David Clifford hat-trick earns points for Kerry
DAVID CLIFFORD MARKED his first start for Kerry this year with a hat-trick of goals as Kerry snatched an unlikely but crucial win away to Tyrone, a result that keeps the Kingdom above Tyrone on the Division One table and out of the relegation conversation for now.
That Kerry engineered this win from being seven points down midway through the second half – and also having Joe O’Connor and Clifford black carded in the second half – will please manager Jack O’Connor no end, though his counterpart Malachy O’Rourke will be dumbfounded at how this one got away.
Tyrone didn’t score for the final 18 minutes after Mark Bradley’s goal from the penalty spot (he needed a second shot after Shane Ryan had saved the initial kick) put Tyrone 2-13 to 2-8 ahead in the 52nd minute, while Kerry mined 1-5 thereafter to completely flip this engaging contest on its head.
Dylan Casey and Paul Geaney scored Kerry points to keep them in the hunt after the Tyrone penalty, and when Clifford came back on after his time in the sin bin, his first action was to beat Niall Morgan for the third time.
That levelled the game, 3-10 to 2-13, and two more Clifford points from frees, and another from Graham O’Sullivan sealed the win for Kerry.
A water-logged Healy Park in Omagh sent this game to Pomeroy, but Kerry took to the unfamiliar surrounding best from the off.
Clifford marked his first start of 2025 with the game’s first point after three minutes, with Brian O Beaglaoich, Dylan Geaney and Paudie Clifford putting the visitors four points ahead after just nine minutes.
Between Geaney’s and Clifford’s points Tyrone were reduced to 14 players when Eoin McElholm was sent to the sin bin on a black card, and the home side’s response was perfect. Two two-pointers from Michael McKernan and another from Conn Kilpatrick put them 0-6 to 0-4 ahead.
Tyrone were 0-9 to 0-5 ahead when recently introduced Darragh Canavan’s two-point free pushed his side six clear, with Kerry really struggling against a difficult cross-field wind and some excellent turnovers by a really keyed up Tyrone side.
In the 33rd minute Paul Geaney set up David Clifford whose goal made it 1-5 to 0-11 at half time.
Darragh Canavan and Paul Geaney traded frees, before David Clifford crashed his shot off the Tyrone crossbar. Canavan did better at the other end two minutes later when he beat Ryan in the Kerry goal after Bradley set him up. A Darren McCurry point soon after had Tyrone 1-13 to 1-6 ahead and in pole position after 48 minutes.
Kerry remained resilient and when Paul Geaney set up Clifford for his second goal the visitors had a lifeline. Geaney and Diarmuid O’Connor added points before Tyrone looked to have settled themselves with Bradley’s penalty goal.
In the meantime, Clifford had taken his 10-minute break and came back in to complete his hat trick and secure an unlikely but much needed win for the Kingdom.
Scorers for Tyrone: D Canavan 1-4 (1f, 1 2pf), M Bradley 1-1 (1-0 pen), M McKernan 0-4 (2 2p), C Kilpatrick 0-2 (1 2p), D McCurry 0-2 (2f), M Bradley 0-1
Scorers for Kerry: D Clifford 3-3 (0-2f), P Geaney 0-3 (3f), D Geaney 0-1, P Clifford 0-1, J O’Connor 0-1, D O’Connor 0-1, B O Beaglaoich 0-1, D Casey 0-1, G O’Sullivan 0-1
Tyrone: Niall Morgan, Aidan Clarke, Peter Teague, Niall Devlin, Michael McKernan, Rory Brennan, Frank Burns, Brian Kennedy, Conn Kilpatrick, Michael O’Neill, Mattie Donnelly, Ciaran Daly, Darren McCurry, Mark Bradley, Eoin McElholm.
Subs: Darragh Canavan for M O’Neill (22), Ruairi Canavan for D McCurry (47), Seanie O’Donnell for F Burns (52), Peter Harte for M Donnelly (59), Kieran McGeary for E McElholm (66).
Kerry: Shane Ryan, Damien Bourke, Jason Foley, Dylan Casey, Graham O’Sullivan, Mike Breen, Brian Ó Beaglaoich, Diarmuid O’Connor, Joe O’Connor, Darragh Lyne, Paudie Clifford, Ruairí Murphy, David Clifford, Paul Geaney, Dylan Geaney.
Subs: Conor Geaney for D Geaney (48), Barry ‘Dan’ O’ Sullivan for D Lyne (58), Micheal Burns for P Geaney (65), Paul Murphy for B O Beaglaoich (69).
Ref: Paddy Neilan.
The 42
