• [Irish Mirror Icon]
• Sport
• AFL Grand Final

Former Kerry GAA starlet to set at least one new record in AFL Grand Final

Mark O'Connor will be joined by fellow Irishman Oisn Mullin of Mayo as Geelong bid to see off holders Brisbane Lions at the MCG.

[Mark O'Connor of the Cats is tackled by Cam Rayner of the Lions during the AFL Second Qualifying Final match between the Geelong Cats and the Brisbane Lions at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on September 5.]

View 2 Images

Mark O'Connor of the Cats is tackled by Cam Rayner of the Lions during the AFL Second Qualifying Final match between the Geelong Cats and the Brisbane Lions at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on September 5.(Image: Michael Willson/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

Kerry's Mark OConnor is in line to set a new mark for Irish players in the AFL as he bids for his second Premiership title tomorrow. OConnor is one of only four Irishmen, along with former teammate Zach Tuohy, fellow Kerryman Tadhg Kennelly and Conor McKenna, to have reached the summit of Australian rules football having been part of the Geelong side that won the flag in 2022 alongside Tuohy, who retired last year.

But just by stepping on the MCGs hallowed turf for the game against holders Brisbane Lions, OConnor will become the first Irishman to play in three AFL Grand Finals.

Legendary Dubliner Jim Stynes and Sean Wight, another Kerry native, became the first Irishmen to play in a Grand Final, albeit the VFL version prior to the AFL expansion, in 1988, though their Melbourne side suffered a crushing defeat to Hawthorn and, while Stynes achieved the ultimate individual accolade by winning the Brownlow Medal in 1991, he and Wight never got back to that stage of the competition.

In 2005, Kennelly was the first Irish player to win a Premiership as the Sydney Swans beat West Coast. He was back the following year though West Coast turned the tables, winning by a single point, but, while he won an All-Ireland three years later, his AFL career didnt scale those heights thereafter.

It wasnt until 2020 that there was Irish interest in a Grand Final again as Geelong, featuring OConnor and Tuohy, lost out to Richmond, though they went one better two years later against the Swans.

Though Tuohy has moved on, OConnor will be joined by another fellow countryman in Oisn Mullin, who has become a mainstay of the side this season.

After Kennelly and McKenna, Mullin will become just the third male footballer to feature in All-Ireland and Grand Finals having been a key player for Mayo when they lost out to Dublin and Tyrone, with McKenna in tow, in 2020 and 21 respectively.

In theory, McKenna could outstrip OConnor tomorrow by winning his second Premiership with the Lions having featured in their Grand Final win 12 months ago, as he emulated Kennelly by becoming just the second man to win an All-Ireland and a Premiership.

However, the former Tyrone footballer has not been selected since picking up a hamstring injury against Gold Coast in July, one of only five AFL appearances that he has made this season.

[Conor McKenna of the Lions celebrates after the AFL Grand Final match between Sydney Swans and Brisbane Lions.]

View 2 Images

Conor McKenna of the Lions celebrates after the AFL Grand Final match between Sydney Swans and Brisbane Lions.(Image: Photo by Darrian Traynor/AFL Photos/via Getty Images)

It seems unlikely that he will be included in the squad for the Grand Final, which would preclude him from winning a medal if Brisbane were to complete the two-in-a-row.

Furthermore, his contract with the club is about to expire and it appears that the 29-year-olds career is very much at a crossroads.

Kilkenny native Darragh Joyce is also out of favour with the Lions this year having failed to make a single AFL appearance this year after featuring six times in 2024. Like McKenna, he is out of contract at the end of the current campaign and may be eying a return to Ireland at this stage.

[Irish Mirror Icon]

ENJOYED THIS STORY?

Choose Irish Mirror as a 'Preferred Source' on Google News for quick access to the news you value.