Cooper ready for the main stage

GAA:HE WAS always going to be Kerry's most marked man going into an All-Ireland football final yet, after his performance against Mayo on Sunday, Colm Cooper may as well carry a neon sign over his head, warning everyone to "watch me", or at least some words to that effect.

In scoring 1-7 of Kerry’s 1-20 total, the Gooch was not only back to his creative best but also underlined his importance to the Kerry team if, and when, the pressure really comes on. While there’s nothing to suggest Cooper can’t handle that pressure going into the All-Ireland, there is also the small additional matter of the Kerry captaincy, which through no fault of his own, now puts unprecedented pressure on his slender shoulders.

The situation there, as most historians of Kerry football will tell you, is that no player from the famous Dr Crokes club in Killarney has managed to captain the county to All-Ireland glory since the legendary Dick Fitzgerald captained back-to-back winning Kerry teams in 1913 and 1914.

In fact, strictly speaking, no Dr Crokes player has ever lifted the Sam Maguire on All-Ireland football final day, as that cup wasn’t first presented until 1928. Fitzgerald – after whom Fitzgerald Stadium in Killarney is named – died tragically on the weekend of the 1930 All-Ireland final.

While other footballers from Killarney have successfully captained Kerry to All-Ireland glory, including Johnny Culloty from the Legion club in 1969, no Dr Crokes player has been as fortunate. Eoin Brosnan took over the honour during Kerry’s ill-fated summer of 2001, and before that, Connie Murphy was the last club player to have the honour, in the similarly ill-fated summer of 1992.

For the Gooch, such pressure and expectation rarely matters: Sunday marked his 63rd championship appearance, since making his debut in 2002, and during which he has now scored an extraordinary 16-214. He’s also now totalled 1-24 for the summer, and thus just five points shy of the 2011 top football scorer, Wexford’s Ben Brosnan. It would be more than a fitting end to his season if he tops that list come the third Sunday in September.

In the meantime he’s already playing down expectations, suggesting Sunday’s display in Croke Park was far from the complete performance, and that he only really came into the game in the second half.

“It took a while for the form to come good,” he says.

“I’d felt good all summer, but just hadn’t been razor-sharp. Croke Park can bring it out in you, but like that, it took me a while in the first 15 or 20 minutes too so I’ll have to look at that and see if we rectify it.

“You have to give credit to Mayo. They put us under a lot of pressure and at times there was an extra man back there. They had their homework done and they are a good side. We maybe rushed things a little bit and it took us a while to settle, but you are going to get that on big days, and we’ll go back to the drawing board and see if we can iron it out a little bit.

“Sometimes it’s hard because teams are so well prepared for you, and they know your strengths. So there are loads of areas we can improve on. We are still finding our feet a little bit. Hopefully we can find another gear or two for the final because we will need every bit of it.”

Needless to say Cooper wasn’t being drawn on any preference for Dublin or Donegal, except to say he expected an honest contest either way: “It will be an interesting match to see those two in action next weekend and we are just glad we are there now and can go away and prepare as best we can. Whoever gets there, they haven’t been there in a while so they will be bursting to go. Sure we’ll see.”

Kerry manager Jack O’Connor reckons Croke Park is Cooper’s “theatre”, and while that is certainly true, Cooper reckons it’s the same for every footballer: “Sure if you can’t enjoy yourself out there you might as well forget about it. That’s the place to do it, in Croke Park, and it’s just great to get back there again. Hopefully we can step it up another gear for the final.

Defender Tomás Ó Sé has also highlighted Cooper’s importance to Kerry’s game right now, suggesting he’s “as good a player as has ever played the game”.

“His outlook on the game is that of a team player,” said Ó Sé. “He is always playing for the team and not for himself. If someone else is in a better spot than himself he will give them the ball. He is playing very well and we are very lucky to have him. I just hope we can do the job for him now and that he will bring Sam Maguire home to Kerry.”

Yet Ó Sé enjoyed a fine afternoon of his own, particularly given the fears his injured hamstring wouldn’t hold up: “I was worried myself about the injury and I didn’t know until Saturday night if I would be playing or not. The leg feels fine now and I hope there will be no problems with it in the next few weeks.”