David Kelly – the best of both worlds

STANDING, soaked, on the sideline at Clones on Ulster final day, David Kelly couldn’t have imagined the season he was about to experience. Kelly was part of the 1999 Armagh team that was being honoured for their Ulster title achievements 25 years ago.

In the months that followed, the Orchard County collected the Sam Maguire Cup for just the second time in their history. Kelly earned some silverware of his own in the orange and white, winning the Challenge Cup with the Armagh Masters.

He witnessed his native club Clann Éireann become kings of Armagh again. He wore the number 24 shirt for his adopted club Carrickcruppen as they won the Intermediate crown. He watched his son Tiernan kick the winner after coming in off the bench to see off St Paul’s.

It’s been quite a roller-coaster ride. But the journey continues and next Sunday, he’ll be part of the Carrickcruppen warm-up as they prepare to take on the Derry champions Ballinderry in the opening round of Ulster.

As always, he’ll have an eye on the main event coming up after as Clann Éireann begin their own provincial campaign against Newbridge, who knocked out the reigning Ulster and All-Ireland champions Glen.

“When you sit back and think about it, it’s been an exceptional year,” said the 48-year-old who is still togging out for Carrickcruppen.

“I’m delighted personally for my family and for both of the clubs and everything that goes with it. If anyone had told me last year about how everything was going to pan out, I would have said they were deluded but I’ll take it, and we’ll keep trucking on.”

Kelly played midfield in 2002 when Clann Éireann overcame Carrickcruppen in the IFC final. He and his wife Jennifer lived in Lurgan for the first few of years of marriage but with baby number three on the way, they decided to relocate to her home village of Bessbrook.

Kelly, who worked in Craigavon at the time, still played with Clann Éireann but the travelling back and forth became too tough. After years of trying to convince Kelly to join, ‘Cruppen finally landed their man.

“With three young children under the age of five, it was a challenge,” he recalled. “We trained on Tuesday and Thursday, so I was leaving the house at 6.30am and I wasn’t getting home until to 10.30pm and it just wasn’t feasible.

“I bit the bullet and put the transfer request in. I phoned a few of the lads just to let them know and the boys were understanding but I remember one Monday night and my phone rang, it was James Byrne.

“We were chatting away and he told me that the draw for the Senior Championship had been done and then the penny dropped. Clann Éireann and Carrickcruppen in August, so the honeymoon period of joining ‘Cruppen didn’t last that long.”

All these years later, and he’s still pulling on that red and white shirt, more often than he would have expected. Kelly, a far-out relation to Armagh’s All-Ireland winner and Clann Éireann midfielder Tiernan Kelly, is heavily involved in coaching around the club.

Not only that, but he’s part of the senior management team too alongside Barry Flynn, Paul Cunningham and Paul Keenan and until a conversation took place with Cunningham late last year, he was more than happy with that role.

“I’ll blame Paul Cunningham,” laughed Kelly, who refused to join the players’ WhatsApp group. “He had a conversation with me in November or December last year. I had played a couple of games last year, but I was on the management team.

“I’ve been overseeing a lot of the underage coming through over the last 10 or 12 years. I did the odd night’s training and actually had to do nets a couple of times last year, but I was just tipping away at reserve football.

“I went through pre-season and just felt my way in, and it probably surprised myself more so than anybody else with the amount of game time I got this year. I didn’t really expect to see any to be honest.

“I remember we were playing Keady in the first round of the league and the team was announced on the Friday evening and I was in the middle of the field with Jack Cunningham, and I couldn’t believe it.

“The lads have been great to me, I coached most of them through the years. We have a bit of craic, and they drive me on. We actually have an age range of 31 years – from Eoin Kane who is 17 to me at 48. The average age is about 22, but it would be 19 only for me.”

Kelly watched on from the sideline, proud as punch, as his two sons Tiernan and Daire were sprung from the bench in the county final. Both are also fine soccer players, and the older of the two, Tiernan, currently plays in the Irish League with Loughgall as a defender.

Daire is also on their books and is part of the u-20 side, but both got permission from the club to line out for the Camlough side in the biggest day of the year. And in Tiernan’s case, he certainly made it count.

