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Irish Examiner
06-07-2025
- Sport
- Irish Examiner
Heartbroken Kerry boss Quillinan sore over late 'no-brainer' free
A 'no-brainer' of a free was Kerry boss Wayne Quillinan's verdict on the series of late challenges Ben Kelliher was subjected to that brought about no equalising placed-ball attempt. The four allotted minutes of injury-time had come and gone when Kelliher was fed in the left corner. Elliott Kerr was first to tackle him, the Tyrone corner-back approaching from behind and wrapping both hands around the Kerry corner-forward. Kelliher broke free, Kerr and centre-back James Daly both then tackling him, with Daly's left hand firmly pressed on Kelliher's back as he attempted to dispossess him with the right hand. Kelliher wound up on the deck, no whistle sounded, and Tyrone were crowned champions. 'The penalty for Tyrone, I didn't quite see it rightly but, if I say what I feel, I will probably get reprimanded. I thought the free at the end was a no-brainer,' said a devastated Quillinan. 'I mean, that wasn't a hard decision at all but, unfortunately, the ref didn't blow the whistle, and we suffer the consequences now from it. Not just both teams, I would say all the supporters would have loved extra-time, and that's the beauty of minor football.' Quillinan's post-match thoughts - the aforementioned end-game aside - took in the bigger picture. He poured praise on his young troops and poured praise on all those that packed in behind them on the run-in to the county's first minor final appearance in four years. 'They've shown every characteristic you want from a young team; never-say-die attitude, never quitting, never letting up no matter what situation they're in. 'The last week in Kerry has been unbelievable, with the seniors starting it off, and just the support we got, the amount of messages, so much goodwill. We just got to realise in Kerry that we are stronger together. Everyone rowing in together and rowing in at Croke Park next Saturday for the seniors. Those minors showed everything that Kerry is about. 'I am absolutely heartbroken. But on the flipside, I am so proud of them. Those guys left it all out there. How can you complain about that? You just can't.' The bigger picture was taken in too by victorious Tyrone manager Gerard Donnelly. This victory stood not in isolation. It stood instead amid a deluge of underage success. Over the past four seasons, Tyrone have won a minor All-Ireland, three U20 All-Irelands, and back-to-back Hogan Cups through Omagh CBS. A remarkable return in such a short period. 'Clubs, schools, development squads; it's all flying. Long may it continue,' said Donnelly. 'Absolutely, no doubt about it [we're going to see a lot of these lads progress to senior], these games are something else. They're special. The only sad thing for us is that the season is over. 'That Kerry team is unbelievable. Wayne Quillinan is an unbelievable man, an unbelievable manager, and a great friend. I feel for him because I was there four years ago, beaten by a point in an All-Ireland final. And it's not that easy getting back, but I know Wayne and I know the way Kerry operate - he'll be back and he'll win his All-Ireland.' The achievement of Donnelly and crew was heightened by the absence of Joel Kerr. The multi-code talent took up a professional contract with Premier League club West Ham earlier this week. Kerr's value to the Tyrone set-up is reflected in his Ulster final man of the match performance, his vital green flag in the semis win over Roscommon, and the 2-13 total he contributed before having to bow out six days before the decider. 'We knew that from July 1 he was a West Ham player. Me and his father had constant chats. Joel is a West Ham player, he's away now starting his career. I just chatted to him there. He's the happiest man going,' Donnelly concluded.
Irish Independent
06-07-2025
- Sport
- Irish Independent
Kerry minor boss Wayne Quillinan left ‘absolutely heartbroken' by final defeat to Tyrone
'On the flip side I'm so proud of them,' the Tralee man said of his battling players Being beaten in any final is a gut-wrenching situation to take for a manager and a group of players. To lose a decider, by the minimum margin and, with an element of controversy at the finish thrown in for good measure, is an added body-blow to absorb. No wonder then that it was difficult for Kerry minor football manager Wayne Quillinan to get his emotions together in the immediate aftermath of the one-point defeat to Tyrone in the All-Ireland final at St Conleth's Park in Newbridge.
Irish Examiner
04-07-2025
- Sport
- Irish Examiner
Quillinan not buying Tyrone hex, lauds Ulster stuctures
Kerry minor manager Wayne Quillinan doesn't believe in a Tyrone underage hex on the Kingdom, but he does feel Ulster teams have an advantage due to their provincial structures. Quillinan wants his young guns to approach Sunday's MFC final at St Conleth's Park (1:30pm) like any other game. 'There's always going to be pressure. There's pressure in club games. There's a bit more magnitude to this, but the way we're approaching it is to just play the game. It's another game. That's what it is. 'The occasion is for supporters, for families, for the public. We're trying to just talk to them, from a mindset thing, that it's another game. It's no different. 'We're not asking much more out of the lads than we would have for the Mayo game, the Cavan game, or all the way along, the five games that we played. We're not asking more, much more, out of them. "Play the game that you've played all along, and try and just focus on what you need to do, your role within the team, and the job you're doing for the team. 'If you can focus on that role, and just play the game, because they'll always be nervous. I mean David Clifford was going out in Croke Park, and I'm sure he was going to be nervous. 'So we try and play it down, as much as you possibly can, and manage it as much as you possibly can. Try and get their energy to the spaces and the areas where they know and they're familiar with, rather than going into spaces where they're unfamiliar with.' Asked about the indian sign Tyrone have had over Kerry at minor and U20 level over the past four or five years, Quillinan maintains that Kerry are disadvantaged by the system. 'Number one is I rate Tyrone extremely highly. They've been favourites to win the All-Ireland since day one. This whole thing with the northern teams and stuff, I don't buy into it at all. You got to look at it at minor level, and I'm just going to go with minor level, it's run the right way in my eyes. "They're going in now to their 13th competitive game. We're going into our sixth game. So that amount of preparation — you're talking about nerves in championship games — they're way more adapted to playing championship games than we are. "Now I'm not saying anything about it, that's just the way it is, we can't control that, and we just have to manage that.' He likes the Ulster system 'It's just run in a really good way that there are opportunities given to their players, to be together, to get that championship feel. But there's also the development side of things. "I have probably 10 guys there that haven't played championship football, because we have just six games to play. If we played for two years, we'd have the same amount of games as Tyrone would play." It also affords Kerry plenty of opportunity to study their opposition, but that will be just a small part of the pre-match prep. "My whole focus is 90% of what we do is going to be about ourselves. "Obviously, you have to tactically delve into Tyrone and the way they play and matchups and all that, but that'll be 10% to 15% of our work. The rest is simply getting better at what we need to do, compacting the middle, breaks around the middle, and all that kind of stuff. "That's our message to the lads. It's just another game. We're simply asking you to get 10% better than we were against Mayo in key areas. I think we don't look at the outcome. We don't look at the winning or losing. We kind of look at the process.'
