All-Ireland Final: Armagh legend Kernan backs 'driven' Geezer to lift Sam Maguire again

‘Some mates buy you a pint. Mine bought me a registration plate!’

Joe Kernan smiles as he stands by his jeep and looks down at one of the most famous registration numbers in Ireland – JK 02 SAM.

It’s a lasting memory of 22 years ago when he led Armagh to their only All-Senior Football title. The day the Orchard County beat one of the best Kerry teams in generations lives long in the memory of Armagh supporters.

His captain that day was none other than Kieran McGeeney. Now Kernan is backing his ‘driven’ former skipper to follow in his footsteps at Croke Park this afternoon as Dublin will become awash with a sea of orange to what their men battle against Galway at GAA HQ.

He spoke to our Senior Sports Reporter Gareth McCullough…

Kernan says that, irrespective of the result, a return to the biggest match in Irish sport in 21 years (their All-Ireland Final loss to near neighbours Tyrone in 2003), will only serve to boost the county for future generations.

“The most important thing is that we're there and it's down to the last two,” he feels.

“From a football point of view, this re-energises sport in Armagh and Gaelic football in particular, and that means in the years to come we're going to have more people wanting to play the game. That's what we found after 2002. There's a lot of these boys playing on Sunday that probably might not have played, only for what happened in 2002.

"This has been their lifelong dream and we want more kids to have the same dreams and want to be part of it."

Gareth McCullough: Did you and your players in 2002 realise at that time, the level of knock on positive impact you were going to have?

Joe Kernan: “It's obvious in Armagh because of the fanatical supporters we have, and I know it's over 20 years since we had it last, but the fact that these people turn out, and the effect they have on games, they're unbelievable, their enthusiasm shines back on the players and the players then produce it for them.

“We're hoping that we will have a whole new breed of young people wanting to play the game, and that's only good from a health point of view, but being selfish, making Armagh stronger, and instead of every 20 years, why not every 10 years be in an All-Ireland Final?"

GMcC: Kieran McGeeney was your captain in 2002.He's now the manager. What is it about him that makes him such a leader and how does he manage to get people to follow him, whether that's as a player or as a manager?

JK: “When I was helping Paddy Moriarty back in 1989, 1990, 1991, and that's when Geezer came in as an 18 or 19-year-old, you could see at an early age that this man was driven.

“For somebody to be driven for so long, that's unbelievable in itself. When I was in management, I came a stage where I said, ‘I'm not as driven as I was before, so it's time to get off the ship here and let somebody else do it’. But Kieran has been driven as a player and now in coaching and management this last 20 years. The players have all the benefits of that

“You listen to Kieran speak, you look at videos of him in the past, he is so driven that nobody could ever say he's not and now the players are reaping the rewards of his experience, his drive, and now he has them thinking the same way."

GMcC: The Kerry performance and the doggedness to get over the line in that game. How much will that stand to the players going into facing Galway?

JK: “I think the last two performances in particular, the Roscommon game put something to bed that was hanging over their head and was being used against them. It wasn't the best game, but that game was all about just winning it, and then the Kerry game was the game that you wanted. “If you're going to win an All-Ireland, you've got to beat Kerry.

“Now, we have players coming off the bench who are tough. They’re totally focused on the job that they have to do and the freshness they bring to the match, the pace and the drive that they have now, they did a couple of things during the match that they wouldn't have done six months ago.

“We were probably played a bit safer a few months ago, but the one incident in particular that really stood out to me was Ross McQuillan getting a ball under the Hogan stand, facing two Kerry players. Six months ago, with the game so close, we probably would have went backwards. He took the ball, burned the two boys, put it over the bar, and that lifted the whole place. On the other side, the same thing happened at the end. Conor Turbitt got the ball and took off like a race horse and put the ball over the bar.

“That sealed the game and that's the one thing that we weren't doing. So the positivity is there. We have the boys coming off the line and we know we're a match for anybody in the country.

“The two best teams and the two best defensive teams are now playing against each other, so I think this is going to be a tight one. It’ll be bad for the nerves!"

GMcC: You've been a player, you've been a manager, and won everything there is to win. You've always been a supporter the whole way through that. What would it mean to you for this team to go and win the Sam Maguire once again?

JK: “For these players, for Geezer and the background team, everybody, they put their heart and soul into this. You cannot compete at the highest level unless you put your heart and soul into it.

“Unfortunately for a few years it didn't work out there. Now they're getting the rewards and for the generations of young people coming behind, this is the thing that'll make Armagh better in years to come.

“That can only be good.”