Eamonn Fitzmaurice brings in new faces to face Mayo in Allianz League

Less than half of Kerry’s All-Ireland-winning team will start Sunday’s opening round of the Allianz League against Mayo, although there is one notable addition to the substitute list in former AFL player Tommy Walsh.

With players missing through injury, club duty and extended periods of rest, Eamonn Fitzmaurice has been able to call on just six players that started against Donegal in September: defenders Fionn Fitzgerald and Paul Murphy, midfielder David Moran (who will captain the team), plus Johnny Buckley, Stephen O’Brien and Paul Geaney.

Four more players who did appear as substitutes in the final (Shane Enright, Bryan Sheehan, Michael Geaney and Barry John Keane) are also named to start. James O’Donoghue (injured) and captain Kieran Donaghy (club tied) were not considered. Killian Young was in contention to start but picked up a groin injury at training last night.

Five-year spell

Walsh, meanwhile, is now poised for his first appearance for Kerry since 2009, as he is expected to play some part from the bench, having returned from a five-year spell in Australia fit and eager for action.

Opponents Mayo have named a more familiar looking team for what is a replay of last August’s epic 160-minute semi-final. Captain Keith Higgins starts at corner back, and Séamus O’Shea at midfield, although there are some new faces, including Evan Regan, Mark Ronaldson and senior debutant Patrick Durcan.

O’Shea has spoken about the familiarity of the new management pairing of Pat Holmes and Noel Connelly and having previously played under the pair when they managed the Mayo under-21 team form 2006 to 2008 (winning the All-Ireland in 2006).

Still involved

“There’s quite a few of us still involved from that team actually, such as myself, Kenneth O’Malley, Keith Higgins, Barry Moran, Chris Barrett and Colm Boyle, plus Mark Ronaldson, who is back there on the panel at the moment. Mickey Conroy too. So there’s a good few of us. There must be seven or eight of us,” said O’Shea

“It’s early days, but I wouldn’t say there is any major change yet. We’ve only gotten back in the last couple of weeks. We’ve Donie Buckley back as trainer so that’s good to have, a bit of continuity there. But ultimately you wouldn’t notice any major changes.”

Dublin will come up against a full-strength Cork side when they begin the defence of their Allianz League title in Páirc Uí Rinn on Sunday – a repeat of last year’s Division One semi-final, which saw Cork collapse under a late Dublin onslaught.

Cork manager Brian Cuthbert is obviously not in the mood for any repeat of that result, nor indeed any experimentation – at least not at this stage – as he includes all but four of the team that lost their All-Ireland quarter-final to Mayo last summer. Back into the team come Donncha O’Connor (introduced as a substitute against Mayo) and also Jamie O’Sullivan, Tomas Clancy and Donal Óg Hodnett, who have all made several previous occasions.

Clancy, from Fermoy, will line out at corner back, with his namesake Tom Clancy from the Clonakilty club alongside him at full back. Eoin Cadogan, who has committed to football only this season, is named at centre back. Dublin manager Jim Gavin is due to name his starting 15 tonight, as his team start their look to win a third league title in succession.

Cork’s hurlers are also in action tomorrow night in the Waterford Crystal Cup decider against Limerick in Mallow (7.0) and manager Jimmy Barry-Murphy has named a more experimental team, with Patrick Collins, for example, continuing in goal in place of Anthony Nash. Neither the CIT nor UCC players were unavailable.

Westmeath manager Tom Cribbin has confirmed that Ger Egan will captain his team for 2015, and is named at centre forward for their Division Two opener against Laois at Cusack Park.

Elsewhere, Dermot Molloy has opted out of the Donegal football panel, and will play no part in their league opening against Derry tomorrow night. Molloy made 50 appearances since 2010, but had become frustrated with a lack of regular game time.