Aidan O'Mahony on Jack O'Connor: "It' s like the Premier League, you're never forgiven once you move"

Former Kerry GAA star Aidan O’Mahony has weighed in on ‘the great turncoat debate’ ahead of the Allianz Football League Division 1 clash between Kildare and Kerry this Sunday at St Conleth’s Park. Ex-Kildare manager Jack O’Conner switched allegiance, leaving the Lilywhites high and dry last year when he rejoined his native county in the Kingdom in the wake of the 2021 championship.

Speaking to Paddy Power News, the bookmaker’s resident GAA expert and former Kerry star Aidan O’Mahony shared his views on O’Connor and all that lies ahead as the GAA season kicks into full swing.

"When Kerry was beaten by Tyrone in the All-Ireland final, Jack O’Connor made it known that his heart is at home and he wanted the Kerry job. He was obviously Kildare manager at the time, so from the perspective of Lilywhite supporters, it’s like when a manager moves from one club to another in the Premier League. You’re never forgiven once you move. When there’s a breakdown and you leave mid-season, it’s never going to end well. As for the welcome he gets from them this weekend, I’m not sure they’ll be too kind to him," O'Mahony said.

There will be a lot of bite in this game on Sunday with Jack returning to his old hunting ground of Kildare as Kerry’s manager, and it’s a mouth-watering one for the first game of the year.

The crossover of staff adds a fascinating layer to Sunday's game, and it has not just been Jack O'Connor who has gone between Kingdom and Kildare. It was announced in recent weeks that former Kerry All Star Paul Galvin had joined the backroom ranks of Kildare, having reportedly turned down a similar role in Kerry county (after a brief spell as Wexford manager).

Aidan O'Mahony had this to say on Kildare's prospects and the addition of his former teammate, "You nearly have a full All Star team in the backroom of Kildare now - you’ve all the Kildare greats in there – and someone like Paul Galvin coming in, who is a deep thinker when it comes to games, will bring something different. Obviously, Glenn Ryan saw that in him.

If you’re ever looking at a nucleus of a backroom team that you wanted for any county, then you’ve every piece of the jigsaw there in Kildare. Ahead of this weekend’s game, who better to have in the Kildare set-up than one of Jack’s past pupils."