Kerry boss Wayne Quillinan: ‘It’s the worst dressing-room you can have. Those young fellas, they’ve given absolutely everything’

The Kingdom had enjoyed a three-point lead at half-time but, with the wind at their backs in the second half, the Oak Leaf county had just been that little bit more productive. Fine margins, and all that, but losing by the bare minimum hurts, and hurts deeply.

“It’s the margins, that dressing-room inside there, we had it last year against Monaghan, it’s the worst dressing-room you can have. Those young fellas, they’ve given absolutely everything we’ve asked of them, absolutely everything the county has asked of them,” he said.

“All we can ask for in Kerry is that our footballers go out and give absolutely everything they possibly have. They’ve given every last ounce of it, blood, sweat and tears, out on that field, and that’s what our boys did today.

“Particularly, in the first three minutes of the second half, when Derry racked up three points in a row, lesser teams wouldn’t have reacted, but I thought our boys reacted really well. We kicked two points straight after, and that shows the character that those young fellas have.”

By the final whistle, the influence of Derry midfielder James Sargent and wing-back Luke Grant had been written all over the contest. Members of the 2023 All-Ireland-winning side, they were inspirational figures throughout, but Kerry kept battling all the way to the finish.

“In the last couple of games, we played more expansive but, from a coaching point of view, you know that every game takes on a different story. We knew today that we were never going to get the opportunity to transition as hard as we could, so we had to be controlled and patient,” added Quillinan.

“Our shot selection in the first half just wasn’t probably on point to where it has been, but I wouldn’t fault the players for that, in a pressurised zone. The most important thing is that they learn from that, and come back better and stronger for it.

“No more than ourselves in the management team, you can’t beat experience. Whether experienced or not, they’re two excellent players (Sargent and Grant), but I will always flip it back to the Kerry side of it. The experience that our lads got today, we can only be better for it.”

The Austin Stacks clubman, and the squad, received a huge blow in the build-up to the game when they lost key midfielder Killian Dennehy to a training ground injury. His replacement, Eoin O’Flaherty, came in and notched 1-1 in a fine display, but the absence of the Cordal youngster was felt as well.

“I thought Eoin O’Flaherty was excellent, he was ten out of ten. We wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for Killian Dennehy, he’s been outstanding for us. First and foremost, the young fella was heartbroken, in his Kerry minor year, and he gets injured going into an All-Ireland semi-final.

“But Killian would tell you that it just has to be the mentality of next man up. That’s what we said all year, it was about the collective. Eoin O’Flaherty was absolutely outstanding, he wasn’t found wanting for effort, he wasn’t found wanting for anything.

“I need the power of hindsight to really see this, but on the kick-outs there, we lost a few breaks, and if we had won them, it would have put us into a position, but they won them, and they converted, and that was a huge difference as well.”

Another potential factor in the eventual outcome was that, because of the presence of the Ulster League, and the way that the Ulster championship is organised, Derry were playing their 13th competitive fixture of the season. Kerry were only having their fifth outing.

“The Kerry team out there, even though there was that challenge, look how hard they battled. One point, the smallest of margins, what credit goes to those guys, what credit goes to that bunch of players, that they could even compete with a team that have played eight competitive games more than us.

“That’s why I keep saying it. The future of Kerry football is bright, particularly with that group of players. They have to go back to their clubs, keep the standards, keep the learnings, keep everything, and keep driving their club players on. We hope to see those guys in the green and gold jersey again.”