Kerry's Tadhg Kennelly has revealed that his controversial challenge on Cork's Nicholas Murphy in the opening seconds of this year's All-Ireland SFC final was a premeditated act intended to lay down a marker to the Rebels.
Kerry had earlier been beaten by Conor Counihan's men in the Munster semi-final and Kennelly and his Kingdom team-mates were anxious to ensure they were not beaten by their perennial rivals for a second time in three months.
Now Kennelly, in his autobiography, titled 'Unfinished Business', admits that the high and dangerous challenge on the unsuspecting Murphy was planned before the throw-in.
In excerpts quoted in today's Sunday Independent, the former Sydney Swan Australian Rules player reveals: 'My theory was that I really wanted to set the tone for our side. We wanted Cork to know that we were a totally different animal to the one they'd faced three months earlier.
'As we got to our positions, I looked across at (Paul) Galvin, who nodded, and then positioned myself on the line ready to race in when the referee put the ball in the air. My eyes were almost rolling around in the back of my head. I was like a raging bull.'
He says he 'timed it right' and caught Murphy 'perfectly on the chin'.
According to Kenneally, his message was: 'Cop that. It's different this time, boys.'
Referee Marty Duffy awarded a free to Cork at the time and the Central Competition Controls Committee (CCCC) examined footage of the incident after the final and decided not to ask Duffy to review his decision.
