Aghabullogue boss Ray Keane: Our players died with their boots on

Aghabullogue manager Ray Keane couldn’t fault his players after their AIB Munster Club IFC final loss to An Ghaeltacht.

The Muskerry side lost to the Kerry team on a scoreline of 2-12 to 1-8 at Mick Neville Park in Rathkeale on Saturday afternoon.

Aghabullogue were level at half-time having played with the wind, as they could only manage two points in the second 30 minutes.

“You just want the lads to go out and give everything and they did that,” he said post-match.

“We left a few chances after us there in the second half and An Ghaeltacht went down and got a couple of scores.

“That's just a killer, it just stretches the lead. It's like a double punishment, but look, we've no complaints.

“We fought hard. They were the better team. That's the reality of it.” 

Keane wouldn’t be drawn into the grading debate that always comes back into the public domain around this time of the year.

“I’m not going to talk about the grading system, but I think somebody should. But that game was still there for us at times. And look, as I said, we left a few chances after us. They took them at the other end.

“Small things can swing a game in your favour or the other way. Unfortunately, today it was the other way.

“It doesn’t define Buttevant and it doesn’t define us. It is what it is. We’re not going to change it, you know what I mean? As I say, I’m not going to get into that conversation. The reality here is that we’re thrilled to be coming out of the grade that we were in this year and heading for senior football.

“We’ve had an unbelievable year. It’s probably some of these lads first time ever playing football in December. I’m just thrilled that they went out and gave a great account of themselves.

“They died with their boots on. I’m sure there isn’t a person in the parish of Aghabullogue tonight that would be disappointed with the performance that the players put in.

“We will rest now and they'll be ready to go again in February.” 

It has been a remarkable year for Aghabullogue. They completed the double for a second time in three seasons. They can look forward to Senior A football in 2026 for the first time.

“We won't let today define us. To be fair, if you would have said to any of us around 20 months ago that we would be in a county final and heading to senior, let alone being in a Munster final, we probably wouldn’t have believed you.

“That’s not an excuse for today. But, you know, it's amazing what we have achieved. We’re talking about part-time players. It tells you the sense of achievement.”