next Sunday’s quarter-final clash against UCC in Killarney.

The tone had been set early on when Dingle forward Paul Geaney, one of the new players on show for Kerry, found the net for the opening score of the game.

The strike helped propel Kerry into a 1-5 to 0-3 lead by the 22nd minute with IT Tralee staying in the hunt thanks to the scoring efforts of Alan O’Donoghue and Shane Carroll.

But then Kerry took control with Mikey Geaney, a cousin of Paul, firing home their second goal after good work by captain for the day Johnny Buckley and then Paul Geaney raised the third green flag on the stroke of half-time.

Kerry’s Paul Geaney tackled by Sean McCarthy and Cian Farrell of IT Tralee. Pic: INPHO/Lorraine O’Sullivan

The game petered to its inevitable conclusion in the second-half with Patrick Curtin grabbing Kerry’s fourth goal and catching the eye in attack with his display. Dr Crokes Brian Looney and Kenmare’s Paul O’Connor, sprung from the bench after the break, both also showed up well in the scoring department.

The only concern for Kerry arose when Kieran Donaghy was forced to limp off with an injury in the closing stages and that meant Kerry had to finish the game with 14 men as they had already made five substitutions by that juncture.

IT Tralee kept battling with Sean McCarthy and Ruairi Deane grabbing points but Looney and O’Connor rounded off a comfortable victory for Kerry with late scores.

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