County Derry Post

Derry’s star forward Paddy Bradley believes that this Sunday’s trip to Killarney to play Kerry will show the Oak Leaf side exactly how they are progressing.

By Chris McCann

sport@derrypost.com

  Paddy Crozier’s side have made a flying start to the National League with wins over Mayo and Laois but Bradley says that Kerry will provide a much truer gauge of where the team stands.

“There are a lot of new fellas in the side and this is an acid test. We played Mayo who were down a few men and Laois are a side in transition. Sunday’s game will tell the tale. We have been missing some important players, particularly in defence with the likes of Sean Marty Lockhart, Mickey McGoldrick, Gerard O’Kane, and Kevin McCloy has only played a few minutes.  It’s a chance for the new fellas to prove that they have the quality.

“One of the things that make Kerry such a good side is that there is serious competition for places. This is a great opportunity for one or two of the newer fellas to show that they really have got what it takes and that the experienced boys can’t expect to just walk back into the team when they are fit again,” said the Glenullin man.

Bradley’s only previous encounter with Kerry came in 2004 when he was part of the side that lost to the Kingdom in an All-Ireland semi-final.

“At the end of the day they are the All-Ireland Champions, they might be missing some star names in Colm Cooper and Declan O’Sullivan but they are still the best team in the country. Some of us played against them in the All-Ireland semi-final in 2004 and we were disappointed with how the game went in the second half. We were well in that game at half-time and we let it slip in the space of 10 or 15 minutes in the second half,” he said.

The Mitchel’s forward is looking forward to testing himself against the best side in the country and believes that a victory would provide a massive boost in confidence.

“I think that Kerry is maybe the only county in Ireland that I haven’t played in. It would be great to come down to their patch and leave with a win this is the sort of game you want to be playing in – against Kerry in Kerry. Things are going well and confidence is high after two wins, I wouldn’t be 100 per cent happy with my own form but it’s early in the season and I’m working hard at my game,” he said.