MAN-of-the-match Paudie Clifford said Kerry knew last night’s clash with Tipperary in Semple Stadium was going to be “a tough grind”.
“We knew what it was going to be like. Tipp, obviously, won the Munster final last year. They didn’t perform well in the league but we knew they were going to be a difficult animal and they clearly were,” he said.
The Fossa star, who led the attack and pulled all the strings in Thurles, said the early goal notched by his younger brother, David, settled Kerry and it set the template for the rest of the game.
“We pushed on from there,” he said afterwards.
While his brother is more renowned for conjuring up a bit of magic to win games, Paudie was clear as to his own role in the team and said Peter Keane wants him “to do a bit of everything”.
His main priority is to get tackles in and try to influence the game in any way he can, he acknowledged.
Paudie, who has been a revelation this season, said the part he plays frees up Sean O’Shea to play a more attacking role and it is having the desired impact.
“The closer he is to goal the better because his kicking is outrageous to be fair,” he said.
Team boss Peter Keane said Kerry’s priority on Saturday evening was to win and they achieved that goal even if they were “a bit sloppy” at times.
He said Tipperary was a big test for his side in a do-or-die championship game away from home against the Munster champions.
“I know they didn’t have a great league but they still had the nucleus of a very good team and they put it up to us for long passages of that game,” Peter told Sky Sports.
The Kerry manager said he wants his players to be able to express themselves, to deliver a performance and show the public what they have.
He said Kerry are going to have to up their performance in the Munster final against Cork in Killarney where he is hoping that a bigger crowd will be able to watch the teams in action.
