In Kerry, winning All-Irelands is part of their DNA. There is a feeling in the county that the Sam Maguire should have a permanent residence within The Kingdom.
In most other counties, an All-Ireland triumph every decade or so would be rightly viewed as a remarkable success. In Kerry, their recent eight-year stint without the trophy was seen as a drought.
The wait is now over. The Munster champions came out on top after a hard fought battle against Galway at Croke Park this afternoon, finally achieving what most were long expecting from this group of players.
Kerry captains Seán O'Shea and Joe O'Connor lift the Sam Maguire cup after the GAA Football All-Ireland Senior Championship Final against Galway. Photo by Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile
They have an incredibly talented squad, one that was anointed as the next force in the game many years ago. However, they came up well short of expectations over the last couple of seasons.
Jack O'Connor on Kerry's All-Ireland triumph
They made a number of changes for the 2022 campaign, most notably on the sideline.
Jack O'Connor returned to manage the county for the third time, bringing with him a winning pedigree. The 61-year old lifted the Sam Maguire in each of his previous spells in charge and there were hopes that he would be the man to finally get this team over the line.
After bringing in some top quality coaches and making a few tactical adjustments, they have finally reach the promised land.
Speaking to RTÉ after the game, Jack O'Connor was coolness personified as took in his latest achievement.
"We had great fun, great craic. I'm a bit long in the tooth to be feeling pressure."
Jack O'Connor reacts to another All-Ireland win with Kerry in his third spell with the county #SundayGame #RTEGAA pic.twitter.com/QpJVG0Kykq— The Sunday Game (@TheSundayGame) July 24, 2022
This means everything to us. Every man, woman, and child in Kerry is celebrating this evening. It's like a religion down there, it's in our blood and it means everything.
I'm delighted for the people of Kerry, delighted for the players, an everyone involved...
I didn't (feel the pressure) to be honest with you. I'm a bit long in the tooth to be feeling pressure.
I really enjoyed this year. I'm not just saying that because we won, but I really enjoyed the year. I'm philosophical enough now to enjoy it as we go along.
We had great fun, great craic. More than anything else we enjoyed being together, the training, lads enjoyed being together. What can I say? I'm a bit emotional and not making much sense.
I'm just delighted for this group. They've been under huge pressure, huge, huge pressure from everybody. They showed their mettle in the second half when that game was going against them...
Look, sure we have a strong panel and we have to use it. David [Moran] was sick for a week last week, I had the same dose myself actually, so we weren't expecting him to last the game anyway. Paul [Geaney] was getting on a lot of possession but was a little bit jittery with it, so we just thought we would bring Killian [Spillane] in to steady it up.
The lads contributed, everybody contributed. We're just delighted to get it over the line.
There will be hopes in Kerry that this victory kicks off a sustained period of All-Ireland success for the county, something that Jack O'Connor is sure to be a part of.
He did some job with them this year and deserves all of the accolades that will be coming his way from within GAA circles.
SEE ALSO: Pat Spillane Gives Incredibly Emotional Speech After Kerry's All-Ireland Win
