Brian O Beaglaoich insists talk of a new era of Kerry dominance is premature - saying he even fears Division 2 teams causing shocks in this year’s Championship.
And it is not just second-tier teams like Tyrone and Derry that O Beaglaoich is wary of - the Kerry star reckoning that any of the 16 teams in the top two flights are capable of causing major upsets this summer.
That may seem like excessive politeness on the wing-back’s behalf. But then you look at what happened last year - when Division 2 teams Tyrone and Meath reached the All-Ireland semi-finals, while Louth won Leinster. Meath also defeated Dublin, Galway and O Beaglaoich’s Kerry, while Cork pushed Kerry close in Munster.
Still, while they may cause an upset or two, bar Tyrone it is difficult to see any of the remaining seven Division 2 sides lifting Sam. Even so, O Beaglaoich feels this is the most wide-open Championship in years, despite Kerry sweeping the board last season with a League, an All-Ireland and club championship wins at senior, intermediate and junior level.
He said: “I genuinely think most teams in Division 1 and Division 2 will be thinking they can go out and win it. There are serious teams out there. But the big change is that the new rules have definitely made it more competitive. It’s a good spectacle to watch as well, but I think there are loads of teams out there that could win it.”
One of those, obviously, is champions Kerry, who are considered heavy favourites to retain their crown. But O Beaglaoich is looking at Division 1 rivals Dublin, Galway, Mayo, Armagh, Monaghan, Donegal and Roscommon as genuine threats.
And on one level, you can see why. Five of their seven Division 1 rivals have reached an All-Ireland final this decade, while Division 2’s Tyrone have also won a Championship — beating Kerry in the 2021 decider. O Beaglaoich said: “All-Irelands are so hard to win. There are so many teams there that can beat each other.
“There are serious teams in Division 2 that are definitely capable of winning an All-Ireland. And the new rules make it so unpredictable and additionally competitive. Nobody has figured them out properly yet. It’s fairly open. It’s easier for teams to come back into games with the two-pointers.
“There were a few comebacks in the League at the weekend and there were a lot of comebacks especially in the club campaign. It’s going to be a really competitive year. It is wide open for any team to win it.”
Donegal seemed destined to win it last year when they stormed to the final, humiliating Meath in the semi-finals. But then they ran into the Cliffords and were thumped in the final — leading to criticism of boss Jim McGuinness’ tactics.
He defended his tactical record last weekend, but even so the nature of that defeat suggested that a hardcore zonal defence may now be obsolete. However, O Beaglaoich is reluctant to throw the Donegal manager under the bus.
He said: “We played Fossa (who David and Paudie Clifford play for) in the Intermediate Club Final. We had serious headaches all that week trying to think of what we were going to do with the two boys. I even met with our coach on the Friday evening before the final. We were asking, are we going to push up on them or are we going to sit back and protect the lads who are there to mark them?
“We talked about it for two hours and came away still not really knowing what we were going to do. I came away with a sore throat. I was worrying about the game.
“It is just so hard to know the right thing to do.
“It is going to be a catch-22 in a way.
“As regards last year’s All-Ireland final, we did a lot of video analysis on Donegal. Their tactics worked well all year. It was working very well for them. We knew they wouldn’t be moving too far away from that.
“Paudie did get a lot of time and space that day, but if you push out on Paudie you are probably leaving more gaps at the back. It is hard to balance.”
One thing that does look well balanced this year is Kerry’s attack — especially now that they have discovered a new Kieran Donaghy-type option in 19-year-old Tomás Kennedy, who has fast hands, a huge leap and good feet. He proved his value when he turned the game in Kerry’s favour against Roscommon last Sunday.
O Beaglaoich said: “He was certainly to the fore there on Sunday for Kerry. He is a serious prospect. He came in after doing his Leaving Cert last year and was making Championship panels a few weeks later, which shows the quality he has.
“You could see straight away when he came in last year the quality he has. He looks like he has filled out another bit this year. He has gymed very well over the winter and put on good size.
“He is a serious athlete. He has a serious pair of hands and very skilful legs. He definitely has a big future ahead of him.”
The immediate future for O Beaglaoich himself is uncertain as he nurses a calf injury.
In the stands as a spectator last Sunday, he hopes to be back playing in around five weeks after carrying the injury throughout An Ghaeltacht’s All-Ireland series.
He said: “I’ll be back training in the next week and a half and then I’ll be back into it. I was nursing a bit of a knock as well over the last month, so I probably needed that bit of a break anyway. I haven’t trained much since the Munster Club final.”
Lidl Comórtas Peile Páidí Ó Sé 2026, the famed club ladies and men’s club Gaelic football tournament has been running since 1989 and once again is taking place all across the Dingle Peninsula from the 20th – 22nd February. Full details available on
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