‘It’s gut-wrenching’: Contentious late calls leave Kerry boss lost for words

Kerry manager Mark Bourke described the manner of their All-Ireland Senior Football Championship final defeat to Galway as "gut-wrenching," expressing utter deflation after the match. The game's conclusion was marred by contentious decisions, leaving Bourke and the Kerry camp frustrated.

“

It’s pretty gut-wrenching now. A two-pointer or a goal, a point on the advantage rule and all of them not given. It’s really tough.

The primary points of contention were a 'square ball' call against Kerry in the final moments and a referee's decision to end an advantage play when Síofra O’Shea was in possession. Bourke specifically highlighted the disallowed advantage, feeling O’Shea's subsequent point should have stood.

“

Yeah, absolutely. The player wasn’t going backwards, the player was in a positive position moving forward. I didn’t feel the hand was up long enough, maybe three seconds . . . I don’t know, referees usually leave that advantage go until there’s a deficit going the other way or a disadvantage of the play. It should have gone through and been counted as a point, yeah. That’s my opinion.

"A two-pointer or a goal, a point on the advantage rule and all of them not given. It’s really tough," Bourke stated. He elaborated on the advantage call, arguing that O’Shea was moving forward positively and the referee's whistle came too soon. "It should have gone through and been counted as a point, yeah. That’s my opinion."

“

I wasn’t close enough really to make a determination. There are two umpires, there’s a referee, there’s a video ref up in the box to review all this information. Were they all used? I’m not sure. The call was made, that’s it.

While acknowledging the difficulty of the referee's position and the presence of multiple officials, Bourke questioned the utilization of all available review resources. Galway manager Daniel Moynihan admitted relief that the potential winning score did not materialize, acknowledging the close nature of the game and the emotional toll on both sides. This victory marks Galway's second All-Ireland senior title.

“

I thought maybe it was a free as it happened. Obviously I haven’t watched it back, but then it was a case of ‘will she put this over for a two-pointer and then it’s going to go [finish] with the buzzer’? That was the initial thought, that possibly she has the legs, because she’s such a fantastic footballer. But as that ball went into the net, I could see so many bodies in there, I felt myself it was a square ball. I could see Maggie putting her hands up straight away as well. So, great relief is the thing for me.