Kildare midfielder Kevin Feely gave the 66’734 crowd in attendance in Croke Park on Sunday one of the finest exhibitions in fielding the ball that they’re ever likely to see.
The 24-year-old was unmarkable in the Leinster final as he cleaned Dublin’s 6ft 4 in powerhouse Brian Fenton out of the game in the air.
The Athy man gave Fenton a lesson in catching the ball and by the 65th minute when his day was brought to an end due to an unfortunate black card, he had won 9 out of the 12 kick outs that the pair contested.
The Lillywhite claimed four marks, to add to the five that he had won up to this game in the Leinster Championship.
Just look at that leap.
He won one free off Fenton, he won one sideline, he batted two balls down to his team-mates and he won one ball that broke to the ground after the pair contested it in the air.
The sprightly midfielder also kicked five points on the day, two with his left and three with his right as he boasted every single skill in the game.
His range of passing, as he sprayed some inviting balls in front of his Kildare forwards was another impressive facet. He displayed all the skills of a professional soccer player
Perhaps the biggest farce of all was that Jack McCaffrey got nominated for man-of-the-match by The Sunday Game panel ahead of him.
The problem for Kildare, and for Feely, was the aforementioned black card.
It’s the third that Feely has collected this year after earlier indiscretions in league games against Cork and Clare.
As it stands he is set to be suspended for their upcoming Round 4B qualifier against Armagh.
The indications are that Kildare will appeal and given his recent superb displays, his absence would be a major setback for Kildare.
What was most noticeable about Feely’s textbook technique in catching a high ball was that he was running at pace onto almost every ball he won. This built-up speed gave him the ability to spring off the ground to an almighty height.
His positioning and judgement of the arriving ball was always perfect, as his head was almost directly under the majority of balls that he caught, with his arms extended to their maximum above his head.
Feely was at it from the word-go winning a mark from a Mark Donnellan kick-out in the 44th second of the game.
He was rising above two Dubliners again after 3 minutes and 16 seconds of the game, when he won his second mark of the game. Every aspect of this catch was impressive from his giant leap to his ability to hold on to the ball despite Fenton and Jack McCaffrey attempting to slap down on it.
Raheny club man Fenton was realising how much he was struggling, and cheekily tripped up Feely as he went to catch a sixth minute kick out. Luckily enough, referee Anthony Nolan spotted the indiscretion.
In the ninth minute, Feely was effective in holding off last year’s all-star, allowing his team-mate Tommy Moolick to have a free attempt at catching the ball.
In the 11th minute, Fenton was getting resigned to being under the cosh in the air, and swiped at the ball to give away a sideline to Kildare.
The order remained the same between the two after the interval, with Cian O’Neill’s midfield salmon leaping highest to win his third mark of the day.
In the 43rd, he was at it again, with James McCarthy, this time, accompanying Fenton as a spectator to Feely’s prowess.
This 46th-minute catch after a skyscraper from Philly McMahon was probably his most impressive field of the day.
And he caught another in the 47th.
Cian O’Neill, along with the population of Kildare, will be hoping against hope that the black card he received can be overturned for their clash with Armagh.
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