Oscar Traynor Trophy Preview ; Kerry DL v Defence Forces
Oscar Traynor Trophy 2nd Round
Sunday 01st March 2015
Kerry District League v Defence Forces
Kick off , 2.00pm
Venue , Mounthawk Park , Tralee .
By Tommy Naughton
Kerry District League face the Defence Forces on Sunday at Mounthawk Park Tralee in the second round of the Oscar Traynor Trophy . This is a winner takes all tie with a place in the quarter final away to the Wexford League up for grabs . Full Oscar Traynor Trophy Draw can be viewed HERE .
Kerry came through a tough group which contained The Cork Aul , Limerick District and the Desmond League . In their opening game away to the Limerick District they picked up a point with a late equaliser ( MATCH REPORT ) . In their second game Kerry hosted the Cork Aul and again had to score late to take a valuable point ( MATCH REPORT ) . Kerry’s final game was at home against the Desmond League where they knew a win would secure second place in the group which they secured on a tight and nervous 4-3 score line ( MATCH REPORT ) .
Defence forces also had to come through a tough group which had the Dublin Aul who are trying to win this competition for the fifth year in a row , the Leinster Senior League and the Wicklow league . In their opening game the went down on a 4-0 score line against the Dublin Aul , Their second game saw them defeat the Leinster Senior League by three goals to one ( MATCH HIGHLIGHTS ) . Their final game saw them defeat the Wicklow league on a 4-1 score line . This meant they would finish second in the group with a better head to head result against the Leinster Senior League .
Kerry District League and the Defence Forces have met in the last two seasons of the Oscar Traynor Trophy with each side winning on one occasion each . In the 2012/13 competition the Defence forces won on a 2-1 score line ( MATCH REPORT ) but Kerry gained revenge in the 2013/14 competition in which they won by two goals to nil ( MATCH REPORT ) .
The Kerry District League are managed by John o Regan and assisted by Tadgh Healy and Robert Powell . Earlier this week Assistant Manager Tadgh Healy told me how preparations for Sunday have been going , “We hold our final training session Friday night in preparation for Sundays Oscar Traynor 2nd round clash against the Defence Forces at Mounthawk Park. We have a couple of injury concerns and these players will be monitored and hopefully will come through their fitness test Friday night. Kerry will be strengthened with the return of their experienced centre half Shane Guthrie and left back Ryan Downey. We have strengthened the squad by adding Joe Sheehy and Luke Burgess from Dingle Bay Rovers and from Tralee Dynamos Jonathan Hannafin and these premier A players just might give Kerry the edge in Sundays encounter.
The Defence forces are managed by Declan Sheridan and earlier this week he told me how preparations for Sunday have gone , ” Preparation has been progressing steadily for the Defence Forces Team coming out as runners up of a strong group with Dublin AUL, Leinster Senior League and Wicklow. The Defence Forces are fully aware of the challenge ahead in Tralee on Sunday 01st March. The Kerry District League have pedigree in this Competition reaching the semi-final stage last year and as shown in recent group matches are capable of scoring many goals. The Defence Forces have lost some players to Senior Leagues in recent weeks but this will test new squad members going forward. The match should make for a very entertaining encounter with two similarly attack minded teams” .
Sunday looks like it will be a very close encounter and hopefully a large crowd will show to support the Kerry side to give the extra lift they might need to get over the line to secure a quarter final spot .