Irish Independent
03-07-2025
- Sport
- Irish Independent
Kerry minor boss Wayne Quillinan: ‘This whole journey is about the players, the parents, the clubs'
'I'll do absolutely everything I possibly can for the players,' the Tralee man says Kerryman Sunday is not about Wayne Quillinan. The previous two seasons haven't been either. As he prepares his Kerry minor squad for an All-Ireland final against Tyrone in Newbridge, the Austin Stacks man is delighted for them, not for himself.
Irish Examiner
23-06-2025
- Sport
- Irish Examiner
Quillinan thrilled with Kingdom resilience
All-Ireland MFC semi-final: Kerry 1-19 ( 1–4-11) Mayo 3-10 (3-0-10) Kerry manager Wayne Quillinan praised his side's resilience after they kicked four of the final five scores to defeat Mayo in a dramatic contest in Ennis, sealing a place in the All-Ireland Final for the first time since 2020. 'They did put us under the cosh, and that's again credit to Mayo. They are a really good footballing side, and we didn't expect them to lie down, they haven't in any game. We watched them in the Connacht Final, and they never lie down at all, we expected that.' Kerry trailed by a point at half-time after an end-to-end opening half to proceedings. The Kingdom started the better and Mayo, despite a sluggish start, found their rhythm after Ben Holmes opened their account. Cian May struck for a goal shortly after, capitalising on a poor Kerry kickout to give Mayo a 1-1 to 0-2 lead. The contest ebbed and flowed and Kerry hit back through Maidhc Ó Sé, who netted after a superb David Sargent pass. Kerry manager Wayne Quillinan celebrates. Photo by Brendan Moran/Sportsfile But just before the break, Mayo won a penalty when Tony Carey was pulled down by Kerry keeper Ruairí Kennedy, who received a black card. Dara Flanagan slotted home, and the Connacht side held a 2-5 to 1-7 lead at the break. Despite conceding two goals, Quillinan was satisfied at the break. 'To be expected, and there was a nice breeze there as well. We kinda just said we're playing against the breeze. Let's be controlled, let's be measured, let's make the decisions on the ball really, really well. And after conceding two goals, I was happy going in a point behind.' With the wind at their backs in the second half, Kerry seized control. Ben Kelliher and Kevin Griffin combined for a flurry of two-point efforts, flipping the game on its head. Mayo battled back once more, with Holmes finding the net for a crucial goal to level the tie entering the final stretch. But Kerry showed maturity in a dramatic conclusion. Late points from Gearóid White, Nick Lacey, and Kelliher's stunning two-point free in the 66th minute sealed a dramatic late win. Tyrone are on the horizon and Quillinan is not looking ahead to that tie just yet. 'Not tonight. I'm gonna absolutely put the legs up when I get home and not even think about it. I know Tyrone are gonna be a huge challenge, but you know what, we'll relax tonight and think about that tomorrow morning.' Scorers for Kerry: B Kelliher (0-9, 2f, 1 2p, 1 2pf), K Griffin (0-4, 1 2pf, 1 2p) M Ó Sé (1-0), G White (0-3, 1f), J Curtin, D Murphy, N Lacey (0-1 each) Scorers for Mayo: B Holmes (1–3), D Flanagan (1-3, 1-0 pen), C May (1-0), C Hession (0-3, 1f), T Carey (0-1 each) KERRY: R Kennedy; R Sheridan, E Joy, T Ó Slatara; D Murphy, D Sargent, M Clifford; M Ó Sé, J Curtin; M O'Carroll, G White, A Tuohy; B Kelliher, K Griffin, T O'Connell. Subs: N Lacey for T O'Connell (Blood 27-29), S Sargent for T O'Connell (29), T O'Connell for R Kennedy (38), D McCarthy for E Joy (50), L O'Brien for T O'Connell (51), N Lacey for M O'Carroll (57) MAYO: T Williams; C Coghill, B Langan, C Tighe; R O'Donnell, D Duffy, E Dever; A Kelly, C May; R Neary, D Flanagan, C Jordan; B Holmes, C Hession, T Carey. Subs: P Quinn for C Coghill (Temp 20-23), B Joyce for R Neary (43), O Murphy for T Carey (43), Hoban for C Jordan (48), F Ó Cinnseala for C Hession (60) Referee: C Dourneen (Cavan)