With the game there to be won, a turnover in defence saw the ball shifted towards Kelly. Without a second thought, Kelly, who hit the net when ‘Cruppen won the championship in 2021, swung over the game-winning score.

“The two boys both played. Tiernan got permission to play in the final and I was delighted for Daire, the younger lad, who came on in the last 15 minutes,” explained Kelly. “Then when the game was in the balance, the ball fell to Tiernan.

“We have plenty of boys who can shoot the lights out, but I think when the ball was in Tiernan’s arms, everybody knew where it was going. So, I was delighted for them and at my age, I didn’t celebrate it too much, but the lads really enjoyed it.”

Just six days after celebrating the Intermediate triumph, Kelly was back in the BOX-IT Athletic Grounds, hoping for more silverware to come his way. This time, it was the orange and white of Clann Éireann he was cheering on in the All-Lurgan Senior final.

Clann Éireann ended a 67-year wait for a Senior title just three seasons ago and this crop of players was expected to dominate the Armagh club scene. It didn’t pan out like that, but they’ve finally got a second title, seeing off Lurgan rivals Clan na Gael.

“I was delighted for the lads and a load of them now have two Senior Championship medals in their back pockets. Ruairi (Lavery, the manager) inherited a good squad, and they have just added to that.

“Knowing Ruairi like I do, the lad is just obsessed with football. He will always leave no stone unturned to get the best out of the team. He’s honest and forthright and I was delighted for him to get over the line as well.”

Those two club championship victories weren’t the only celebrating Kelly did this year. He was part of the panel that ended Armagh’s 17-year wait for an Ulster title in 1999 and they were honoured at half time of this year’s decider.

While the current Armagh crop are still searching for a first Anglo Celt since 2008, despite being crowned All-Ireland champions in the summer, the class of ’99 is still fondly remembered throughout the Orchard County.

Squeezed in beside Steven McDonnell and Ger Reid for the team photograph, Kelly felt right at home back with his old crew. Their achievement, 25 years ago, sparked a golden period of football in the county.

“You obviously still see some of the lads around, but there were boys that I hadn’t seen in about 20 years,” pondered Kelly. “The likes of Mark Campbell who’s living in Chicago now, Des Mackin lives in Barcelona, Mark McNeill, Andy McCann, boys like that.

“Benny (Tierney) said on BBC that it didn’t take us long to start falling back in with each other like we were back in the changing room, and it really didn’t. The slagging, the banter, it just brought back so many memories.

“I don’t think we realised at the time what we had done for football in Armagh, that probably took a wee while. Cross had won a couple of All-Ireland clubs and then Armagh really just took off from there.”

While the success with the Armagh Masters this year couldn’t be compared to the lofty heights of 1999, 2002 or indeed this year’s All-Ireland victory, Kelly still enjoyed representing his county, no matter the level or the standard.

The Masters team was set up last season with a number of golden oldies putting their hands up to play. Ciaran McKeever, former Armagh captain and the current coach, was perhaps the biggest name to line out for the newly formed outfit.

They reached the Spirit Cup final in 2023 and put in a brilliant performance but came up short against Limerick after extra-time. Coming back for season two however, Kelly and his teammates were determined to get their hands on a trophy.

“I got added to a WhatsApp group last year and I went down to the training one night and saw loads of the lads that I would have known and would have played against, but it’s the boys behind the scenes like Brian McGeary, Paudie McKeever, Austy McKenna who did a lot of the work.

“They organised everything and got it up and running. Last year we did okay but we lost the Spirit Cup final so this year we wanted to come back and win something tangible and obviously that worked out well.

“To get over the line and to win a cup, to get All-Ireland medals, has been exceptional and I think it should be given the recognition that it probably hasn’t got within the county.”

It’s been quite the year, but it’s not over yet. Carrickcruppen will line out in Celtic Park this weekend and have their eyes on the next big challenge. Clann Éireann will do the same. Kelly, no matter what his involvement, will be cheering both on.

“We were back on the pitch after a couple of days celebrating and there was a bit of bite in training which was good to see,” he added. “We’re excited about competing in the first round of Ulster against the Derry champions.

“The boys (management) will do what they do – and what they have been doing for the last number of years is getting the team ready and setting out a game plan and hopefully there will be a few more big days down the line.”