WHEN it comes to boosting the GAA’s bank balance, Fionn Fitzgerald is the man with the golden boot.
His dramatic injury time equaliser against Cork in last year’s Munster Final was a key factor in a rise of almost €1 million in gate receipts for the Munster Council.
Official figures show that the takings at the turnstiles for the senior football championship amounted to an impressive €988,148 and the Munster Council has acknowledged that the replay was a major boost in terms of income and promotion.
Kerry were trailing by a point, with time just about up, when Dr Crokes star Fitzgerald breezed forward from his corner back position to kick a sweet equaliser from distance in the drawn provincial final at Fitzgerald Stadium last July.
Not only did it give Kerry a second chance to quell the Rebels – which they did in emphatic fashion a fortnight later – but it also sets tills jingling in pubs, restaurants, hotels and shops in Killarney when thousands of supporters braved the heavy downfall for the Saturday evening replay.
Just one kick – from the cultured boot of Fitzgerald – made all the difference.
